[PHOTOS] Scientists Used Seismic Data to Uncover the True Scale of This Massive Mt. Hood Avalanche The Pacific Northwest has had an unpredictable winter this year. Warmer-than-usual conditions led to below-normal snowpacks this season. Furthermore, higher temperatures also caused precipitation to fall as rain rather than snow. Related: [PHOTOS] Huge 3-Mile Long Avalanche Travels 5,000-Vertical-Feet and Creates 60-Foot High Walls on Mount Shasta, CA This past March, Mt. Hood, Oregon, took the brunt of that. A […] Avalanche travellinquinn | March 25, 2026 0 Comments
The Right Terrain: Knowing Where and How to Start in the Backcountry As winter finally begins to switch on across the West, many of us are feeling that familiar pull toward the backcountry. Fresh snow, quiet mountains, and untracked lines are hard to ignore. I’m right there with you. But as exciting as backcountry travel can be, it comes with real responsibility. Knowing where and how to start can make all the […] Brains Russell Parker | December 18, 2025 0 Comments
SnowBrains Podcast Ep. 93 | Denis Lee – Co-Founder of AirFlare Denis Lee is a Co-Founder of AirFlare, a company built around a simple idea with lifesaving potential – turning the smartphone people already carry in their pockets every single day into a powerful search and rescue tool, and a powerful tool to help ski patrol save time and energy. He left his traditional corporate career to pursue his passions in […] Featured Video Podcast | December 2, 2025 0 Comments
SheJumps Brings New Deep Winter Ski Mountaineering Course to Selkirk Mountains, BC, to Help Women Build Technical Backcountry Skills For more than a decade, SheJumps’ Alpine School has been helping women and non-binary skiers build technical backcountry skills and confidence in serious terrain. Now, the nonprofit is expanding its flagship program with a new “Deep Winter Edition” of the Alpine Finishing School, set for January 17-24, 2026, at Selkirk Lodge in British Columbia. Related: Ikon Pass Expands Mountain Access […] Backcountry Martin Kuprianowicz | September 20, 2025 0 Comments
Letter to the Editor: Is It Worth It? The Question Every Backcountry Skier Should Ask Themselves I stand alone in the treed area of a north-facing slope under a South Lake Tahoe peak. It’s only about 30 degrees in steepness, but snow is falling and I can feel my blood pressure rising. Maybe I was thinking about the persistent weak layer present in the snowpack. Maybe my dad’s voice—he likes to tell me how stupid I […] Industry News SnowBrains | February 27, 2025 0 Comments
CAIC to Host 17th Annual Benefit Bash in Breckenridge, CO Mark your calendars for November 23, folks, because the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) is back for its 17th annual Benefit Bash. This event, lasting from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. MST at the Riverwalk Center in Breckenridge, Colorado, will feature live music, drinks, auctions, giveaways, and more to celebrate avalanche safety and the backcountry community. Tickets are currently on […] Industry News Quinn Brophy | November 6, 2024 0 Comments
Massive Avalanche Control Week for Ski Patrol at Whitewater Ski Resort, BC Between February 26 and March 5, Whitewater Ski Resort, British Columbia, experienced a historic avalanche control week. It’s been a different sort of winter season in the Kootenay region of British Columbia, home to Red Mountain and Whitewater Ski Resort, this year. One of the worst starts, followed by one of the biggest storms, with 64 inches falling since the […] Avalanche Ben Davies | March 19, 2024 0 Comments
[VIDEO] “To the Hills and Back” – A Heart-Wrenching Documentary Exploring the Lives of 2 Backcountry Skiers Who Navigate the Aftermath of Separate Avalanche Tragedies “Using stories has always been integral to our approach to avalanche education at the UAC. Since our inaugural avalanche education video, ‘Winning the Avalanche Game,’ back in 1996, we’ve recognized the power of storytelling to convey important lessons. When we set out to create a new version of the Know Before You Go program, we knew we needed compelling narratives […] Avalanche AvyBrains | March 12, 2024 0 Comments
What is Sluff — A Look at the Small Yet Dangerous Type of Avalanche You have more than likely seen it and maybe even experienced it, whether in a ski movie or photograph, in person from a distance, or right below your own two skis, sluff is quite a common occurrence while on the mountain. That layer of fluffy snow that glides beside you as you turn when conditions are steep and deep. The […] Brains John Cunningham | February 28, 2024 1 Comment
What Exactly are “Remotely Triggered” Avalanches? An avalanche, whether massive or minimal, can be detrimental and devastating to anything in its path. There are many different causes and forms of avalanches to be aware of and signs to look for before and while venturing into the backcountry. Coavalancheinfo recently posted a video helping to explain one kind: remotely triggered avalanches. View this post on Instagram A […] Avalanche John Cunningham | November 6, 2023 0 Comments
