0:00:08 > 0:00:11Every winter, thousands of people head to the mountains
0:00:11 > 0:00:14to experience them at their most magnificent.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22In an age of mobile technology, many of these adventurers carry cameras.
0:00:24 > 0:00:26We made it! Yeah!
0:00:26 > 0:00:27Tales of triumph,
0:00:27 > 0:00:30and of tragedy, are captured in the most
0:00:30 > 0:00:32immediate and intimate way.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42These are the Scottish mountains.
0:00:44 > 0:00:48The winter of 2012-13 was one of the coldest,
0:00:48 > 0:00:52longest and busiest on record in the Scottish mountains.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55It was also one of the deadliest.
0:00:55 > 0:00:59A major search operation is under way tonight for three climbers
0:00:59 > 0:01:02after an avalanche near Glencoe in the Scottish Highlands.
0:01:02 > 0:01:06Mountain Rescue teams say there are fatalities.
0:01:06 > 0:01:09Police have confirmed tonight that a man and woman have died
0:01:09 > 0:01:11following an avalanche in the Cairngorms.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14And it is yet another reminder of just how dangerous
0:01:14 > 0:01:17the Scottish mountains can be in winter.
0:01:18 > 0:01:2014 lives were lost as extreme weather
0:01:20 > 0:01:23and a series of lethal avalanches hit the Highlands.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27Using footage recorded by people who live,
0:01:27 > 0:01:30work and play in these environments...
0:01:30 > 0:01:31Cold!
0:01:31 > 0:01:34..this film will reveal what really happened on the mountains
0:01:34 > 0:01:37and find out how a major meteorological phenomenon
0:01:37 > 0:01:40taking place high up in the atmosphere
0:01:40 > 0:01:43helped shape what was truly a unique winter.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16The winter of 2012-13 began like any other.
0:02:17 > 0:02:21Two of Scotland's ski centres have reported good custom
0:02:21 > 0:02:23on the first day of the season.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26Some runs have been open at the Lecht and Cairngorm Mountain,
0:02:26 > 0:02:28where more than 500 skiers took to the slopes.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32Woo-hoo! Hello!
0:02:32 > 0:02:34- LAUGHING - Where are we?
0:02:34 > 0:02:39We're up a hill somewhere! I don't really know, but it's really pretty.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42- SHE SINGS - # Jingle bells, jingle bells
0:02:42 > 0:02:43# Jingle all the way... #
0:02:43 > 0:02:46Then, in January, a major cold spell struck
0:02:46 > 0:02:50and brought with it some of the heaviest snowfall in years.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57Time and time again, we saw the weather systems
0:02:57 > 0:03:00bringing us snow on many occasions.
0:03:00 > 0:03:04It seemed like groundhog day in our weather conditions.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06The combination of high visitor numbers
0:03:06 > 0:03:09and heavy snowfall would prove deadly.
0:03:09 > 0:03:12On 19th January, tragedy struck.
0:03:12 > 0:03:17Four climbers have been killed in an avalanche in Glencoe in Scotland.
0:03:17 > 0:03:19The following week in Ben Nevis,
0:03:19 > 0:03:22another young but experienced climber fell to his death.
0:03:24 > 0:03:28In February, horrendous storms and more major avalanches
0:03:28 > 0:03:31continued to stretch the Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Service.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34This last winter was full-on for us.
0:03:37 > 0:03:41We had a lot of big rescues that came on the back of each other.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44We'd be out maybe three or four days in a row.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47We weren't getting any sleep, couple of hours then back out.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51But the winter that was fast becoming
0:03:51 > 0:03:54one of Scotland's most tragic was in no hurry to leave.
0:03:56 > 0:04:01The cold winter conditions lasted right up into early April.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05As late as Easter, the lingering winter would take another life
0:04:05 > 0:04:08when an experienced off-piste skier
0:04:08 > 0:04:10was struck by an avalanche in Glencoe.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19But how unique was this winter?
0:04:19 > 0:04:22What can it tell us about winters to come?
0:04:22 > 0:04:26And just how will the emergency services who protect us cope
0:04:26 > 0:04:29when such a winter strikes again?
0:04:32 > 0:04:35This footage is from the camera of Jonathan Hart.
0:04:35 > 0:04:39As chairman of the Mountain Rescue Committee of Scotland,
0:04:39 > 0:04:43he knows well the benefit and the cost of heavy snowfalls.
0:04:45 > 0:04:47My experience this winter
0:04:47 > 0:04:51is that the unusual event we had was a period of two to three months
0:04:51 > 0:04:55of stable weather, high pressure, but bringing north-easterly
0:04:55 > 0:04:57and north-westerly winds.
0:04:57 > 0:05:01That produced an unusual volume of snow in a short period of time.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04Coupled with large numbers of people coming to Scotland,
0:05:04 > 0:05:06quite rightly, to enjoy the fantastic conditions,
0:05:06 > 0:05:11it meant that we then had a series of incidents we had to deal with.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15The last time that happened, that set of unusual circumstances,
0:05:15 > 0:05:17was in the mid '50s.
0:05:19 > 0:05:20The unusual conditions continued
0:05:20 > 0:05:23to draw more and more people up into the Highlands,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26eager to record and share their great adventures.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29MUSIC: "Flowers In Your Hair" by The Lumineers
0:05:29 > 0:05:30# When we were younger we thought
0:05:30 > 0:05:32# Everyone was on our side
0:05:32 > 0:05:34# Then we grew a little
0:05:34 > 0:05:36# And romanticised
0:05:36 > 0:05:39# The time I saw flowers in your hair
0:05:42 > 0:05:44# It takes a boy to live
0:05:44 > 0:05:47# It takes a man to pretend he was there... #
0:05:56 > 0:05:58The size and quality of modern day cameras
0:05:58 > 0:06:01allow people to capture extraordinary images
0:06:01 > 0:06:04thousands of feet up.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07They're also on hand to capture some of the dramatic rescues.
