IDAHO
IDAHO HAS
IDAHO HAS THOUSANDS OF ACRES TO EXPLORE. MANY, ARE IN THE
BACKCOUNTRY... OFF THE
BEATEN PATH.
THERE ARE DANGERS YOU
SHOULD BE AWARE OF,
THOUGH, BEFORE
HEADING OUT.
ESPECIALLY, IN THE
WINTER. TONIGHT... OUR
TAMI TREMBLAY KICKS OFF
HER BACKCOUNTRY
HER BACKCOUNTRY
SURVIVAL
SURVIVAL SERIES... FOCUSING ON AVALANCES. HOW TO
PREPARE FOR THEM... AND
HOW TO SURVIVE.
AN
AN AVALANCHE COMES QUICKLY... WITH LITTLE WARNING.
LUKE YOUNGBERG WAS
CAUGHT IN ONE LAST
YEAR.
"YOU CAN ACTUALLY
HEAR AVALANCHES AS
THEY BREAK AND IT KINDA
SOUNDS LIKE THUNDER...
HE WAS SNOWMOBILING
MOUNT BAKER... WITH A
GROUP...
WHEN THEY HEARD IT.
"ABOUT 30 SECONDS
LATER THERE'S A SIX FEET
WALL OF SNOW COMING
AT US."
"TAMI: WHAT WAS IT LIKE
TO SEE THAT MUCH SNOW
COMING AT YOU? LUKE: IT
WAS SCARY. I HAD NEVER
SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT
IN MY LIFE."
THEIR SNOWMOBILES
WERE BURIED...
AND BROKEN. BUT THEY
WERE O-K.
36:55 "IT REALLY SHOWS
HOW MUCH FORCE AN
AVALANCHE HAS."
CODY MONROE OWNS
C-M BACKCOUNTRY
RENTALS AND
ADVENTURES IN MCCALL.
"ALWAYS GO OUT WITH A
RIDING PARTNER, YOU
SHOULD NEVER GO OUT
ALONE."
HE TOOK US OUT WITH
YOUNGSBERG...
TO LOOK AT AVALANCHE
RISKS FOR THOSE MOST
SUSCEPTIBLE.
SNOWMOBILERS... SKEIRS
AND SNOWBOARDERS.
"WE'RE UP HERE KINDA
NORTHEAST OF
BRUNDAGE MOUNTAIN,
PRETTY DEEP UP HERE IN
THE BACKCOUNTRY"
ELEVATION... 6800 FEET...
THE
THE SLOPE.... JUST UNDER 30 DEGREES. "TAMI: IT IS BEAUTIFUL
ONCE YOU GET UP HERE
BUT THERE ARE DANGERS
AS WELL. LUKE: OH YEAH
THERE ARE DANGERS
EVERYWHERE HERE.." TO FIND OUWHAT WE'RE DEALING WITH...
THE PAIR STARTS DIGGING
A PIT...
THIS IS HOW THEY
MONITOR THE LAYERS...
OF SNOW. ALL SEVEN
FEET.
THEY'LL SEND THE
RESULTS TO THE PAYETTE
AVALANCHE CENTER...
TO GIVE A REAL-PERSON
ACCOUNT OF THE
CONDITIONS.
"EACH STORM IT GOT
REALLY WET AND MAYBE
RAINED A LITTLE AND
THEN IT FROZE AND THEN
WE GOT ANOTHER FOOT
"THIS IS CONCERNING."
IT'S A CRUST LAYER...
AND COULD CAUSE THE
SNOW
SNOW ON
SNOW ON TOP OF IT... TO GIVE WAY, SPARKING AN AVALANCHE.
- LUKE TESTING THE
SNOW
AFTER TESTING THE
DENSITY...
"SO WE'LL CUT A LITTLE
PIE PIECE OUT SO IT'S
ISOLATED"
AND COMPRESSION.
- NATS
- NATS
"SO
"SO IT'S
"SO IT'S PRETTY SOLID. THE LAYER DOWN HERE WE THOUGHT COULD GIVE
US SOME TROUBLE
ACTUALLY ISN'T GIVING US
ANY TROUBLE AT ALL."
