Planning a Winter Alpine Hunt? Use This Safety Checklist

We’ve created a checklist for alpine hunts this winter to ensure you’re ready for the conditions, make good decisions and get home safe.

Check your fitness 

Being fit for your hunt not only helps you cover more ground comfortably, but also reduces your risk of an accident. Slips, trips and falls are the most common hunting injuries, and more likely to occur if you’re fatigued.

Before committing to a hunt, have an honest conversation with yourself about your fitness, and adapt your hunting plans according to what you can realistically achieve. Think about the full workload of the trip – the day’s hunting, getting back to camp and getting out again afterwards.

Not quite fit enough? Next winter, plan to get fit well before the season starts.

Check your skills

Alpine unting takes solid backcountry skills and experience travelling through steep, exposed terrain. You should also be confident with route planning, reading topographical maps, understanding alpine weather patterns and how quickly conditions can change.

Winter and spring conditions also mean encountering snow, ice and avalanche terrain. To stay safe in the alpine, you’ll need specialised alpine gear – and know how to use it.

Essential gear includes a helmet, crampons, ice axe and avalanche rescue equipment – a transceiver, shovel and probe.

If you don’t have the gear or the training, avoid alpine areas until you do.

If you’re new to avalanche terrain, get proper training before heading into the hills. The Avalanche Tips and Terms video series is a good place to start.

Get the right gear

Alpine conditions require gear that’s built to withstand cold, wet and exposed conditions. We recommend:

• Warm hat and gloves
• Warm layers, including a quality down jacket
• Waterproof jacket
• Waterproof pants – like your jacket, a breathable option will ensure you don’t get wet from perspiration and get cold as soon as you stop moving.
• Good quality sturdy boots with high ankles and good tread.
• Navigation tools such as a map and compass backed up with a GPS.
• Gaiters – these will help keep your boots dry. Wet boots are likely to freeze overnight.

Taking emergency gear is also essential for every trip. This includes:

• extra food
• emergency shelter
• reliable emergency communication device, like a personal locator beacon or a satellite messenger (like a Garmin inReach). 

As part of your gear check, make sure your firearms are in good working order.

Check your route 

When choosing a route, your priority is preventing falls and not getting bluffed out. A trip or slip while hunting in the alpine will be more serious due to the steep and exposed terrain, and no animal is worth risking your life for.

When navigating your route:

• Take your time to find ways that minimise your exposure to hazards, like steep drop-offs and cliffs.
• Consider the extra weight you may have after a successful hunt.
• Be aware of potential hazards – both above and below, such as rockfall and avalanches.
• Watch the weather and consider the impact rain will have on the terrain, such as making rocks slippery.
• Be prepared to walk away if you shoot a tahr that isn’t safe to retrieve
• Make the call to stop if a tahr moves into terrain where the risk outweighs the reward.

Check the weather

Watch the weather and avalanche forecast before you go and be prepared to change your plans if conditions aren’t suitable.  On your hunt, keep assessing conditions throughout the day. Watch for incoming fronts, rising winds, dropping temperatures and changing snow conditions. Familiarise yourself with high cirrus cloud, often called mare’s tails, as this can be an early sign of deteriorating weather.

Go with a mate

It’s safer to hunt in the alpine with a mate, even if you’re an experienced hunter. It means you can talk through decisions, problem-solve together and help each other out if things go wrong.  Throughout the hunt, keep talking through your plans and next moves, and have a way to communicate if you get separated.

Put firearms safety first

Always follow the 7 Basic Firearms Safety rules.

1. Treat every firearm as loaded.
2. Always point firearms in a safe direction.
3. Chamber a cartridge only when ready to fire. This is especially important when moving in steep terrain where slips and falls are more likely.
4. Identify your target beyond all doubt.
5. Check your firing zone. Never fire at an animal on a ridgeline.
6. Store and transport firearms and ammunition safely.
7. Avoid alcohol or drugs when handling firearms.

Find out more

• Get prepared | See our alpine hunting safety advice and tips
• Be firearms safe | Learn the basics of firearms safety
• Stay up to date with all our hunting safety tips | Subscribe to our hunting newsletter

This article also appeared in Hunting & Wildlife magazine 

PHOTO CREDIT | Main Divide