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General Climbing Discussion

Topic Date User

Sth faces of Watson Crags: photos needed ungently 1-Apr-2008 At 7:34:32 AM qman

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Hey fish boy,
I dont participate in the aussie skiing forums, cause i live in NZ.

Your average day slackcountry touring or skiing at the club feilds in NZ makes a mockery of most aussie BC terrain. But main range touring in aussie is awesome in its own way and mostly free of avalache terrain.

If i was doing an article on Aussie BC skiing i would concentrate on buller chutes, Mt Loch, paralyser, leatherbarrel, and leave the western faces.

Like i also suggested, the western faces are also some of the few areas that are any where near steep enough to contain any significant Avalanche danger with hideous terrain traps. Under the right (or wrong) conditions a slide would be fatal, and the awareness of this risk in australia is almost nil.

In my experience Aussies are over confident about BC and know nothing about Avalache Terrain. My first season in NZ was an eye opener. I was also in Canada one season when 14 people died in 2 avalanches.

ego fueled snowboarders fresh from the half pipe and one to many warren miller films do not need any encouragement from glossy magazines to get themselves into trouble in this terrain.