Heli-skiing is off-trail, downhill skiing or snowboarding where the skier reaches the top of the mountain by helicopter, instead of a ski lift.
History
In the late 1950s, helicopters were used in Alaska and Europe to access remote terrain. The first notion of the idea of heliskiing came from a Canadian geologist Art Patterson. Patterson used helicopters for his works during summer, but during winter there was no use for the helicopters. Since he was a enthusiastic skier, he thought about using the helicopters to transport skiers to the top of the mountains. He teamed up with Hans Gmoser who was a experienced mountain guide and created a business together. They charged 20$ for their first day of heliskiing, however, due to unfavorable weather conditions and a small Bell 47G-2 helicopter, Patterson decided the business is too risky and he does not want to continue.[1] Gmoser continued in the business idea and in 1965 commercialized the activity in Canada by founding CMH, Canadian Mountain Holidays, a heliskiing company which combined lodging, transport and guiding.[2]
Safety
Heliskiing presents more dangers than conventional slope skiing. Major safety concern while heliskiing is the danger of an avalanche. There are several techniques that increase safety in wild terrain, such as the usage of explosives to intentionally create an avalanche or the more common techniques of avoiding dangerous ski slopes. Another common risk are tree wells. [3] It is standard to use different types of safety equipment, such as avalanche transceivers, probes or shovels. More modern safety equipment is an avalanche airbag, which can be manually triggered when a skier gets into an avalanche. The mechanism in the backpack then inflates a big airbag around the skiers body, which prevents the skier to be buried by the snow.[4]
Locations
Most popular heliskiing locations can be found in European Alps, such as the Dolomites, or in Northern America, mainly in British Columbia and Alaska. [5] In Switzerland there are an estimated 15,000 heliskiing flights each year, to 42 landing sites.[6]
Controversy
In 2010 Switzerland's major environmental groups, including the Worldwide Fund for Nature, handed a petition with over 15,000 signatures to the Swiss government, demanding a ban on heliskiing.[6] Heliskiing is banned in Germany and was banned in France in 1985.[7] Austria allows only one landing sites.[8] In Turkey, heliskiing is done on the Kaçkar Mountains.[9]
See also
References
- ^ "Heliski Beginnings". heliski-history. Retrieved 2022-04-21.
- ^ Donahue, Topher (2008). Bugaboo dreams : a story of skiers, helicopters and mountains. Rocky Mountain Books. ISBN 9781771600224. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
- ^ "Heli Skiing Safety | Heliski Risks". www.powderhounds.com. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
- ^ "What equipment and kit do you need for heliskiing?". www.heliski.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
- ^ "Heli-Skiing: A Skier's Trip of a Lifetime — Is It Extreme or Safe?". www.globalrescue.com. Retrieved 2022-04-21.
- ^ a b Foulkes, Imogen. "Pressure grows on Swiss heliskiing". BBC. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
- ^ "Is Heliskiing illegal in France?". www.heliski.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2021-04-13. Retrieved 2019-03-13.
- ^ "Heliskiing in Austria: Only possible at Ski Arlberg". Snow-Online. Retrieved 2022-04-21.
- ^ "Adrenaline enthusiasts head to Turkiye's Kackar Mountains for heli-skiing fun". Anadolu Agency. 18 January 2022. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
External links
Media related to Heliskiing at Wikimedia Commons
