Santiam Pass Ski Patrol

MTR

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Mountain Travel and Rescue at Santiam Pass, Oregon

Table of contents

Getting started

  • 2024-2025 Orientation online Nov. 25, 2024, 7:30 PM Pacific Time
  • Contact your instructor for the MS-Teams link

Courses presented by National Ski Patrol certified instructors

2024-25 Courses – MTR1 and MTR2

Online and on-the-snow schedule for 2025:

  • MTR1 and MTR2: Jan 13, 27, Feb 10, 24
  • MTR2 will add 2 more online sessions
    • Jan 8 (7-9 PM PT)
    • And another after Feb. 24 and before the on-the-snow.
  • Online is 6:30 – 8:30 PM Pacific Time in general
  • On the snow is:
    • March 13-16 – MTR2
    • Thursday – Sunday for MTR2
    • Friday – Sunday for MTR1 – you are welcome to show up on Thursday if you like.
  • To register See your NSP Learning Center – look for”
    • Mountain Travel and Rescue Level 1 – Santiam Pass
    • Mountain Travel and Rescue Level 2 – Santiam Pass
    • Note – you can find the N/BC refresher here
    • The courses will disappear from the NSP Learning Center when they begin. If you cannot find them contact the instructor: Matt Strauser, Santiam Pass Ski Patrol and PNWD Nordic Advisor #2.

There is no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.

Alfred Wainwright

MTR 1 – Requirements for credit:

MTR 2 – Requirements for credit:

  • FEMA ICS-200: ICS for Single Resources and Initial Action Incidents
  • Successful completion of
    • MTR 1 (before taking MTR 2 for credit)
    • AVY 1
  • Participate in the online sessions
  • A 3 night/4 day on-the-snow session.
  • Work with MTR1 candidates.

MTR 1 has a field day and an overnight, improvised shelter outing – 2 days and 1 night. The field day is normally a 1 day outing before the overnight outing.

Because our group is coming from long-distances, we are combining the field day into the overnight – by adding an extra day to the overnight.

The major downside to this is that with a separate field day you get to practice skills that you will be expected to know for the overnight days. This means you may need to do some work on your own on the snow before the overnight. If that makes sense?

What are these skills? We will find out in our online sessions.

Textbooks

  • Texbooks are optional. You can find all or most of the information online
  • Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills, 9th edition (2018 or later)
  • NASAR: Introduction to Search and Rescue (2008 or later)
  • Technical Rescue Riggers Guide by Rick Lipke
  • We no longer use: Mountain Travel & Rescue: National Ski Patrol’s Manual for Mountain Rescue (2012). If you have one, it contains an abundance of useful information
MTR 1, 23 Feb 2019 “improvised” shelters. Photo by Matt S.

Where will the on the snow be?

Normally the overnight session is at Santiam Pass. But having classmates from many wonderful snow destinations opens up new possibilities.

Think about these desired location characteristics and maybe you can suggest a suitable destination.

  • Safe parking.
    • Ok to leave vehicles for several days and nights
    • Snowplow safe
  • Camping site:
    • A fairly level area not too far from the road.
    • Close enough to the parking area to facilitate a speedy exit if needed.
  • Travel terrain
    • Avalanche terrain is fine as long as there are safe routes
    • Some topographic relief for the BC tour group.
    • Some level terrain for the Nordic tour group.
  • All of our locations have some beautiful vistas
  • Access to ALS and emergency services.
  • Cell service is nice, but not required.
  • Beautiful blue sky weather.

