On a trip up Lofoten’s highest mountain, Bård Smestad and his party plan to stop at a mountain ridge. But before they can do anything but think, something happens under his skis. – It feels as if all the snow under me is starting to move, says Smestad. Suddenly the størdaling was surrounded by masses of snow and shifting darkness. According to the sports watch on his arm, he is falling down at 60 km an hour. 300 meters in free fall Smestad has been doing randonee riding in the high mountains for many years. He eagerly shares on social media from spectacular trips. As an experienced skier, Bård often takes pictures and videos of his trips. This is from a previous trip. Photo: Private May 1 and a holiday seemed like a perfect opportunity for another trip like this. This time together with two mates to the top of the mountain Higravtinden. But it is just before they reach the top that he and one of his hiking buddies lose all control of the ground below them. The sound inside the avalanche was experienced as completely silent. Smestad knows neither what he is moving towards, nor when the avalanche will end. – There weren’t that many thoughts flying around in my head other than that I just had to go with the flow and take it as it comes. Hear Bård Smestad tell about when he was caught by an avalanche and taken 300 meters down a steep chute. Further down the hill, both steep drops and waterfalls await. He thinks of his mate who he could see fell with him. Still, he manages to remain remarkably calm. In the fall, his heart rate actually drops from 130 to 110. Free flow has also discussed the matter. The hiking companions disappeared down the mountain From being a happy hiking group of three, now only one of them was left alone at the top of the mountain. The third comrade was left standing just above the breaching edge. The rest of the tour group on their way up Lofoten’s highest mountain, before the landslide happened. Photo: Bård Smestad / Privat Here he is a helpless witness as the other two disappear into the fog and down the mountain. 300 meters further down, Bård is now buried under the snow. The fall took only 35 seconds. – I probably felt that it took longer than 35 seconds. Disoriented and eventually lying in the dark, he stays calm. He gets up himself, and calls out for his friend who also fell. Fortunately, he gets a quick answer. In this gully on the mountain Higravtinden, the avalanche that took Bård and the hiking companion took place. Photo: Bård Smestad / Privat Kompisen is about 150 meters further up. He has been just as lucky. Amazingly, both get away from the avalanche without major injuries. It is important to think about the conditions. They are all experienced hikers and are used to making assessments when it comes to safety. Nevertheless, Smestad acknowledges that they were probably a little deceived by the season and the conditions on this day. Christian Jaedicke is a senior specialist in avalanches at the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute. He agrees that everyone should pay attention to the season we are in now. The expert on avalanches is not surprised that the conditions were not ideal in the mountains. Photo: Norwegian Geotechnical Institute – Throughout April, there have been several episodes of fresh snow over wet weather snow. In the mountains in Nordland, it is still full winter and when we have this layering in the snow cover, weak layers can quickly form which can lead to avalanches like they experienced here, he says. – Winter is not over and the safest thing is to stay away from terrain that is steeper than 30 degrees, at least until the layering in the snow cover is completely gone. Don’t be scared away from the mountain If you are first caught by an avalanche, you can quickly get up to a speed of well over 70 kilometers per hour. Then you just have to hope you don’t hit a rock or a tree, according to Jaedicke. – If you pass a small rock at 50 kilometers an hour, it only needs to stick up five centimeters to cause major damage. It’s very brutal, and they’ve been very lucky. About a third of those killed in avalanches die of trauma on the way down, he says. He advises to be observant of avalanche danger warnings on www.varsom.no – and rather take nice walks in less steep terrain. – It is actually possible to have a lot of fun in terrain that is below 30 degrees. Then you are completely safe, you can drive anywhere, and it is still very nice skiing for the vast majority of people. Smestad is relieved that the avalanche stopped before he reached the bottom and several drops of nearly ten metres. – I have been super lucky, he says, who is not scared away from the mountain. – I am not scared to go on a randonee trip. I’ll probably be out skiing again tonight.
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Bård Smestad was taken by an avalanche in Lofoten – taken 300 meters down a steep chute – news Trøndelag
