Articles

It's the best day ever! It has been snowing for three days straight- and now the sun is shining and the powder is perfect. You and your companions are in a secret location with not another rider around - your group couldn't be happier. But then...all of a sudden... you hear someone yell, "Avalanche!" You look up to see one of your friends high on the slope being swallowed by a wall of moving snow. What are you going to do? 

It hadn’t snowed in days. I was out skiing and digging snowpits, testing the stability. Layers were bonding to one another and I couldn’t find any trouble in the snowpack. But I wasn’t happy.

 Ski areas are now open and so are their backcountry access gates. The sidecountry provides great skiing and snowboarding opportunities, but also presents some challenges.  

The winter of 2009/10 was the busiest season the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center has had in its twenty years of operation - 87 avalanche incidents were reported in southwest Montana. The incidents reported included 21 people caught, 9 partial burials, 3 full burials and 3 fatalities, but this is, unfortunately, not the full picture. Inherently, many avalanche events were never reported to the forecast center.

In 2005, after 16 years of use, the U.S. and Canadian professional avalanche community decided the danger scale needed to be revised.  Words like "probable" were confusing, and the scale was weighted toward probability instead of consequence.

This winter, the Climate Prediction Center is predicting a La Nina (the girl) weather pattern, which should bring colder temperatures and more snow to western Montana.

We just finished our 20^th year of operation at the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center (GNFAC).  All three of us had a great, safe season and owe a huge thanks to all our supporters in the community, co-workers on Gallatin National Forest, and Friends of the Avalanche Center (FOAC).  We could not have succeeded without all of your help.

I can't believe this is happening.  I watch my friend ski a beautiful line, but the slope avalanches in slow motion.  It swallows him from behind and I can't see him.  I scream, "Avalanche!", but I don't know if he heard me.  He's buried.  I know it.  

Knowing the tools and skills of safe travel in avalanche terrain is an essential component of making informed decisions in this environment. These tools include having rescue gear and knowing how to use it, understanding avalanche terrain, recognizing signs of instability and making smart choices.