Syllabus

About MTR

MTR is the knowledge and skills of mountain travel and rescue. Taking MTR means that you will work to develop these skills to a high level. It requires significant study and practice. This includes:

  1. Navigation
    • Topographic maps
    • Coordinate systems and datum
    • Compass
    • GPS – handheld and phone
  2. Mountain travel
    • Dressing for various outdoor weather conditions
    • Modes – AT/skins, snowshoes
    • Route selection
    • Hazard awareness and mitigation
    • Self-contained or as part of a team
    • Weather
    • Avalanche
  3. Camping/Bivouac
    • Sleeping systems
    • Cooking systems
    • Nutrition
    • Handling waste
  4. Emergency bivouac
    • Improvised shelter
    • Fire building
  5. Search and rescue
  6. Rope rescue
    • Rope craft: Relevant knots, hitches, and bends
    • Rope systems and management
      • Anchors – SERENE
      • Raising and lowering
      • Rope management
    • Patient care
    • Transitions
  7. Planning the on-the-hill outing

Credit requirements

  1. Complete all prerequisites as listed above
  2. Attend online sessions
  3. Complete all online google form worksheets
  4. Successful completion of the overnight session
    • Demonstrate skills as covered in the online sessions and google forms
    • Teamwork, resource management, and leadership

Section A

Section B

  • GPS, map and compass continued
  • Ropecraft: Knots, bends, and hitches
  • See the Day 2 worksheet below

Section C

  • Body temperature regulation
    • Water and hydration
    • Nutrition
    • Clothing
  • Sleeping systems
  • Shelter – focus on improvised
  • Fire for warmth and my brand new $400 shell
  • Hazards and scene safety for travel
  • Patient transport
  • Route planning
  • See Day 3 worksheet below

Section D

  • A rope rescue system
  • Preparing for the over-night outing
    • Equipment
      • Pack as if you were going on a “normal” out-of-area SAR
      • With an overnight and shelter-in-place kit
      • Everyone will shelter a patient or two overnight
      • Avy kit: probe, beacon, shovel
    • Trailhead protocols
      • Sign-in
      • Equipment
      • Weather and avalanche review
      • Briefing
    • Travel, parking (snopark, trail pass), lodging
    • Fitness
    • Date
    • Rain? Illness?
    • Schedule Day 1
      • Trailhead protocol
      • Travel in
      • Review and student demonstrations
      • Establish “camp”
      • Night SAR
    • Schedule Day 2
      • Continue review and student demonstrations
      • Break camp
      • Travel out
      • Wrapup/Debrief
  • See Day 4 worksheet below

Sections E and F for MTR2

Dates for 2025 TBD (these are from 2024)

  • Online – 1900-2100 PT
    • 7-9 PM PT
    • 8-10 PM MT
    • 9-11 PM CT
    • 10-12 PM ET
      • Jan 9
      • Jan 16
      • April 8
      • April 15
  • Overnight May 10-12

2025 worksheets – due before the online session. Allow yourself a few hours to complete.

  1. Day 1 link
  2. Day 2 link
  3. Day 3 link
  4. Day 4 link

Worksheet links for 2024

  1. Day 1 link
  2. Day 2 link
  3. Day 3 link
  4. Day 4 link
  5. Overnight link coming
  6. Wrap-up link coming

It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.

Sir Edmund Hilary

Overnight

  • Dates – May 10-12
  • Meeting location – Probably Santiam Pass, OR
  • Schedule – Friday – Sunday 1600
  • Concept
    • Your kit
      • Pack as light as you can, but have what you need
      • What you wear or carry in your pack
      • Remember to bring avalanche gear:
        • Shovel
        • Probe
        • Transceiver (We have extra if you do not have one)
      • No pokes, sleds, or sherpas allowed
      • You need to be able to pack up your kit and move as needed
      • You do not need to improvise sleeping gear – bring a warm bag and foam pad(s)
    • Skis or snowshoes
    • You will be grouped into twos or threes for gear and shelter
      • You will coordinate with your group mates on community gear
        • Improvised shelter
        • Cooking
        • First Aid
        • Navigation
      • You will “shelter-in-place” each other in your group
      • You do as a team the shelter, SAR, rope craft, and navigation exercises
      • Each of you will get to take the role of Incident Command and planning
GaiaGPS.com – Hoodoo ski area and environs, Santiam Pass, OR. Gaia Topo showing forest service roads.

References

Some cool tips from G3