Snow: Understanding, testing and interpreting snow conditions to make better avalanche predictions

'The majority of mountaineers say they know something of the snow and its lifecycle including its ability to avalanche. However, the majority of us are not snow 'experts', yet we sometimes educate others about snow, its deposition and avalanche possibility. Welcome another helpline in the field of snow science. Two little 'mini-guide' books of knowledge aimed at those who want to know more about Snow and its ability to Avalanche. Originally written by Robert Bolognesi and translated by Blyth Wright. These books include a lifetimes' knowledge, yet are written in a simple, informative way and include numerous clear pictures and diagrams to aid the interpretation of the information included in the text. One of the best features of both of these books is that they come in a neat plastic cover, allowing them to be taken out into the weather whilst being afforded some protection from the elements. They each include a card that can be used practically in the field. Avalanche comes with a NivoTest card designed to help quantify the risks from avalanches. The Snow mini-guide comes with a handy snow crystal card for identifying crystals in the snow layer. The books read through in a methodical manner with chapters including how snow changes, snow measurements and interpretation in Snow and personal accounts, risk assessment and reducing the risk in Avalanche. The outcomes of each book being to suggest rules of thumb for making educated guesses and understanding avalanche phenomenon, whereas Snow details the formation and evolution of snow, and shows practical methods of examining and analysing snow cover. The books would be at home on the bookshelf of the occasional winter mountaineer, skier, snowboarder, as they are with the Winter ML or MIC or guide.' (Dave Brown / AMI news'The small size of this attractive new series launched by Cicerone will make them very suitable for carrying on the hill. All are well illustrated with colour photos, sketches and map, and have solid plastic covers.Snow and Avalanche! follows from the other, and their subtitles adequately describe their contents. The photographs and sketches in both are very clear.Snow has a handy little card to keep in your pocket, with the simple tests set out. Many of the snow tests are simple enough to be carried out by amateur skiers or climbers in a few minutes and well worth the time spent.(Irish Mountain Log / Summer 2007)Check out the reviews on the following websites: Pistehors.com Scotclimb.org.uk