Make a fist, then extend your index finger and thumb, with both spread apart. Southeast is mostly mountains, islands, and fjords. It is a temperate rainforest climate where rain and snow commonly alternate at sea level, the winter weather swings from cold and clear to warm and rainy, and snowfall in the mountains is tremendous. Above the snow level, our snowpacks are deep and complex, and the higher mountains are thickly covered with glaciers and icefields. No roads connect our communities.
Travel is slow and expensive.
We must travel by ferry to teach workshops in other towns, because air service is weather-dependent and frequently delayed. Our programs differ in some respects from those of most avalanche centers. In addition to the usual services aimed at backcountry recreationists, we have a major program focus on our urban avalanche problem. The problem area has been described as the biggest potential avalanche disaster in North America. Like many avalanche centers in areas with exposed highways, we work on highway avalanche safety issues and train road maintenance crews.