Backcountry basics: Sky-Hi News reporter heads behind the scenes of avalanche training
Colorado Mountain School guides outline the fundamentals of decision making in avalanche territory
Course instructor Ben Markhart conducts a quick pre-trip briefing, reviewing avalanche forecasts, weather conditions and travel plans he and his students head up into Hidden Valley.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
AIARE instructor and former Rocky Mountain National Park Ranger Adam Baxter (yellow coat) points out some potential avalanche terrain while discussing backcountry traveling with students near Lake Haiyaha.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Most of Colorado Mountain School’s avalanche rescue course work was conducted on a closed portion Trail Ridge Road high above Hidden Valley. The highway’s centerline was visible in a small section exposed to direct sunlight.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Mountain guide and AIARE course instructor Ben Markhart performs a hypothetical avalanche rescue on a snowy mountainside in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Adam Baxter, mountain guide and course instructor for CMS, explains some of the finer points of route selection to student Aaron Oakley as the pair discuss ice climbing opportunities in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Colorado Mountain School guide and instructor Ben Markhart chats with student Nate Landry as Landry and fellow student Aaron Oakley check snow firmness in a snow pit.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
AIARE student Jeff Harris (foreground) and other Colorado Mountain School students listen intently as lead instructor Joey Thompson (out of shot) conducts an impromptu snow stability test.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Joey Thompson (right), lead instructor for CMS’s AIARE Level 1 Course, looks back over his shoulder as he speaks to his students about backcountry avalanche hazards and terrain selection while traversing a steep slope in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
AIARE Level 1 student Jeff Harris (foreground) scans the snow with an avalanche rescue beacon as he hunts for a second beacon buried beneath the snow. Nate Landry probes the snow behind Harris as he waits for Harris to locate the buried beacon.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
A Colorado Mountain School AIARE Level 1 student pauses briefly on a mountainside high above Bear Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park as she works her way down from Lake Haiyaha. Longs Peak is visible in the distance.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
AIARE Level 1 Course instructor Ben Markhart (left) and course students Aaron Oakley (center) and Nate Landry (right) pause for a quick break on their way up to Trail Ridge Road through the erstwhile ski resort, Hidden Valley, located in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Colorado Mountain School students Nate Landry (left) Jeff Harris (center) and Aaron Oakley (right) stare up at the high peaks of Rocky Mountain National Park as they snowshoe up through Hidden Valley as part of their AIARE Level 1 course.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Ben Markhart, one of Colorado Mountain School’s AIARE course instructors, explains the basics of digging a snow pit in order to conduct snow compression tests.
Lance Maggart / Sky-Hi News
Sky-Hi News Reporter Lance Maggart spent the weekend in Estes Park taking an AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Course with Colorado Mountain School. The course covered decision making aspects of traveling in avalanche terrain.
Look for Lance’s full stories about his time on the snow later this week in print and online.
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