CAIC Begins Daily Forecasts as Avalanche Season Kicks Off Last week, a snowstorm dropped over 20 inches in many parts of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, marking the beginning of ski season for riders in the state. Resorts Arapahoe Basin and Keystone have already opened terrain this week, and many more mountains are set to open later this month. As the snow accumulates in the resorts, so does it gather in […] Industry News Kenneth Condon | November 3, 2023 0 Comments
Red Helium Balloons Were Once Used as Avalanche Safety Tools A beacon, probe, and shovel are a few modern and necessary avalanche safety tools, carried by skiers and snowboarders all over the world. However, back before these advancements, avalanche safety technology was quite rudimentary in comparison to now. Thanks to Warren Miller Entertainment for once again pulling some incredible, vintage footage from the archives, for all of us to enjoy […] Industry News John Cunningham | July 21, 2023 0 Comments
Bluebird Backcountry, Report: Colorado’s Newest Ski Resort is Also its Most Unique Bluebird Backcountry, Colorado’s newest ski resort, is truly unique. Breaking trail as the first resort of its kind, it bridges the gap between traditional resort skiing and backcountry skiing. Bluebird Backcountry is setting a new standard in backcountry safety and education, creating a new community of backcountry enthusiasts. Located in the heart of Colorado’s ski country, just outside of Kremmling […] Trip Report Aunika Skogen | March 14, 2023 1 Comment
Utah Avalanche Center Aims to Raise $100,000 with Spring Campaign to Fund New Avalanche Safety Tools and Technology This article originally appeared on utahavalanchecenter.org You play an important role in helping the Utah Avalanche Center fulfill our mission to keep people on top of The Greatest Snow on Earth® by providing avalanche forecasting, awareness, and education throughout the state of Utah. By making a donation today you are investing in the tools, technology, and people who carry out […] Avalanche SnowBrains | March 3, 2023 0 Comments
ORTOVOX Launches Online Platform for Avalanche Safety Since ORTOVOX was founded, the protection of mountaineers and the mountains has been a guiding principle for the German mountain brand. The Safety Academy initially launched back in 2008, and the Safety Academy Lab Snow was established in 2013. The new digital knowledge platform provides high-quality information about avalanches and has been completely reworked in cooperation with the German Mountain […] Avalanche AvyBrains | November 18, 2022 1 Comment
Colorado Avalanche Information Center Launches New Website With Dynamic Avalanche Forecasting As early-season snow storms begin to blanket the Rockies, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) will begin to issue its daily weather and avalanche forecasts a little differently. On November 1, 2022, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center launched a new website, creating dynamic forecasts and avalanche threat levels, as well as daily 48-hour forecasts issued every afternoon at 4:30 pm. […] Avalanche Steven Snyder | November 7, 2022 0 Comments
PSA: Now is the Time to Sign Up For an Avalanche Safety Course With summer beginning to come to a close, leaves are starting to change and that crisp morning air is setting in. We can’t help but feel that itch to be back in the mountains once again. Although most of us are enjoying those off-season activities to keep the stoke alive until we get back on snow, it’s never too early […] Avalanche Nick DeRiso | August 19, 2022 2 Comments
Winter Park, CO, Donates $69,000 to Three Snow Safety Non-Profits Earlier this month, Winter Park Resort donated a total of $69,000 to three different non-profit organizations. The money for the donations came from Winter Park’s Uphill Program. Two seasons ago, as uphill users increased dramatically, the resort required anyone traveling uphill to purchase a $25 armband pass and agree to their uphill policy. This was to create safer uphill and […] Industry News Brent Glogau | June 13, 2022 0 Comments
Avalanche Airbags: What Are They and Why Do They Matter? Imagine you are freeskiing in the backcountry of your favorite mountain. You’ve finished warming up on a few trails, and now you’re prepared to tackle some more difficult terrain. All of a sudden, the snow starts cracking under you and you hear a loud, terrifying noise: WHUMPH. An avalanche is coming, and there is nothing you can do to stop […] Backcountry Haleigh Hafner | April 9, 2022 1 Comment
Avalanche Safety – Digging a Snow Pit | The 5 Ws of Snowpack Test Decision Making “Take a deck of cards – half are black, half are red; how much would you wager that the top card is red? That’s about risk. Here’s a deck of cards – at least one is black, at least one is red; how much would you wager that the top card is red? That’s about ambiguity.” – Robert M. Sapolsky, […] Avalanche Guest Author | November 12, 2021 3 Comments
Avalanche
Brains
Featured Video
Backcountry
Industry News
Trip Report
