Think ‘Safety-First’ this Winter Hut Season

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Winter hut season has officially arrived, and we couldn’t be more excited! Winter hut trips are truly special, serving up quiet, peaceful days and beautiful dark evenings; playful snow-filled adventures; and close connection with friends and family in front of those cozy, warm hut fires. But winter hut trips also present unique – and serious – risks, and require specific knowledge and preparation. 

While the vast majority of 10th Mountain Huts visitors travel to and from the huts safely and successfully, mistakes that might initially seem minor can lead to major consequences in the winter backcountry. And for that small percentage of trips that don’t go according to plan, a hut outing can quickly become an emergency, as it did in these two stories about hut trips that resulted in rescues.

As the season progresses, we want to remind our hut users to keep safety top-of-mind this winter, and encourage you to ‘know before you go!’ Ensuring that you’re properly prepared for your trip can help eliminate mishaps and potential danger for your group, and is critical to facilitating a safe and positive winter hut trip experience. 

 

 

MUST READ! – Important Safety Resources 

 

Please take a few moments to review the following important resources on winter hut safety provided on our website, before embarking on your 10th Mountain Hut trip:

• How to Plan a Hut Trip (‘Winter’ Section) – This page provides detailed, step-by-step guidance for planning your winter hut trip 
• Field Info – This page outlines a variety of critical safety information to help hutgoers both travel safely and be optimally prepared for an emergency in the field, including: 

• • Avalanche Hazard Information

• • Emergency & Self-Rescue Information

• • Search & Rescue Contact Information

• • GPS & SOS Communications Information

• • And more…
• Equipment Guide – This page outlines what is provided at our huts, and offers a suggested winter equipment list – including emergency & survival guide – to help hut users pack appropriately.
  • You can also access a handy PDF Equipment Checklist here, which can be shared with your group 

 

Tune In This Winter for More Safety Info

 

Stay tuned to our blog here, as well as our Instagram account, over the next few months for more stories and resources on winter hut trip safety – we’ll be rolling these out all season long. Thank you for reading, heeding, and sharing this info with your friends – and thank you for staying safe out there this season!