It’s human nature for all of us to want to prove ourselves. But in the backcountry, where margins for error in avalanche terrain can be razor thin, this can be a dangerous path—for experts, beginners, and everyone in between.
In the latest two-part episode of The Fine Line podcast, Jackson snowboarder Anna Meteyer confronts these and other complexities from April 1, 2020, when she lost her friend and touring partner Trace Carrillo in an avalanche on Teton Pass, Wyo. Meanwhile, TCSAR volunteer Jennifer Sparks talks about how psychological first aid has become a priority for first responders in Teton County.
Aerial drone photo by Will Smith/TCSAR.
With this incident playing out during the height of uncertainty at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, it generated national headlines and caused a stir among backcountry users in the Jackson Hole area. Though the accident seems straightforward at first glance, Meteyer shares how painfully complicated it was that day and for many days afterward, and reveals lessons that all backcountry users should take to heart.
Thank you to Meteyer for sharing her story, and to Carrillo's family and friends for supporting backcountry safety in his name through a scholarship fund at the University of Utah.
Subscribe to The Fine Line on Apple podcasts, Spotify, and SoundCloud, and listen to it every Thursday at 2 p.m. on KHOL 89.1 FM.