On January 16th 2016 I and three other people left home in Nelson for a day ski touring trip in the Mount Beattie area. We had a pleasant uphill ski to the top of Mount Beattie followed by a great descent in powder snow to the bottom of the valley.

After lunch, we decided to return to our vehicle. Since it is an area where I have skied on many occasions I did not take the time to review the map with the party and began skiing in the opposite direction of Hummingbird Pass. Trail breaking was significant and by the time I realized the error I had made we did not have much daylight hours left. We made the decision that it was best for the safety of the group to get ready for the night.

We had all the necessary equipment to spend a night by digging a snow cave. We immediately activated the ACR ResQlink beacon and prepared ourselves for a winter night in the mountains.

Rescue arrived first thing in the morning with a helicopter and Search and Rescue personnel. By activating the beacon they were aware of our need for a rescue. Although we managed for one night it would have been challenging to spend another full day and night in the mountains considering that wet snow started to fall the following night.