With two decades of experience, Golden snowboarder John Matheson knows there are some areas that are too dangerous to venture into.
He said the region where two skiers got caught in Saturday has numerous signs clearly marking it as dangerous.
“It’s a permanently closed area and for good reason. There is a huge cornice covering the entire section.
. . . Anyone with any avalanche training would know not to go into that area,” said Matheson, who works at Darkside, a sports equipment store.
The deaths of two skiers in the region, on the heels of another recent out-of-bounds death, frustrated many of the patrons visiting Darkside
“Even if you don’t have avalanche training, you would know this area was dangerous. It’s a red flag for anyone, but that’s possibly the appeal of it,” Matheson said.
Kicking Horse released a statement offering its sympathies to the family and friends of the dead men.
“This is an unfortunate event, but it needs to be stressed that these skiers entered a permanent avalanche closure,” says the statement. “The area is roped with explicit signage indicating the avalanche closure.”