0:06:07 > 0:06:11Such rescues are rare, as the overwhelming majority
0:06:11 > 0:06:13of people return home without incident.
0:06:13 > 0:06:18But, in winter, the potential for danger should never be forgotten.
0:06:24 > 0:06:29If ever there was an illustration of the perils of walking in winter,
0:06:29 > 0:06:31in Scotland, especially,
0:06:31 > 0:06:33it's this stuff, here,
0:06:33 > 0:06:37which just dislodged as I walked over it.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40It's a whole section of a top layer of snow.
0:06:40 > 0:06:44And all you need to do is step and that's it, it's off,
0:06:44 > 0:06:46and you with it.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49On a steep slope, that could be quite a problem.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06Mark Diggins is the senior forecaster
0:07:06 > 0:07:09at the Sport Scotland Avalanche Information Service.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14Every day, Mark and his colleagues report online the avalanche risk
0:07:14 > 0:07:17in the five most popular mountain areas of Scotland.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22We're about 1,000-odd metres here now.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25There will be places where the snow is drifting,
0:07:25 > 0:07:27and there will be an avalanche hazard.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32Mark works in the Cairngorms National Park.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36In the winter of 2012-13, the Cairngorms was hit
0:07:36 > 0:07:39by an unusually high volume of snow.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43'This winter's been pretty different to other winters,
0:07:43 > 0:07:46'because of where the weather's been coming from.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48'A lot of really Arctic weather.'
0:07:50 > 0:07:54Here in the Cairngorms, snow can build up to 20 feet deep.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13With every snowfall, a new layer is added to the snow pack.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15Within these layers, the snow crystals
0:08:15 > 0:08:17begin to change in form and size.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22It's these changes which determine how well the crystals bond together
0:08:22 > 0:08:25and whether the layer will be strong or weak.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31This snow pit will reveal the condition of the most recent layers.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36Obviously, we've got this very distinct layer, there,
0:08:36 > 0:08:38and then another one here.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42By measuring the temperature at intervals,
0:08:42 > 0:08:45we can begin to understand how the snow is behaving.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49If the temperature changes more
0:08:49 > 0:08:52than around 1 degree centigrade per 10 centimetres,
0:08:52 > 0:08:55the snow can transform into the weak, sugary crystals
0:08:55 > 0:08:57which cause the majority of avalanches.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01I'm just going to clean the face.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07Cutting out a column of these snow layers
0:09:07 > 0:09:10allows for a shock test that is both simple and safe.
0:09:12 > 0:09:13You see a fail, there.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18Usually, the temperature between layers fluctuates
0:09:18 > 0:09:21with the changing weather, allowing the crystals to transform
0:09:21 > 0:09:24back into rounded, well-bonded grains.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28Give it a tap and you see...
0:09:29 > 0:09:32..it's a layer that's presenting a weakness.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37But, in January 2013, the weather stayed persistently cold
0:09:37 > 0:09:39and the crystals failed to bond.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45This winter, the weak layer was in there for about a month.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48Which is quite unusual in Scotland, because often it's so mild
0:09:48 > 0:09:51and we get warm weather and rain affecting the snow pack
0:09:51 > 0:09:54so a lot of those weak layers disappear.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56But this winter it was quite different,
0:09:56 > 0:09:58because those weak layers didn't disappear at all.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03And, also, we've had real extreme events of wind.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06A lot of times it's been over 100mph.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09Massive amounts of snow are being transported.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13It pushes the snow on top of these weak layers,
0:10:13 > 0:10:15and it's just really on a hairline trigger.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19The reports that Mark and his colleagues create
0:10:19 > 0:10:22are published online every day, and are essential reading
0:10:22 > 0:10:25before venturing into snow-covered mountains.
0:10:26 > 0:10:30There's been quite a period where people have really not experienced
0:10:30 > 0:10:33proper winters, or real Scottish winters.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36So maybe they don't quite realise how prepared you need to be.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40It can change so quickly from being a lovely day
0:10:40 > 0:10:43to being really violent and full-on.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48Scientists are only now beginning to understand
0:10:48 > 0:10:51the complex metamorphosis that occurs within a snow pack.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56We used to think that the snow pack was like a sort of sandwich,
0:10:56 > 0:10:59but, actually, it's much more complex than that.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02The snow builds up. Over time, snow moves,
0:11:02 > 0:11:05crystals and grains, from one place to another.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07So there might be little areas
0:11:07 > 0:11:09where it's weaker than other areas.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13That then gets disguised, it gets covered by subsequent snowfalls,
0:11:13 > 0:11:16and, so, really, it could almost be a bit like a minefield.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22To learn more about the lethal potential of snow,
0:11:22 > 0:11:25we must go to a place where understanding its behaviour
0:11:25 > 0:11:28is critical to just about every aspect
0:11:28 > 0:11:30of human endeavour and existence.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52In the Alps, whole towns and villages are built
0:11:52 > 0:11:54in the shadow of huge, snow-covered mountains.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58Roads and railways weave their way through narrow passes.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02On average, 100 lives are lost to avalanches each year.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09In Davos, Switzerland,
0:12:09 > 0:12:12scientists at the Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research
0:12:12 > 0:12:16conduct experiments to analyse the complex life of a snowflake.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21Their experiments range from growing their own, ultra-consistent snow...
