Snow Avalanche avoidance begins with careful route planning. Each planned route involves important safety considerations and exploratory tests. No route is without risks. The information below is basic and not comprehensive. It is intended as an outline of the main dangers and precautions that can be taken.
In addition to selecting routes with less risks, every trip plan needs to consider weather and avalanche forecasts. Weather conditions leading up to the planned event must be monitored and existing snowpack conditions need to be considered.
Ideal Routes
Ideal routes are typically those with lower slope angles and dense forest leading up to broad, open ridgelines. If the slope is below 30º there is insufficient slope for a snow slab to glide. A forest helps anchor the snow and hold it in place, reducing avalanche risks, and a broad ridgeline provides a path that is wide enough to avoid cornices. Finding low-slope angle routes is not always possible and that’s when plans need to adjust to find a route through anchor points such as trees.
Campsite sellection
Ideal routes also allow sufficient time to reach the intended camp area. The ability to reach camp depends on the conditioning of the group, the distance, and the snow conditions. Several days of 18-inch snowfall can create thigh-high snow and make traveling even three miles an all-day effort, whereas traveling on hard consolidated snow is relatively easy.
An ideal campsite will depend on the preferences of the group. For me, it is on top of an open ridge or wide summit. This is ideal because this is where the best views are to be found. It is also safer because you are less likely to be in the path of a potential rockfall or avalanche. Snow-loaded trees falling over is another hazard to avoid.
The main challenge of ridge-top campsites is the winter winds and Springtime lightning exposure. For high winds, you must build a snow wall and for lightning, you usually have to evacuate the ridge as quickly as possible. Lightning is somewhat rare and more easily avoided by rescheduling based on the weather forecast. Avalanche and rockfall are more persistent winter terrain hazards. The ability to get out of avalanche and rockfall terrain and reach a safer campsite needs to be calculated into the plan.
