Snow is coming

Our goal is blog twice a week. We have been asked by a few stores in and around Boulder to post the current trail conditions for the mountains, trailheads, and access points around Boulder and Estes Park. We will either post this information on the blog or on our website and will update which one to follow. The snow is already following, so stay tuned in or get out for some fun. Please check out avalanche conditions at http://avalanche.state.co.us/index.php before heading out.

I read an interesting article yesterday about technology and current avalanche tools vs instinct. The articles main point was to trust yourself more than gadgets. An interesting question was raised by the author, are we are less safe nowadays than we were 20 years ago in avalanche terrain because we are focusing more on details rather than seeing the whole picture? This same topic is debated in the medical field with physicians becoming very specialized and treating one body system rather the whole body. Is the big picture really more important than the looking through a microscope?Although these topics can create much debate and dialogue, I reflect on what approach we normally take with subjective vs objective risk and while traveling in the mountains. We tell those we send out or travel with the best advise in mountains is if it does not feel right, don't do it. If the hair on the back of your neck stands up, turn around. For me the best safety devise has always been listening to ourselves and to error on the side of caution. A sign I saw in northern Ladakh said it well "Better be mister late, than late mister".