0:12:31 > 0:12:33..to the triggering of full-scale avalanches
0:12:33 > 0:12:36whose spectacular power can be seductive.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40They are extremely mysterious.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43They are so complex and so beautiful
0:12:43 > 0:12:46there is always something new to study, to see, to learn.
0:12:53 > 0:12:54They have a kind of
0:12:54 > 0:12:58primitive attraction for this beautiful, natural phenomenon.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03On these mountains, scientists are able to start
0:13:03 > 0:13:05and monitor their own avalanches.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10We try to release, and we do it artificially from a helicopter,
0:13:10 > 0:13:12large avalanches.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16And the aim of these experiments is to measure
0:13:16 > 0:13:20all dynamical parameters that characterise the flow.
0:13:20 > 0:13:24What we are interested in is being able to reproduce the movement
0:13:24 > 0:13:29of these very large avalanches that can reach down to the villages,
0:13:29 > 0:13:33and it's able to tell us how far an avalanche can come.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38And how much pressure and velocity she will exert along the path.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42These measurements are critical to making decisions
0:13:42 > 0:13:45about infrastructure and housing in mountainous areas.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03But it's at the microscopic level where avalanches begin.
0:14:12 > 0:14:16To understand more about snow involved in avalanches,
0:14:16 > 0:14:19researchers collect samples from recent avalanche sites.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24From a geological point of view,
0:14:24 > 0:14:27snow is a high-temperature material.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30And that sounds very strange for most people,
0:14:30 > 0:14:33because snow is almost a symbol for cold.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37But, because snow is always very close to the melting point,
0:14:37 > 0:14:40it behaves as a high-temperature material.
0:14:41 > 0:14:46It's like a metal at several hundred,
0:14:46 > 0:14:49or even thousand degrees.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54And that makes it very fast changing.
0:14:56 > 0:15:01It's one of the fastest changing natural materials we see at all.
0:15:03 > 0:15:08Changing and making new crystals means to change the structure.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14Working in temperatures of minus 20 degrees,
0:15:14 > 0:15:17scientists can analyse these changing structures
0:15:17 > 0:15:20in ways that have only recently become possible.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24Snow is a very elusive material.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29That made it very hard
0:15:29 > 0:15:34to really get a complete picture of the snow.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38And that was the state until about ten years ago,
0:15:38 > 0:15:41when we started with tomography.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45When we could really visualise snow in 3-D.
0:15:45 > 0:15:50Then we started to see snow in a very different way than before.
0:15:51 > 0:15:55Tomography provides a microscopic X-ray view
0:15:55 > 0:15:57of how snow samples change over time.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02First I thought that must be great for everybody,
0:16:02 > 0:16:05because now people can understand snow.
0:16:05 > 0:16:09But it doesn't look like the nice, hexagonal,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12perfectly symmetric snowflakes.
0:16:12 > 0:16:14It looks, simply, strange.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18These new ways of looking at snow have enabled scientists
0:16:18 > 0:16:22to build large 3-D models of microscopic structures
0:16:22 > 0:16:23from real snow samples.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28So, this sample is from an avalanche site.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31This block is only 4mm wide.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35We see in this block the essential features.
0:16:35 > 0:16:40This big blob is refrozen snow,
0:16:40 > 0:16:44so it got warm, but only a little bit.
0:16:44 > 0:16:47It created this huge crystal,
0:16:47 > 0:16:50and that's the interface, you could say,
0:16:50 > 0:16:55between the hard upper layer and the weak layer.
0:16:56 > 0:17:00And the avalanche forms now somewhere in this weak layer.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13The avalanche forecaster needs to understand
0:17:13 > 0:17:18under which conditions does nature form such a weak layer.
0:17:19 > 0:17:23By knowing more about the process,
0:17:23 > 0:17:28then the avalanche forecasters are able to improve their methods,
0:17:28 > 0:17:32and, hopefully, forecast avalanches more precisely.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39Avalanches rarely happen by themselves,
0:17:39 > 0:17:41so precise forecasting provides essential information
0:17:41 > 0:17:44for anyone venturing into snow-covered mountains.
0:17:46 > 0:17:48For an avalanche to occur,
0:17:48 > 0:17:49you need a trigger.
0:17:50 > 0:17:53With avalanches that involve people,
0:17:53 > 0:17:5690% of the time they will have triggered the avalanche themselves.
0:17:57 > 0:18:01It's not a case of an avalanche just engulfing people.
0:18:12 > 0:18:15Two years ago on a winter's day in the Cairngorms,
0:18:15 > 0:18:18climber Barry Middleton became such a trigger.
0:18:18 > 0:18:21He was returning home with a friend from a day's climbing
0:18:21 > 0:18:24on Feith Buidhe, near the summit of Hell's Lum.
0:18:26 > 0:18:30This photograph was taken soon after his lucky escape from the avalanche.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34Does it feel a bit strange coming back and looking at the place?
0:18:34 > 0:18:37It's interesting just to see all those craggy bits
0:18:37 > 0:18:40and think that I probably could have gone tumbling over some of that.
0:18:40 > 0:18:42It doesn't bear thinking about.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45I'd certainly think more when I'm out in a winter environment,
0:18:45 > 0:18:48that's for sure, but I'm glad to be able to stand here
0:18:48 > 0:18:49and enjoy it.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52- It is a beautiful place, isn't it?- It is.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56But, you know, the mountains, they're not out to get you,
0:18:56 > 0:18:58they're just here.
0:18:58 > 0:18:59On one hand you've got the beauty,
0:18:59 > 0:19:03on the other hand you got this risk and danger juxtaposed together.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08I'd always associate an avalanche with being under snow.
