YouTuber Aidan Croft didn’t think he was going to be taking any huge risks last week when he set out on his snowmobile in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Avalanche danger was rated “moderate” that day, the experienced snowmobiler was familiar with the terrain, and he felt he knew which safety gear he’d be fine without that day.
Disaster struck anyway.
“I thought I would be okay to go scope out an area I had ridden in previous years. The northern face of Hahns Peak. I have, and currently, use this spot to get to the top. I ventured up with my crew thinking they would eventually make it up. That was my first mistake,” he explains.
Croft soon realized he shouldn’t continue to the top alone, so he attempted to turn around. When he angled his sled back down, he lost control and made sure to fall away from it. That’s when things got bad.
“I felt the snow shift, looked up, and could see a mound of snow rushing toward me. At this moment my heart sunk and I already knew I was dead.”
What follows is chilling. Aidan wrote a narration of his thoughts and decisions from the time he was buried, reminding himself not to panic, recognizing he will run out of air very quickly, and even pointing to the very fortunate turn of fate that he’d been buried at a shallow enough depth to see daylight and happened to be facing it once the slide stopped. Those last two points could have likely been the difference between life and death in Aidan’s fight to survive.
Aidan spends just under his first minute buried before punching his arm to the surface. He knows at this point he has about one foot of snow on top of his face, but at the same time there is still more snow falling, causing him to choke as he effectively “swims” toward the surface. Two minutes in, Aidan finally is able to breathe through a hole he’d made.
You can hear Aidan start to call for help within 30 seconds and even telling himself, “That was fucking awesome,” as the hysteria of what just happened kicks in. He knows the terrain could give way at any moment and is still fighting but is simultaneously excited realizing that his chances of survival are increasing. He just nearly died, but he didn’t. Still, he’s fighting for his life.
The entire 20-minute video Croft produced documenting the experience is a rollercoaster and at times, it’s tough to watch. But it’s certainly educational and the YouTuber shares some valuable insights he gained after nearly dying doing something he loves. This is an important reminder of how quickly a day in the backcountry can throw life-threatening danger your way, even when avalanche reports indicate no more than “moderate” risks.
