Posts by Pat Fortino

The Canadian Avalanche Center warns backcountry users about new smartphone Apps. Oct 24 , 2013, Revelstoke, BC: Smartphone avalanche search applications that are marketed as avalanche rescue systems are not recommended , says the Canadian Avalanche Centre ( CAC ) . Three European – made apps are presenting themselves as economical alternatives to avalanche transceivers,…

On behalf of the 2013 Northern Rockies Avalanche Safety Workshop Steering Committee, we are excited to announce that we are hosting our third annual Northern Rockies Avalanche Safety Workshop (NRASW 2013). The venue for NRASW 2013 will be the Grouse Mountain Lodge in Whitefish, Montana and the date is Saturday, OCTOBER 12th- mark your calendars!…

Job Description: The Friends of the Northwest Avalanche Center (FOAC) is looking to hire four Professional Observers to provide backcountry observations throughout the NWAC service area to the NWAC forecast team. The Professional Observer’s Network will provide timely and relevant professional-level observations to the NWAC team, thus reducing the data gaps in NWAC forecast areas.…

Central Oregon Avalanche Association has teamed up with Oregon Ski Guides and Three Sisters Backcountry to offer four (4) AIARE 1 avalanche scholarships. The idea behind the scholarship fund is to increase avalanche awareness and safety in the Pacific Northwest, with a focus on the Oregon Cascades. The scholarship recipients will be given an AIARE…

The 6th annual Northwest Snow and Avalanche Workshop will be held on November 3rd, 2013 in Seattle at the U of W Campus. NSAW Facebook page

Spend an afternoon with avalanche pros and experts learning the latest thinking about airbags, ,lessons from recent accidents, and risk and decision lessons from commercial aviation. The morning session is open to pros only and the afternoon is open to the public. http://utahavalanchecenter.org/events?date=2013-11

An all-day professional-level avalanche workshop, with the morning open to those working in the field and the afternoon open to the public featuring avalanche worker safety, latest research findings, new equipment, lessons learned from accidents, and risk and decision-making lessons from commercial aviation. http://utahavalanchecenter.org/events?date=2013-11

ESAW 2013 on Saturday November 9th in North Conway, NH. The Eastern Snow and Avalanche Workshop in North Conway, NH is a place to bring together avalanche-minded individuals to share their enthusiasm for snow and discuss topics related to the winter in cold steep climates. It continues to be an annual gathering of avalanche professionals,…

      The Colorado Snow and Avalanche Workshop will be held on October 4, 2013 at the Mining Hall of Fame Conference Center in Leadville, Colorado. We’ll post an agenda and registration information in early September. Hope to see you there! Go to: https://avalanche.state.co.us for more info

The Weight of Evidence: The important job of gathering and interpreting snowpack information includes evaluating the weight of each bit of information (type, craftsmanship, accuracy, timing, relevancy, and verification) as it is applied to snowpack instability and avalanche hazard. Experienced practitioners are aware of the variability of the terrain and snowpack and the challenges extrapolating…