30:40 "NOTHING TO BE
TOO CONCERNED ABOUT
RIGHT HERE BUT YOU
CAN'T JUST TAKE THE
INFORMATION HERE THAT
WE JUST GOT DIGGING
THIS LITTLE PIT AND
DOING THIS LITTLE SNOW
STUDY
STUDY AND
STUDY AND JUMP UP ANOTHER 1,000 FEET ON ANOTHER HILLSIDE AND
GO RIPPIN' AROUND AND
THINK LIFE'S GOING TO BE
GOOD BECAUSE MORE
THAN LIKELY THAT'S
WHEN YOU'RE GOING TO
GET PINCHED."
AND... THEN.... WHAT
WOULD YOU DO?
MONROE SAYS EACH
PERSON
PERSON IN
PERSON IN YOUR GROUP SHOULD BE WEARING... A BEACON... A PROBE....
AND A METAL SHOVEL...
"IF THERE'S SOMEBODY IN
AN AVALANCHE AND YOU
NEED TO FIND THEM IF
YOU DON'T HAVE THESE
TOOLS MORE THAN LIKELY
YOU'RE NOT GOING TO
FIND THEM."
THESE TOOLS SAVED KYLE
PRATT IN 2016.
HE WAS SNOWMOBILING
IN ISLAND PARK...
AND WAS BURIED.
"YOU HAVE ABOUT 10-15
MINUTES."
HIS FRIENDS WERE ABLE
TO
TO UNCOVER HIS HEAD IN TIME.. USING THESE TOOLS.
MONROE SAYS... ANYONE
EXPLORING
EXPLORING THE SNOWY BACKCOUNTRY... SHOULD ALSO BE
WEARING AN AVALANCHE
AIRBAG SYSTEM.
"YOU JUST PULL THE
HANDLE AND THEN YOU
PRETTY
PRETTY MUCH HAVE A GIANT BALLOON AROUND YOU AND HOPEFULLY IT'S
GOING TO KEEP YOU ON
TOP OF THE SNOW AND
KEEP YOU ALIVE."
IF YOU DON'T, YOU WILL
MOST LIKELY BE BURIED.
MONROE, HIMSELF... HAS
BEEN ON A RESCUE
MISSION.
THIS WAS IN THE VALLEY
COUNTY MOUNTAINS...
TWO YEARS AGO.
"BURIED TO HIS NECK,
WHEN I GOT TO HIM HE
WAS
WAS ALMOST GONE, AND WE DUG HIM OUT AND CALLED TWO BEAR AIR
OUT OF MONTANA AND
THEY CAME IN AND LONG
LINED HIM OUT. WE SAVED
HIS LIFE."
A FRIGHTENING
SITUATION... NO ONE
WANTS TO BE IN.
THESE GUIDES URGE YOU
TO BE PREPARED...
BEFORE HITTING THE
FRESH POWDER... OFF THE
TRAILS.
AND FIRST AND
FOREMOST...
ERROR ON THE SIDE OF
CAUTION IF THE DANGER
SEEMS HIGH.
"YOU CAN ALWAYS FIND
ANOTHER PLACE TO HAVE
FUN.
TAMI TREMBLAY....
...YOU CAN ALWAYS WAIT
ANOTHER DAY."
IDAHO'S NEWSCHANNEL
7.
7.
CHECKING
CHECKING OUT THE FORECAST... AND THE CLOSEST
AVALANCHE CENTER'S
WEBSITE WILL ALSO HELP
YOU MAKE A DECISION
ABOUT WHEN AND
WHERE TO EXPLORE THE
BACKCOUNTRY.
IF YOU HEAD TO HTTP:
INCLUDING VIDEO
SHOWING HOW TO USE A
BEACON AND PROBE...
AND WHAT ELSE YOU
SHOULD HAVE IN YOUR
BACKPACK... IF YOU'RE
HEADED INTO THE
MOUNTAINS.