Avalanche Preparedness & Backcountry Skiing

On 12/15/15 we dug snow spits, preformed

beacon drills and skied in the back country near
Alta UT.

My project involved taking a level 1 avalanche

certification course and participating in a back
country ski trip in the Tushar Mountains.

Ever since I skied in powder for the first

time, Ive been hooked. I use to watch Warren Miller
films with a dropped jaw wishing that someday I
could be like some of the pro skiers in his films.
Learning about avalanche preparedness and
participating in back country skiing has partially
fulfilled my childhood dreams, given me a greater
respect for nature and increased my appreciation for
the sport of skiing.

On 12/16/15 I completed my avalanche course.

And on 01/04/16 I completed my back country
ski trip by hiking up and skiing down Mount
Holly.

I learned many valuable things by

completing this project. I learned how to weigh risks
and rewards and how to make logical decisions. As
an accounting major I foresee these skills being very
useful in my future career.

Tanner Larsen
Outdoor
Spring 2016

Project Summary

I participated in a level 1 avalanche

certification course that was offered by Utah
Mountain Adventures and held at the Alta City
Library. By participating in this course I learned
about snow science, and how to avoid avalanche
terrain, plan safe routes and rescue individuals in the
event of an avalanche.
After taking the avalanche course I applied
what I learned by planning and executing a back
country ski tour in the Tushar Mountains. The Tushar
Mountain Range is right next to the city of Beaver
and is the third highest mountain range in Utah. My
excursions included hiking up the west ridge of
mount holly and skiing off both the north and south
facing aspects.

Project Highlights

On 12/14/15 I began the avalanche course in Salt

Lake UT

From My Journal
01/04/15 We went on another tour today. We went
up Mt. Holly on the west ridge line. The snow was
great. The ridge-line was pretty windblown but on the
north-side where we dropped in the powder was soft
and fresh. We skied in the trees to give us some
cover and we stayed away from steep slopes. My
buddy Colter had a problem with his touring setup.
Ice got lodge in the locking function so we had to
clean it out with a car key so he could get into
downhill mode. By the time we got down to the road
there was another three inches of powder on the
ground. We took a few more runs and were even
thinking about building a jump but it was starting to
get dark so I decided it was time to get home before
Riah started worrying.

This a group of us at the beginning of our tour. Everyone has a beacon, probe and shovel and is either using alpine
touring skis or snow shoes.

This is a picture of one of my avalanche instructors. He is looking out over little cottonwood after explaining to us how
to plan a safe accent and descent in the back country.