VAIL — Eagle-Vail resident Brian Enselien remembers the rush of snow that caught him while he was backcountry skiing near Lake Tahoe in California.
The avalanche was relatively small — when it settled, he was knee-high in snow — but he said he was amazed by the force of the slide.
“It’s scary,” he said. “It’s crazy how much power is behind all that snow.”
Enselien has done some backcountry skiing and frequently goes into the “sidecountry” — areas that are out of ski-area boundaries but easily accessible from the resort mountains.
Although many, like Enselien, take advantage of the easily accessed areas in search of untracked powder, not everyone has the proper training or equipment for the terrain, said Beaver Creek ski patroller Dave Martin at a recent backcountry training class.
“We watch people who leave the gates, and (a majority) of the people who go back there have no equipment,” he said, adding that everyone who goes out-of-bounds should carry a beacon, probe and shovel.
After attending the training class, Eagle-Vail resident Bogdon Pastor said he will think about investing in a beacon and additional training.
He usually skis out-of-bound areas near the ski resort — without any equipment, he admitted.
Texas skier Jimmy Smith said he has followed other people into the sidecountry areas, but he doesn’t have backcountry training or equipment.
“I’m definitely unprepared,” he said. “But I usually go with someone who knows where they’re going.”
Others say that they never go without equipment and that experience with the terrain is one of the surest ways to be safe.
“I go to the same places over and over, so I usually know it pretty well,” said Billy Mattison, who often skies East Vail as well as terrain in the Gore Range. “You know when the conditions are good.”
Vail ski patroller Chris “Mongo” Reeder agreed, saying that even though he has skied the backcountry for years, it wasn’t until he joined the patrol that he gained confidence in making his own backcountry decisions.
This has been one of the worst years for avalanches in Colorado, said Scott Toepfer, a forecaster with the Colorado Avalanche Information Center.
Some popular backcountry areas, such as areas on Vail Pass, Shrine Bowl and Ptarmigan Pass have seen avalanches this season, he said.
