Late C.O. winter could raise avalanche danger

If you’re headed into the Central Oregon backcountry, it’s important to be prepared and know the risks you could be facing, one of which is an avalanche.

Kevin Grove, an associate professor of physics and engineering at Central Oregon Community College, is also a board member for the Central Oregon Avalanche Association.

Grove said it does not take much for an avalanche to occur, and right here in Central Oregon, we have the proper ingredients where we could see an avalanche in the backcountry.

“You need a combination of terrain, weather, snowpack and a person to create risk of an avalanche in the backcountry,” Grove said Tuesday. “We have all of those in Central Oregon.”

Grove added that over the past eight years, there have been eight avalanche deaths in Oregon.

He said it’s important to be very cautious and aware of your surroundings when you head into the mountains.

Anyone that is heading out into the backcountry for any recreational activity should be prepared for the risk of avalanche, according to avalanche safety instructor Susie Fagen Wirges.

Fagen Wirges is an avid snowmobiler who also teaches classes on avalanche safety.

She said it’s important to have the right gear when you head out, including a beacon and a shovel to help you stay safe, if you get into trouble.

She added that safety is always her main priority when she heads out on the trails, and she is always aware of the threat of an avalanche.

“Sometimes they are not human-caused. But most of the time, where humans are caught in them, they are human-caused. So we have to be aware,” Fagen Wirges said. “We are putting ourselves into that place that Mother Nature has created, so it is our responsibility to learn everything we can, so that we can be safe and make it home to our loved ones at night.”

Fagen-Wirges says she is always sure to check the day’s conditions before she heads out.

She said having the proper equipment with you is the best way to make sure you are prepared for whatever could be thrown your way.

An avalanche can be caused when there is a lot of snow built up and on a hillside it is loosened up by something and comes crashing down.

Grove said it’s important to be adaptable to the conditions when you head out into the wilderness.

“You should understand what to look for, things with snowpack, weather, terrain. And understanding the human factor, the dynamic that when you go out with a group of two or three or four people, every day is different, and we might interact differently in that group,” Grove said. “And so there is psychology that we have to be aware of and understand, and there is physics and chemistry and a whole bunch of cool things associated with snow.”

Grove added that the more knowledge you have about the terrain you are heading into before you go, the better off you will be. And if you are heading out to the backcountry, it’s important to check conditions before you go.

For more information on avalanche conditions, click here.