This video was prepared as a workshop for the Victorian Backcountry Festival in 2024 by Thredbo Backcountry Tours and provides an overview of how to get started with snow camping in Australia.
Sharing your public snowpack observations with Mountain Safety Collective
During the snow season, MSC publishes daily Backcountry Conditions Reports that you can help contribute to by providing your own public observations. MSC’s field observation team can’t be everywhere, so public observations help provide a bigger picture of conditions and enhance the accuracy of the daily reports.
The video below provides an overview of what type of information to look for and how to submit it via the online form.
MSC Annual General Meeting 2024
Mountain Safety Collective held its Annual General Meeting on Wednesday 23 October 2024 with a record 154 registrations from members.
MSC joins 1% For the Planet as an Environmental Partner
We are pleased to announce Mountain Safety Collective has joined 1% for the Planet as an environmental partner! This partnership is intended to advance our impact as well as involve more businesses in the environmental movement.
1% for the Planet is an accountability partner for businesses that are ready to reject business as usual and give back to environmental partners making a difference around the globe. Started in 2002 by Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, and Craig Mathews, founder of Blue Ribbon Flies, their members have given hundreds of millions of dollars to environmental partners to date.
“The intent of 1% for the Planet is to help fund these diverse environmental organizations so that collectively they can be a more powerful source in solving the world’s problems,” writes Yvon Chouinard, co-founder of 1% for the Planet.
MSC qualified as an 1% for the Planet Environmental Partner due to our commitment to improving safe access to the backcountry for the community through our free daily backcountry reports and our commitment to protecting the environment in Australia’s alpine regions.
If you’re an existing 1% for the Planet business member, or planning to become one, any financial contributions to MSC can count towards your commitment to protecting the planet. This can be in the form of a one-time donation, ongoing sponsorship or other form of support. Please contact MSC about the options we have available.
Learn more by viewing Mountain Safety Collective’s profile or about how to become a 1% For The Planet business member.
MSC launches the Alpine Guiding Partners program
For the start of the snow season in 2024, MSC is pleased to announce the launch of the Alpine Guiding Partners program. The program is designed to facilitate better alpine conditions information sharing between guiding operations in a similar manner (albeit much smaller!) to what InfoEx does for the Canadian industry. It also helps provide data for MSC’s Backcountry Conditions Reports and a way for MSC to direct its audience to reputable alpine guiding companies and educators in Australia.
All of the guiding partners are highly experienced in alpine guiding and providing backcountry education in the Australian mountains. Whether you’re looking to do your first avalanche awareness course, want to head out on an introductory or advanced backcountry tour or are looking to enhance specialised skills like ski mountaineering, our partners can provide it.
In order to qualify for the program, guiding partners need to have people on their team that are qualified in CAA Operations Level 1 or other globally recognised equivalent. This ensures that field observations they provide into the information sharing platform adhere to global standards and can be utilised consistently by all other partners and MSC forecasters. In turn, this information sharing helps partners make more informed decisions about backcountry conditions for the safety and enjoyment of their guests and fosters a spirit of good faith and collaboration for the betterment of the industry as a whole.
MSC’s audience also benefits from being able to choose a guide or backcountry education provider that is considered by MSC to be highly experienced at working in Australian conditions at a very high standard. MSC Members also receive discounts and special offers from our Alpine Guiding Partners that can help offset MSC’s annual membership fee whilst supporting all of the other initiatives MSC undertakes for the benefit of the local backcountry community.
If you have a guiding or backcountry education company and would like to be considered for MSC’s partner program, please get in touch.
Tyson Millar from The Snowstack joins MSC's forecasting team
We’re excited to welcome Tyson Millar from The Snowstack to MSC’s forecasting team, bringing his twenty years of alpine weather expertise into our free, daily Backcountry Conditions Reports.
A seasoned photographer and backcountry enthusiast, his journey began in online forums where he gained and shared knowledge, eventually leading to dedicated research and studies at the University of Tasmania (UTAS) in Antarctic Marine Science and Climate Change. Now, he brings his expertise to The Snowstack, offering bi-weekly insights on global and Australian alpine weather.
From Winter 2024, Tyson will consult with MSC’s Lead Forecaster, Craig Sheppard, on weather issues affecting the backcountry conditions reports. This will help make MSC’s weather forecasts more accurate by distilling Tyson’s long and short range alpine forecasting knowledge into our daily bulletins.
If you haven’t already checked out Tyson’s forecasting expertise, head to The Snowstack for his detailed breakdowns of the complex weather factors that affect Australia’s alpine environment.
On The Snowstack, Tyson dives deep into analysing different weather models and drivers, providing plain-english interpretations of complex charts and data.
Best of all, MSC Members now receive a 20% discount on annual subscriptions to The Snowstack. To access the offer, log in to your MSC account and follow the link.
The Avalanche Hour Podcast featuring Kyle Boys from MSC
In this installment of The Avalanche Hour Podcast; Wes Gregg sits down for a conversation with Australian Ski Guide, Forecaster and Educator, Kyle Boys from Mountain Safety Collective (MSC).
MSC is a not for profit in Australia that provides daily backcountry condition reports. These reports help serve a growing community of winter backcountry enthusiasts. We also discuss what the hazards are for the users which is slightly different from what we experience in North America. Kyle is back in Canada this year completing his CAA Level 2, a CSGA course, and working as a mechanized guide. Please enjoy! Mountain Safety Collective - Mountainsafetycollective.org Kyle Boys - @blizzard_acadamy Music in this episode is used with permission of the artist, Gravy from Nelson, BC! Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com The Avalanche Hour Podcast is proudly supported by: Gordini USA Wyssen Avalanche Control Episode produced by Wes Gregg
MSC Annual General Meeting 2023
Thanks to everyone that joined our biggest attendance for an AGM ever!
We’ll update this page in coming days with more information, but in the meantime the video recording and slides from the meeting are available below.
Rolf Schönfeld, Melissa McHugh and Owen Lansbury were returned as committee members by majority vote for the 2024-2025 term.
Northern Hemisphere Backcountry Preparation
In a talk originally given at this year’s Victorian Backcountry Festival, MSC Ambassador Alex Parsons & Communications Director Owen Lansbury discuss the skills you can be developing at home in Australia before heading overseas into backcountry terrain of more consequence.
MSC installs an Avalanche Training Centre at Thredbo NSW
After a long process, Mountain Safety Collective is excited to announce the installation of a new Avalanche Training Centre (ATC) at Thredbo in NSW, ready for winter 2023!