0:19:08 > 0:19:11But this was unusual because I was actually sitting on top
0:19:11 > 0:19:14of a boulder field, it was actually moving.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16You're thinking, "Oh, my God, it's an avalanche."
0:19:16 > 0:19:19Next thought is, "This can't be good."
0:19:19 > 0:19:24It quickly became apparent that I was reaching the edge of a void.
0:19:24 > 0:19:29There was no snow just before the edge, just an icy slab,
0:19:29 > 0:19:32and I knew that if I hit that icy slab
0:19:32 > 0:19:35I couldn't stop myself, I'd go flying over the edge.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39And, in a way, being out of control made it easier to be
0:19:39 > 0:19:41accepting of what was about to happen,
0:19:41 > 0:19:43because there was nothing I could do about it.
0:19:43 > 0:19:47And then, just as I was about to hit this icy slab,
0:19:47 > 0:19:51it all just very quickly slowed, and then it just stopped,
0:19:51 > 0:19:54and I must have stopped from here to that rock.
0:19:54 > 0:19:56Very lucky.
0:19:56 > 0:19:58- And then you came to see me. - That's it.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00We thought, "Should we do the right thing and report it?"
0:20:00 > 0:20:05And you were quite white, the both of you. I do recall that.
0:20:05 > 0:20:09And it's hard to understand how two little people can actually
0:20:09 > 0:20:12create such a massive avalanche like that.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14Go to an alpine environment
0:20:14 > 0:20:16and its big slopes and you think, "Avalanche."
0:20:16 > 0:20:19You come here and there are smaller slopes, quite localised
0:20:19 > 0:20:21and you think, "No, it's not that bad."
0:20:21 > 0:20:24There were whole patches of grass in certain places,
0:20:24 > 0:20:26there didn't seem to be that much snow.
0:20:26 > 0:20:31And that is something that we have to take on board in Scotland.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35The situation with yourselves was that we had this weak layer
0:20:35 > 0:20:38and above that, we had this...it'd been windy,
0:20:38 > 0:20:40and it had this hard slab put on the top,
0:20:40 > 0:20:45so it feels really solid, but it's really just like an eggshell.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47It had been getting milder and milder,
0:20:47 > 0:20:51but it hadn't got rid of that weakness and so, really,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54everything seems OK, but bang!
0:20:54 > 0:20:56That situation is very similar to what we had
0:20:56 > 0:20:58in the winds that we've just had now,
0:20:58 > 0:21:01in that we had persistent layers.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05In the winter of 2012 to '13,
0:21:05 > 0:21:09Mark recorded 18 human-triggered avalanches like Barry's -
0:21:09 > 0:21:12fewer than the previous year, but tragically,
0:21:12 > 0:21:16two of these avalanches caused multiple fatalities
0:21:16 > 0:21:20igniting media interest which would last the duration of the winter.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Avalanches actually are quite rare events.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29You may think that with the news of this winter that we've just had,
0:21:29 > 0:21:33that they happen frequently, but that is just not the case,
0:21:33 > 0:21:34they are rare events.
0:21:34 > 0:21:38But nonetheless, the impact of an avalanche is catastrophic.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53This is Christopher Bell,
0:21:53 > 0:21:57a 24-year-old PhD student and experienced mountaineer.
0:22:00 > 0:22:06His ideal weekend would be to run, cycle,
0:22:06 > 0:22:08a bit of a walk on the top of a mountain
0:22:08 > 0:22:10- and watch the sun come up.- Yeah.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14Chris, we used to ask him, you know,
0:22:14 > 0:22:17when he was nine, ten, "What do you want to be when you grow up?
0:22:17 > 0:22:21"What you want to do when you grow up?" And he ALWAYS replied,
0:22:21 > 0:22:26"I want to ride my bike and count the stars."
0:22:26 > 0:22:28And that's what he did.
0:22:31 > 0:22:32On 19th January,
0:22:32 > 0:22:36Chris set out on a climbing expedition in Glencoe.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39He was accompanied by junior doctor, Una Finnegan,
0:22:39 > 0:22:42and four other friends, including a couple -
0:22:42 > 0:22:44hospital doctor Rachel Majumdar
0:22:44 > 0:22:47and PhD student Tom Chesters.
0:22:49 > 0:22:51I knew that Tom was planning a trip up there
0:22:51 > 0:22:53when he was down visiting us for Christmas.
0:22:53 > 0:22:55He was looking for places to stay,
0:22:55 > 0:22:57looking for walks to go on and suchlike.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59Yeah, they were getting quite excited about it.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02They were really looking forward to a trip up there.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08Good evening. Cold and wintry
0:23:08 > 0:23:10and, yes, we are already seeing some snow.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13The Met Office have already issued an amber, be-prepared warning
0:23:13 > 0:23:16for some really quite heavy and frequent snow showers.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19These showers are being driven in
0:23:19 > 0:23:21by a strong easterly wind
0:23:21 > 0:23:23so it will feel bitterly cold, too.
0:23:25 > 0:23:29I think Tom loved the fact that he could get into these wild,
0:23:29 > 0:23:31open spaces and, if he wanted to,
0:23:31 > 0:23:33really push the boundaries a little bit.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37The six friends had spent the day climbing and had already
0:23:37 > 0:23:41begun their descent down the north face of Bidean Nam Bian.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45He always aimed to get outside as often as he could
0:23:45 > 0:23:47and as high up, because he always said,
0:23:47 > 0:23:51"To get the best views, you've got to climb the highest mountains."
0:23:51 > 0:23:54I won't have anybody saying that he was irresponsible
0:23:54 > 0:23:56going up those mountains.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00He was... Christopher didn't have an irresponsible bone in his body.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04Christopher had done avalanche training.
