Detailed Content
Topics covered on this course:
By the end of the course we hope you will have a basic understanding of:
- Understanding an avalanche forecast and apply it to the area you want to ski in.
- Select a safe route through the mountains minimising exposure to avalanche risk.
- Recognise instabilities in the snow pack using observations and some simple tests.
- Apply simple decission making tools in avalanche terrain.
- Companion rescue - you will be able to organise a fast efficient rescue of a buried person.
We will cover the following topics using a mixture of classroom and on hill sessions.
Terrain
- Terrain evaluation and route selection
- Safe travel techniques in avalanche terrain
- Planning and preperation for a trip in the back country
Snow Pack and Weather
- Development of a snow pack and how instabilities develop
- How to spot these instabilities on the hill
- Basic introduction to snow pits. This is very practical we will not spend hours standing in holes in the snow.
- How the snow pack history and weather effect the avalanche conditions.
How to make decissions
- Human factors and the need for consistent decission making tools
- The limitations of decission making tools
- How to use avalanche forecasts
Avalanche Rescue
- Companion Rescue - you have to rescue any victims calling for a rescue is to late
- Organising a search, managment, transceivers, shovels, probes. Tactical shovelling
- How to look for a buried victim not using a transceiver
- Common mistakes in avalanche rescue.