Avalanche danger on Mount Elbrus.

An avalanche is considered to be one of the typical dangers that threaten the safety of climbers in the mountains. However, in order to understand the real level of danger and how to avoid it, first of all, you need to figure out what is an avalanche?

An avalanche is a snow mass that, under the influence of gravity, at a certain moment begins to move down the slope, often creating serious problems and danger people and infrastructure in close proximity. Avalanches differ in the mechanism of formation, speed, kinetic energy and degree of danger. Without delving into the topic of various types of avalanches, it is necessary to highlight the main thesis concerning the avalanche hazard in general - an avalanche is a seasonal phenomenon. The greatest danger level of avalanches is during and after heavy snowfalls - for Elbrus these are winter months and early spring. Consequently, if you plan to climb Mount Elbrus during the official season - from June to September, then there will be no danger of avalanches during that time.

It is traditionally believed that mostly affected by the avalanche danger are the different types of skiing, especially in the form of freeriding (off-piste skiing). Of course, skiers are at a much greater risk of falling into an avalanche than climbers. Firstly, the peak of the ski season coincides with the peak of the avalanche danger, and secondly, skiers often provoke avalanches by riding on the slopes overloaded with snow. A large number of different devices have been developed specially for skiers, reducing the risk of falling into an avalanche and simplifying the search of the victims in the event of an avalanche accident. These are various types of avalanche backpacks and pneumatic systems that allow to stay on the surface of an avalanche in case of getting into it, numerous electronic devices and beacons indicating the location of the victim. All these devices are used in professional skiing, but are of little use for mountaineering. The climber is armed against an avalanche with his own rationality, tactical training. Even at the peak of the avalanche season, with a properly planned route and schedule, you can reduce the chance of getting into the avalanche almost to zero. However, this statement also works in the opposite direction. When analyzing climbing accidents associated with an avalanche, as a rule, the fact of serious violations of elementary avalanche safety rules is revealed - deviation from the safe route line, selection of unfavorable climbing schedule, crossing of avalanche-hazardous slopes roped.

During during the high avalanche danger period, there is a high probability of avalanches at the very foot of Mount Elbrus, where the steepness of the slopes of the gorge allows the accumulation of large amount of snow and, in the case of avalanches, acceleration of snow mass to a dangerous speed. In this regard, the Terskol - Azau area is considered to be the most dangerous, and the avalanches happen there every winter. In this region, the local administration took measures to prevent the accumulation of great snow masses - special artillery guns were installed along the entire line of the road, and during snowfalls with firing with a special shells they provoke the descent of small avalanches, preventing the formation of a larger ones. Even during the winter season, the slopes of Elbrus are considered less dangerous in the terms of avalanches than, for example, the slopes of Mount Cheget, which is located opposite Mount Elbrus in the Main Caucasian Range. Mount Cheget is of little interest to the climbers, but skiers are very fond of the slopes of this mountain. In 2017, when a large avalanche broke down from Mount Cheget, 8 skiers were in it.

Avalanche accidents with climbers are much less common, and, as has already been said, they are the result of tactical errors when choosing a route and schedule. In order to maximally protect yourself from the avalanche danger, first of all, you should choose the right season for climbing - the probability of formation of avalanches during the summer season is close to zero. In case you climb Mount Elbrus in the winter season or off-season, you should keep to a safe route line and avoid avalanche slopes especially in the lower part of the route. The upper part of all the Mount Elbrus routes - above the level of 3500-4000 meters, does not pose a significant avalanche hazard - the gently steepness of the slopes and constant strong wind do not allow snow to accumulate in the amount necessary for avalanches formation.

MCS AlexClimb Mountaineering School organizes all climbing programs on Mount Elbrus by 4 classic routes, only at the season when there is no risk of avalanche danger both on Mount Elbrus and on the approaches to it. Thus, for the participants of our ascents, the subject of avalanche danger is just for the informational purposes - over 20 years of work on climbing routes of varying difficulty, we have not had a single case that any of the participants of our programs got to any avalanche kind accident.

Text — Alexey Trubachev, founder of the MCS AlexClimb mountaineering and climbing school.

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