0:24:06 > 0:24:12But if it all boils down to being at the wrong place at the wrong time,
0:24:12 > 0:24:14there's nothing anybody can do about that.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22I came in for the usual late afternoon Saturday activity,
0:24:22 > 0:24:28which is watching the football scores and then the BBC news.
0:24:28 > 0:24:31A major search operation is under way tonight for three climbers
0:24:31 > 0:24:35after an avalanche near Glencoe in the Scottish Highlands.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38Mountain rescue teams say there are fatalities.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43Immediately I heard that,
0:24:43 > 0:24:49there was a kind of...chill, of fear went down my spine.
0:24:50 > 0:24:54I straight away got on the phone to text him,
0:24:54 > 0:24:58but, of course, there was no response.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02This is thought to be one of Scotland's worst climbing accidents.
0:25:02 > 0:25:04We know that it was a party of six,
0:25:04 > 0:25:08that they had been climbing a peak known as Bidean Nam Bian.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10They were making their way down the summit
0:25:10 > 0:25:14and it seems that a slab of snow simply gave way.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17They had fallen 1,000 feet
0:25:17 > 0:25:20before being buried in up to six feet of snow.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26About midnight, there were two doors slam outside,
0:25:26 > 0:25:30two car doors, they were two policemen.
0:25:30 > 0:25:32I just opened the door and said,
0:25:32 > 0:25:34"I know what you're here for."
0:25:38 > 0:25:43Definitely, the worst day of our lives, I guess.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53Rescue workers found that one of the fallen climbers had survived,
0:25:53 > 0:25:56but with very serious injuries.
0:25:56 > 0:25:59Chris and Una, and Tom and Rachel
0:25:59 > 0:26:01had all been pronounced dead at the scene.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06I think I just sat in shock for a few days
0:26:06 > 0:26:09and then you have to pull yourself together
0:26:09 > 0:26:13and...get on with arrangements.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18You can't believe that you're getting home with those arrangements,
0:26:18 > 0:26:20but you just have to and...
0:26:20 > 0:26:22it's still very strange.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30I've now sort of had that scary thought
0:26:30 > 0:26:32a few days after the accident
0:26:32 > 0:26:37of being an only child now. And that's quite a scary,
0:26:37 > 0:26:40worrying, surreal thought in many ways.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43Cos, obviously, you think you're going to grow up
0:26:43 > 0:26:46alongside your brother for many, many years
0:26:46 > 0:26:49and, all of a sudden, it's just you.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55I've still got and will always keep
0:26:55 > 0:26:57the last Christmas present that Tom gave me,
0:26:57 > 0:27:02which by sheer coincidence and fate was a jigsaw puzzle
0:27:02 > 0:27:06of a Harvey's map of Fort William and Glencoe,
0:27:06 > 0:27:09which has the actual mountain that killed Tom on it,
0:27:09 > 0:27:13so that's something that I'll always, always keep hold of.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15UKELELE MUSIC
0:27:15 > 0:27:21So this is Christopher playing the ukelele or New Year's Eve.
0:27:21 > 0:27:25And...this is him playing the background music to this video.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32It's all his friends enjoying themselves.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35It is sad, but...
0:27:37 > 0:27:39..you know, they're enjoying it.
0:27:39 > 0:27:41It's lovely.
0:27:44 > 0:27:45Happy New Year.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55It was fantastic.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57I often used to go up
0:27:57 > 0:28:00and wish I could do all the things that he could do, you know.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07An amazing life up there, he had.
0:28:23 > 0:28:28I struggle because he was such a good son.
0:28:28 > 0:28:35And I have to be strong for Alison and Edward and it's hard.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41It's difficult sometimes.
0:28:41 > 0:28:47But we get through it and we keep strong and hopefully, you know,
0:28:47 > 0:28:50he lives on in other people.
0:28:53 > 0:28:55Nice lad.
0:29:00 > 0:29:01Sad.
0:29:06 > 0:29:10The Glencoe avalanche was the first major incident of the winter
0:29:10 > 0:29:14and a tragic reminder that, no matter how experienced you are,
0:29:14 > 0:29:18accidents can happen on snow-covered mountains.
0:29:18 > 0:29:22But snow itself is not the only danger.
0:29:22 > 0:29:24How we behave on the mountains
0:29:24 > 0:29:28and the decisions we make there can also cause problems.
0:29:28 > 0:29:31If someone has looked at a guide book and they've seen a climb
0:29:31 > 0:29:35or a ski run or a particular walk that they want to do,
0:29:35 > 0:29:38then, once they fix that, it's very, very hard for people
0:29:38 > 0:29:40to divert from that plan.
0:29:40 > 0:29:41The commitment to something
0:29:41 > 0:29:44is probably one of the most common reasons
0:29:44 > 0:29:48for people to ignore signs and to carry on regardless,
0:29:48 > 0:29:51with sometimes serious consequences.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55The other is the effect of other people doing things around you.
0:29:55 > 0:29:58You know, when people are around you, you tend to think
0:29:58 > 0:30:00that, "Oh, it must be OK. There, there."
0:30:00 > 0:30:03You know, if I just go over here, it'll be the same.
0:30:03 > 0:30:06You know, it might only be a few degrees of difference, but actually,
0:30:06 > 0:30:09it might be significant in terms of avalanche hazard.
0:30:09 > 0:30:13And this is not just for beginners, it's everybody.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16There is evidence to show that, no matter how experienced you are,
0:30:16 > 0:30:18how many times you've been in the mountains,
0:30:18 > 0:30:21you're still susceptible to these human factors.
