Friday 28 February 2014

A day about not getting avalanched and what to do if someone else is!

Ben Nevis today. Pretty wild and wintery. On the hill practical element of the Avalanche Course for UHI students today. Trams on NE Buttress, Castle Ridge, SW Ridge of the Douglas Boulder, Curtain Rail, Waterfall Gully, someone headed to the Minus Face but came back down. Snow still deep and unconsolidated.
 Ptarmigan
 What are these
 Here they are again
 The 'Pit Boss' shovel
 Digging a hole to bury someone in
 Check that snow out!
Boy in a hole
 Girl buried in a hole
 Probe strike
 Digging at the second site
 First casualty found
Digging them out
 14 minutes for probing around clues and digging 2 casualties out from 1.5m down in hard debris… guys are gasping with reason!


 Rescued!
 The ribena test shows the icey layer clearly
 …and the graupel layer above too
 Ben Nevis still buried
But a successful day for us!

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