The La Traviata avalanche, that happened on January 20th 2003, took the lives of seven individuals: Craig Kelly, Vern Lunsford, Dave Finnerty, Dennis Yates, Kathy (Polucha) Kessler, Naomi Heffler, and Jean-luc Schwendener.
Read more The Grace of Learning
Reflections of a Mountain Guide Survivor, twenty years later and a similar snowpack
Read more Surviving My Survival of La Traviata
I can still hear Shauna’s giggles today in my mind’s ear as she and I made our way down the slopes of the Johnston Canyon trail.
Read more First Ski At Christmas
I have come to understand that the greatest avalanche hazard out there is the decision maker.
Read more Avalanche Archetypes
Noticing elements about the snowpack takes concentration, active seeking, and diligence.
Read more Winter Wayfinders
"Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose: In the Avalanche Patch by Bruce Kay" Book Review
Read more Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose: In the Avalanche Patch
The allure of wilderness skiing for work is obvious. It is a promise of a lifetime of powder turns where your job is to always go first, without question.
Read more For the Love of Our Clients
Over the last ten years there have been fantastic advances in the field of avalanche safety through research and technical development. Additions made to snow stability evaluations like ‘fracture character’ during the ‘compression test’ deepen our awareness of what is happening with the snow. There have also been the development terrain assessment tools, which help …
Read more How To Tame Your Avalanche Dragon
The arc of the story is not victimization, but of self-realization and personal growth. Of moving beyond.
Read more Buried—A Forced Exercise in Listening
As with most avalanche stories reported in traditional media, not all of the facts are correct. The Durrand Glacier avalanche story is different—the autocratic behaviour and arrogance of Rudi Beglinger is very accurate. The suggestion that his clients are experienced backcountry skiers is a stretch. Rudi’s clients are keen skiers who are looking for leadership …
Read more “Buried” by Ken Wylie