0:30:27 > 0:30:31This is footage taken from the head cam of Thomas Scheuner,
0:30:31 > 0:30:34a back-country skier who knows well
0:30:34 > 0:30:36how these human factors can lead us into danger.
0:30:38 > 0:30:41Despite having over 20 years of experience
0:30:41 > 0:30:44going off-piste in the Swiss Alps,
0:30:44 > 0:30:48Thomas made a near fatal mistake on the day this footage was taken.
0:30:58 > 0:31:01Thomas and his friend were on a ski touring trip
0:31:01 > 0:31:04through the Engelberg mountain range.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07This was their last chance to get in some fresh powder runs
0:31:07 > 0:31:08before heading home.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15Some people say the worst car accidents happen
0:31:15 > 0:31:18on the streets that you drive every day.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22And it's a little bit the same thing
0:31:22 > 0:31:26when you think that you really know the signs.
0:31:28 > 0:31:31Thomas already had some indication of instability in the snow.
0:31:31 > 0:31:36In previous runs, he'd seen cracks appear setting off small slides.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42I stood there, on top of this face,
0:31:42 > 0:31:45and I looked down and I saw it's really steep,
0:31:45 > 0:31:47it's wind-affected, it's not stable.
0:31:49 > 0:31:51Then, you wear this safety equipment,
0:31:51 > 0:31:55like the airbag, like the beacon,
0:31:55 > 0:31:59you feel better, you think you're invincible.
0:31:59 > 0:32:03I tricked my mind, I tricked all that I knew
0:32:03 > 0:32:07and I thought, "It IS very unstable, it IS very dangerous,
0:32:07 > 0:32:10"but it's not happening to me."
0:32:10 > 0:32:12But, of course, it happened to me.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19I remember the moment I landed,
0:32:19 > 0:32:23the whole face started to move.
0:32:23 > 0:32:28I knew that it will be bad.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41The snow on that day was very fresh,
0:32:41 > 0:32:44very light. It's like a dust storm.
0:32:45 > 0:32:49You don't see anything, you don't know if you're upside down.
0:32:49 > 0:32:53It's...it's a horrible feeling.
0:32:57 > 0:33:02Some people say, "Yeah, you have to spin on top of the avalanche."
0:33:02 > 0:33:05You know, these forces are so strong
0:33:05 > 0:33:10and it's like...a piece of dust in the wind, you don't,
0:33:10 > 0:33:12you're not capable of doing anything,
0:33:12 > 0:33:14you just wait for things to happen.
0:33:16 > 0:33:19I knew on the bottom there will be a band of cliffs
0:33:19 > 0:33:22and the cliffs are really high.
0:33:23 > 0:33:24This amateur photograph
0:33:24 > 0:33:26shows just how high.
0:33:28 > 0:33:31But the fall was not his only concern,
0:33:31 > 0:33:34there was also the possibility of being buried alive.
0:33:37 > 0:33:40I just knew that I want to see light.
0:33:40 > 0:33:42I don't want to be covered up,
0:33:42 > 0:33:44this is the worst thing.
0:33:44 > 0:33:47So I was always shovelling away
0:33:47 > 0:33:50the snow that was trying to cover me up.
0:33:51 > 0:33:55HE GROANS
0:33:55 > 0:33:59And after a while, the slide stopped
0:33:59 > 0:34:03and I saw light and then, I realised that I'm not breathing.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07HE GROANS
0:34:07 > 0:34:10My whole mouth was full of snow.
0:34:10 > 0:34:12So first, get the snow out,
0:34:12 > 0:34:14then start to breathe.
0:34:19 > 0:34:21The red line shows how far
0:34:21 > 0:34:24Thomas had been carried.
0:34:24 > 0:34:30I heard my friend's voice and I was really...happy.
0:34:32 > 0:34:35He dug up my legs and my body
0:34:35 > 0:34:40and then, I really realised that something is not good with my spine.
0:34:43 > 0:34:45Thomas had been very lucky
0:34:45 > 0:34:48suffering only a single broken vertebra.
0:34:48 > 0:34:52Following eight weeks wearing an aluminium support,
0:34:52 > 0:34:54his spine completely recovered.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58The first ski patrols came
0:34:58 > 0:35:00and they looked up the steep face
0:35:00 > 0:35:03and looked at me and they asked,
0:35:03 > 0:35:05"Why are you alive?
0:35:05 > 0:35:09"You know the day today? You have to celebrate a birthday from now on."
0:35:14 > 0:35:16Back in Scotland,
0:35:16 > 0:35:20off-piste skiing is thriving thanks to the recent heavy snowfalls.
0:35:21 > 0:35:25But how do its attractions and its dangers compare with the Alps?
0:35:28 > 0:35:31Because there are so few ski areas in Scotland
0:35:31 > 0:35:33when you compare it to the Alps,
0:35:33 > 0:35:36most of the good ski touring terrain needs a long approach,
0:35:36 > 0:35:39be it on a bike, be it walking,
0:35:39 > 0:35:41be it getting on your skis.
0:35:42 > 0:35:45For me, that's a complete adventure where you go to the end of the road
0:35:45 > 0:35:48and then the road runs out and then you follow a narrow track
0:35:48 > 0:35:50and the track runs out and you keep going.
0:35:54 > 0:35:56Blair Aitken is a ski instructor
0:35:56 > 0:35:59who has worked in both the Alps and Scotland.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09I sometimes feel that a lot of the off-piste skiing
0:36:09 > 0:36:11that's done in the Alps,
0:36:11 > 0:36:14and in particular the French Alps, where the lift system is so amazing.
