Video shows ‘very lucky’ skier escaping injury in avalanche near Lake Louise ski area

A backcountry skier was caught in an avalanche, waist-deep in snow, and swept down a slope near Lake Louise on Tuesday.

He was not injured in the incident.

In an online post, Parks Canada said crews responded to an avalanche on a backcountry run called “Vortex,” located just outside the boundary of Lake Louise Ski Area in Banff National Park.

The incident was captured on video and shared publicly by Parks Canada to warn other mountain users.

According to Parks Canada, the skier triggered a size 2 avalanche while descending the slope at an altitude of approximately 2,450 metres. Avalanche Canada says on its website that a size 2 avalanche ‘Big enough to bury, injure or kill a person’.

The avalanche was classified as a “deep continuous slab”.

Avalanche Canada forecaster Tyson Ratey said that means a dense and heavy layer of snow is sitting on top of a weaker layer of snow near the ground. When that weak layer collapses, much more snow can slide in at once, making an avalanche larger and more destructive.

In other avalanche situations, the weaker layer may be closer to the surface, meaning less snow is involved when the snow begins to slide.

Barry Blanchard, with a guide Yamnuska Mountain School in Canmore told CBC News they watched the video and saw bare rocks left by the avalanche.

“You couldn’t have had a bigger avalanche there. It took out the entire snowpack,” he said.

He also said When the skiers were going down the mountain they noticed that there were rocks all around them.

“They are very lucky that they did not suffer any serious injuries after hitting the rocks,” he said.

Another stroke of luck for the skiers, he said, was that the snow was only up to their waist level.

“TeaThe other thing that will take human life is probably half the people die from suffocation when they’re completely in an avalanche,” he says.

Parks Canada said the skiers in this incident were “experienced, well-equipped, descended one at a time, and had a safe regrouping location.”

Retti said deep permanent slabs are harder to predict and difficult for skiers to recognize in the field, even if they are trained and experienced, because the weak layer is buried deep in the snow layer and does not always give warning signs before a large avalanche occurs.

“So there is uncertainty with deep persistent slab problems. And there is no amount of professional or recreational training that reduces that uncertainty to zero,” he said.

In other types of avalanches, experienced skiers can listen or see if there are potential problems, such as snow breaking or hollow sounds while skiing. There are no warning signs with persistent slabs.

“The first reaction you get that a problem exists may be a big avalanche,” he said.

While avalanche danger in alpine areas in Kananaskis Country and the Banff region is currently moderate, he said the rating is largely driven by the risk of these deep slabs triggering avalanches.

Retty said it’s too early in the season to tell whether the threat of deep slabs will continue throughout the ski season in Bow Valley.

But for now, backcountry skiers should remain aware of the danger.

Parks Canada said this is especially dangerous in areas where snow depth changes rapidly, such as near rocky areas or thin patches.

Retty said people traveling in avalanche terrain should always have the necessary rescue gear, a transceiver, probe and shovel and check the daily avalanche forecast before heading out.

“Accidents can happen and you need to be prepared,” he said.