Tunnel Creek Avalanche

http://www.nytimes.com/projects/2012/snow-fall/#/?part=tunnel-creek

Not sure if this has been posted before. This is a very long story from the NYT website. Aside from the story, the way it is constructed with videos and graphics is a fairly new concept in online journalism and well worth looking at.

The lesson here is that even experts make mistakes or poor judgment calls.

I've been a back country skier since the mid-seventies. Avalanches can occur in what many would consider the most unlikely places. They aren't always steep slopes and they aren't always the billowing powder avalanches seen in films. Slab avalanches occur frequently in the Cascades and are arguably more dangerous than the powder avalanches because of the density of the snow. If you venture off piste, take an avalanche safety course, and test before you go. Avalanche gear, like the inflation pack described in the article, are good to have. However, such gear won't ensure survival by any means. The best way to survive in the back country is not to get into an avalanche in the first place.

I had seen this - a really well-done piece of journalism.  a terrible event in an area that is apparently known as high risk for avalanches. 

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