0:36:14 > 0:36:17It becomes a little bit like theme-park skiing
0:36:17 > 0:36:19in that you can hop off a lift,
0:36:19 > 0:36:23ski quite a steep dangerous slope relatively quickly.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26For me, that side of skiing is far more dangerous
0:36:26 > 0:36:28than what happens in Scotland.
0:36:28 > 0:36:32In Scotland, there tends to be more preparation.
0:36:32 > 0:36:33Because there has to be,
0:36:33 > 0:36:36cos you don't know what you're going to encounter.
0:36:37 > 0:36:40For me, it feels a bit rougher, a little bit rawer,
0:36:40 > 0:36:42a little bit more natural out here.
0:36:43 > 0:36:45And that makes it exciting.
0:36:53 > 0:36:56Of course, when you're skiing in the Highlands, there are going
0:36:56 > 0:36:59to be situations where if it all goes wrong, if a slope avalanches,
0:36:59 > 0:37:02you're above something exposed, it drags you over a rock,
0:37:02 > 0:37:04there's things that could go terribly wrong.
0:37:06 > 0:37:08But you don't want to be on a mountain when it's going to do that.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11You try your best to avoid those sort of situations.
0:37:33 > 0:37:37I would say the risk of injury in Scotland is high.
0:37:37 > 0:37:41The terrain that we ski, it tends to be coarse,
0:37:41 > 0:37:43there tends to be gullies.
0:37:43 > 0:37:46Personally, I walk away from things more often than I ski them.
0:37:46 > 0:37:49Because I feel they're not in condition.
0:37:49 > 0:37:50I don't step over that line
0:37:50 > 0:37:52and, for sure, you're going to have risk takers,
0:37:52 > 0:37:55but you're going to have risk takers in everything.
0:37:55 > 0:37:56You don't conquer a mountain.
0:37:56 > 0:37:58It's not a battle.
0:37:58 > 0:37:59It's never a battle.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02You're working with the mountain.
0:38:03 > 0:38:07But people have been back-country skiing in Scotland for decades.
0:38:13 > 0:38:15Some have been filming, too.
0:38:19 > 0:38:23# Over the ground lies a mantle of white
0:38:23 > 0:38:27# A heaven of diamonds shine down through the night
0:38:27 > 0:38:32# Two hearts are thrillin' in spite of the chill in
0:38:32 > 0:38:35# The weather... #
0:38:39 > 0:38:42Chic Baxter is the 89-year-old grandfather
0:38:42 > 0:38:45of famous Scottish skier Alain Baxter.
0:38:47 > 0:38:49The first time I skied?
0:38:49 > 0:38:50Oh, that was hilarious.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53That was in the Sidlaw Hills, close to Dundee.
0:38:53 > 0:38:58With no fancy gear, just slacks and a jerkin
0:38:58 > 0:38:59and a pair of walking boots
0:38:59 > 0:39:01and off we went.
0:39:01 > 0:39:03But we got the bug.
0:39:07 > 0:39:12We would go around Morlich or over by Ryvoan,
0:39:12 > 0:39:14we would have a lunch with us
0:39:14 > 0:39:15and a wee bottle of wine.
0:39:18 > 0:39:20There were years we skied all year round.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25We've had some heavy times with snowfalls.
0:39:25 > 0:39:30We did have to get a helicopter to bring food into Aviemore.
0:39:30 > 0:39:34There's one bit of film where you can see the army trucks
0:39:34 > 0:39:38coming down the ski road and the snow is higher than the trucks.
0:39:39 > 0:39:43I can remember having as much as 18 inches in a night here.
0:39:46 > 0:39:49Chic's films are from a time, which many call
0:39:49 > 0:39:51the Golden Age of Scottish Skiing,
0:39:51 > 0:39:54when winters were long and snow was in abundance.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58Ski resorts like Aviemore became hugely popular
0:39:58 > 0:40:00through the '60s and '70s
0:40:00 > 0:40:04attracting some of the best international instructors
0:40:04 > 0:40:06as well as big-name skiers.
0:40:07 > 0:40:12However, through the 1980s and '90s, the winters became milder.
0:40:12 > 0:40:15Snowfall was sporadic and unpredictable.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18Cheap flights to guaranteed snow
0:40:18 > 0:40:20led many overseas for their winter sports.
0:40:20 > 0:40:25The total demise of the Scottish ski scene was predicted.
0:40:28 > 0:40:32But, in recent years, there's been a succession of colder winters,
0:40:32 > 0:40:35including the Big Freeze of 2009 to '10
0:40:35 > 0:40:39when a blanket of snow engulfed the entire country.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42Transport was disrupted, schools were closed,
0:40:42 > 0:40:46power lines failed and temperatures hit as low as minus 20 degrees.
0:40:48 > 0:40:52It was the coldest winter for 30 years.
0:40:52 > 0:40:56The following December was the coldest in 100 years.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59But could this really herald a return to the harsher winters
0:40:59 > 0:41:03seen in Chic Baxter's home movies in the midst of global warming?
0:41:05 > 0:41:08Whilst we think that in the very longer term,
0:41:08 > 0:41:13by the, say, 2080s, for example, we'll all have warmer winters
0:41:13 > 0:41:16as climate change overwhelms natural climate variability,
0:41:16 > 0:41:18in the next couple of decades,
0:41:18 > 0:41:22there's still a lot of scope for our climate to vary naturally.
0:41:22 > 0:41:25This could indeed lead us to have more intense
0:41:25 > 0:41:29and more frequent cold winters,
0:41:29 > 0:41:32more akin to how things were in the 1960s.
0:41:32 > 0:41:37Scientists now know that our winters are shaped by many factors,
0:41:37 > 0:41:39some beyond this world.
