Terrifying moment caught on video in the Pyrenees Mountains of Andorra where skier Ares Masip triggered an avalanche in the backcountry which caught and carried both herself and her dog named Cim down the slope.
A picturesque day skiing in the backcountry turned into a dire situation in a matter of seconds as fractures appeared in the snow surrounding her and the entire slope gave way, crumbling beneath her feet.
Cim the dog was not initially caught in the slide and she desperately attempted to shoo it away out of danger but the loyal dog followed her into the debris as it careened down the mountain and was taken by the slide. Thankfully when they came to a stop neither ended up buried:
Masip decided to share the footage with an honest breakdown of her decision making process to help others stay safe in avalanche terrain. These are her thoughts.
Ares Masip Comments About The Avalanche Translated From Catalan To English:
Today I triggered an avalanche. I’m sharing the video simply to explain what happened.
It’s a spot that’s very familiar to me. This year I’ve skied down it 7 or 8 times. And out of the last 5 days, today was the third time. The BPA (Avalanche Danger Bulletin) indicated a risk of 1–2. There were fresh tracks from earlier that same day. And it’s a slope with a line of trees.
This morning I woke up like the day itself—a bit foggy-headed, quite overcast, and I didn’t feel like doing a long or complex activity. So I went for a short loop to tire out Cim and head back home.
All in all, many factors added up that made me think it was safe. And that’s where the concept known as the heuristic trap comes in a mental bias that leads you to simplify reality and overestimate safety when, objectively, the risk is there: familiar place, supposedly low risk, recent repetition, low-ambition goal…
It’s not that the conditions were safe, it’s that they seemed safe. But it’s good to remember that risk level 0 simply doesn’t exist. Today it ended up as just a scare and a good personal lesson. If it helps someone not let their guard down in a “trusted” spot, then it’ll be worth it!
We would like to remind anyone planning on heading into the backcountry about the importance of a proper avalanche safety education. Know Before You Go is an amazing resource to get you started or continue on your avalanche safety education journey. Remember, complacency is the enemy, all it takes is one bad call and the consequences could be tragic. LEARN MORE HERE.
“It doesn’t matter if you have made thousands of good calls – all it takes is one bad call and that is one too many. Some days the mountains are screaming GET OUT OF HERE and some days they are saying come on in – it’s time to party.” – Jeremy Jones
