PowderGuide

The 21st PowderGuide season was rather mixed in many respects: the pandemic is still giving us a hard time and more snow would have been nice. But as always, there were also good sides: Lots of sunshine for extended tours, the odd powder day in between, and of course the exchange with the PG community!

BCA is carrying out a voluntary recall of the Tracker 4 avalanche transceiver for certain serial numbers. In Europe, only a small number of devices are likely to be affected. The reason for the recall is a possible problem with the plastic production of the rotary knob for switching the device on and off.

If you're looking for another challenge at the end of the season but can't find enough challenging snow, you'll love this game! The aim is to assign snow profiles to the location. Of course there is also something to win! The whole thing will be solved at the final PG meeting.

PowderGuide is saying goodbye for the summer. This means that, with a few exceptions, we are suspending our editorial work and the weather service is also taking a break until it gets wintry again. Of course, we would be delighted if all those who are still out and about continue to report on their tours in the ConditionsReports!

Pieps/Black Diamond is calling for a functional check to be carried out on most of the current avalanche transceivers it produces:

The skiing winter is not over yet, but it is slowly coming to an end. This can be recognized by the fact that the first reviews of the season are already available, for example from the SLF.

In the monthly "schnee.semmelnar" of the Austrian Society for Snow and Avalanches (ÖGSL), avalanche researcher Johan Gaume will be appearing next Monday to explain (in English) what "supershear avalanches" are and what a better understanding of the trigger mechanisms means for risk management.

In a new format called "AvaLounge", the SLF provides insights into the snow cover of the current winter. In a free online lecture, the avalanche forecasters discuss the topic of old snow in particular.

You want to become a freeride pro, but don't know exactly how to go about it? We are keeping a close eye on the scene and have put together a new, irregular and not entirely serious series of important tips. First of all, the aim should be to raise your profile. How do you do that? Social media! Through systematic Instagram research, we have found the best posts to increase your follower numbers! Caution: Don't get too creative!

As many of you will have noticed, the ConditionsReport has not been working since the end of last week. Some other functions of the site are also down. PowderGuide.com is currently struggling with some kind of DDoS attack. We are trying to solve the problem as soon as possible, but cannot say exactly how long it will take.

Jackie Paaso, FWT veteran who now lives in Sweden, takes us on an unusual adventure in the Swedish wilderness in "Arctic 12". Together with Reine Barkered and other pros from the Scott team, she has set herself the goal of skiing up all 12 mountains in Sweden that are over 2000 meters high.

PowderGuide partner Ortovox has produced a summary of important basics on the subject of avalanche safety. The content is available online for reference and is intended as an introduction to the topic (or as a refresher!). Of course, it is no substitute for an avalanche course in the backcountry, but it does provide a good basis on which to build.