Books | Websites

The ABCs of Avalanche Safety by Sue Ferguson and Ed LaChapelle (Mountaineers Books, 2003)
A handy pocket guide, loaded with the vital information you need to survive in the mountains: how to determine potential avalanche hazards; travelling safely in avalanche terrain; what to do if you're caught in an avalanche; and search and rescue techniques.
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The Good Skiing and Snowboarding Guide 2005 by Peter Hardy and Felice Hardy (Which? Books, September 2004)
Considered to be the bible for planning a ski trip anywhere in the world. Many of the resorts are chosen for their outstanding off-piste skiing.
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Mountaineering First Aid by Jan Carline, Martha J Lentz and Steven MacDonald (Mountaineers Books, 2004)
Outlines first aid procedures and treatment for common mountaineering injuries.
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SAS Survival Handbook: How to survive in the wild, in any climate, on land or at sea by John Wiseman (Collins, 2003)
Written by John 'Lofty' Wiseman, this text is based on the training techniques of the Special Air Service, with whom he served for 26 years.
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Secrets of the Snow: Visual clues to avalanche and ski conditions by Edward LaChapelle (University of Washington Press, 2001)
Describing visual snow features and textures arising from climate, wind-drift, layering, solar radiation and melting, this book explains how snow may be 'read' for information on avalanche formation and suitability for winter sports.
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Websites

Avalanche.org
www.avalanche.org
This US/Canadian site has lots of useful information but the statistics on avalanche accidents and fatalities are for North America and Canada only.

Avalanche transceivers and mobile phones
www.natives.co.uk/features/mobtrans.htm
If you're thinking of skiing off-piste, be sure to read this article. Basically, if you carry a transceiver with you for safety, make sure your mobile is switched off while you're on the slopes or you could risk not being found in time because of mobile phone interference.

French off-piste skiing and snowboarding news
www.pistehors.com/
Gives good advice on current conditions for skiing and boarding off-piste in all the French resorts, with up-to-date news on avalanche risks.

How to survive an avalanche
www.secretsofsurvival.com/ survival/avalanche_survival.html
Detailed information on how to avoid being caught in one, how to survive one and how to rescue others who may be trapped in one.

Hypothermia
www.hypothermia.org
Canadian website dedicated to the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of hypothermia in all environments and scenarios.

The Met Office
www.meto.gov.uk
News and up-to-the-minute UK and world weather reports and forecasts. The site also offers excellent educational resources and observation data, including webcams at several UK sites.

Natural Hazards: Avalanche
www.channel4.com/learning/programmenotes/ geog/nathazards03.htm
Channel 4 website for schools that offers explanations of why avalanches occur.

Ski Club of Great Britain
www.skiclub.co.uk/skiclub/home.asp
Leading UK not-for-profit snow sports club with tons of useful information, including regular weather updates from ski stations all over the world.

Snow Forecast
www.snowforecast.com
Excellent up-to-date snow and weather reports for the key US ski resorts.

High altitude medical advice for travellers
www.ciwec-clinic.com
This clinic was established in 1982 to meet the need for Western standard medicine to treat foreigners in Nepal. It runs an active research program and the high altitude medical advice section of the website is clearly written and detailed.

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