0:41:39 > 0:41:44Changes on the surface of the sun, the melting of polar ice caps
0:41:44 > 0:41:48and even storms as far afield as Indonesia can each play their part.
0:41:48 > 0:41:52But to understand what happened in January 2013,
0:41:52 > 0:41:57we must go high up into the stratosphere to a unique event,
0:41:57 > 0:41:59which surprised even the Met Office.
0:42:00 > 0:42:03There was an amazing stratospheric event
0:42:03 > 0:42:06that went on in early January,
0:42:06 > 0:42:09which changed everything for the rest of the winter.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12So, the stratosphere is the layer of the atmosphere
0:42:12 > 0:42:17that resides above the one in which the weather happens.
0:42:17 > 0:42:21What we normally have is a powerful vortex with winds
0:42:21 > 0:42:27going around the North Pole in excess of 150mph.
0:42:27 > 0:42:30However, the vortex split up in early January
0:42:30 > 0:42:34and didn't recover for the rest of the winter.
0:42:34 > 0:42:38Changes in the stratosphere have the potential to disrupt the flow
0:42:38 > 0:42:42of warm air from the Gulf Stream drawing in cold air from Siberia.
0:42:44 > 0:42:46What we can see from this satellite sequence
0:42:46 > 0:42:49is that this easterly flow developed.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52This made it colder.
0:42:52 > 0:42:56Every time we saw the approach of some mild air
0:42:56 > 0:43:01to relieve the cold, snowy conditions, it was just swept aside.
0:43:01 > 0:43:05The cold air and snowy conditions persisted into February
0:43:05 > 0:43:09and there is nowhere in the UK that can suffer those conditions
0:43:09 > 0:43:11more fiercely than the Cairngorms.
0:43:13 > 0:43:15The Gorms are a kind of specific environment.
0:43:15 > 0:43:19We're not as close to the sea as the Ben, for example, Ben Nevis,
0:43:19 > 0:43:23and we're high, and we've got a big, flat high area,
0:43:23 > 0:43:25which is the plateau.
0:43:25 > 0:43:28You get this combination of pretty ferocious Arctic-type winds
0:43:28 > 0:43:30blasting across the tops of the Cairngorms
0:43:30 > 0:43:33and certainly in the last few years, quite a bit of snow.
0:43:33 > 0:43:36And that does some pretty strange things sometimes.
0:43:58 > 0:44:01John Lyall is a mountain guide and mountain rescue volunteer
0:44:01 > 0:44:05with over 20 years' experience of winter in the Cairngorms.
0:44:09 > 0:44:11The Cairngorms are, you know,
0:44:11 > 0:44:13within the British Isles, are unique.
0:44:13 > 0:44:17This massive area of high ground that holds a lot of snow.
0:44:17 > 0:44:20There are popular, accessible parts,
0:44:20 > 0:44:24but there are parts where you can get a long way from people.
0:44:24 > 0:44:28Not that I'm antisocial, but that experience in wilderness
0:44:28 > 0:44:30that you can get in some of the remote corners
0:44:30 > 0:44:32of the Cairngorms is fantastic.
0:44:34 > 0:44:37Throughout the winter, John leads parties into the wilderness
0:44:37 > 0:44:39on overnight trips.
0:44:39 > 0:44:43In such windswept environments, a tent is of little use,
0:44:43 > 0:44:46so their shelter must be dug from the snow.
0:44:53 > 0:44:56I always think, in Scotland we have hills in summer,
0:44:56 > 0:44:58but they become mountains, really,
0:44:58 > 0:45:00in winter when they're covered with snow.
0:45:01 > 0:45:06I sometimes think of the weather conditions as a bit of a foe.
0:45:06 > 0:45:08But the mountain and the snow, in particular,
0:45:08 > 0:45:11I see it as an aid to your journey.
0:45:13 > 0:45:17If you treat it well, it'll treat you similarly, in a sense.
0:45:22 > 0:45:26Iain Cornfoot is the head of the Cairngorm Ski Patrol
0:45:26 > 0:45:31and also volunteers in the Mountain Rescue Team alongside John Lyall.
0:45:31 > 0:45:35The winter of 2012 to '13 was their busiest for 30 years.
0:45:36 > 0:45:39It can be a beautiful place at times,
0:45:39 > 0:45:42but within a very short space of time,
0:45:42 > 0:45:45it can go pretty ballistic.
0:45:45 > 0:45:49On 10th February, the weather DID go ballistic.
0:45:49 > 0:45:52There was a big storm coming through
0:45:52 > 0:45:56and, so, we decided to close down the mountain slightly earlier.
0:45:56 > 0:46:01And just as we were doing that, a call came through from the police.
0:46:01 > 0:46:04A group of seven climbers were returning to the ski centre
0:46:04 > 0:46:09to escape the developing storm when they saw one of their party fall
0:46:09 > 0:46:11through a cornice and out of sight.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14Unable to locate their friend,
0:46:14 > 0:46:17the remaining six immediately called the rescue services
0:46:17 > 0:46:21who were keen to ensure everyone's immediate return to base.
0:46:22 > 0:46:25I spoke to the rest of this party and at that point,
0:46:25 > 0:46:27we thought they were just outside the ski area
0:46:27 > 0:46:29on their way home from the Cairngorm plateau
0:46:29 > 0:46:32and for them to leave there,
0:46:32 > 0:46:34it'd only have been about half an hour
0:46:34 > 0:46:35for them to get back to the car park.
0:46:35 > 0:46:39Amazingly, the fallen climber hadn't been injured
0:46:39 > 0:46:42and managed to find his way back.
0:46:42 > 0:46:45Meanwhile, his colleagues weren't faring so well.
0:46:45 > 0:46:50They remained on top of the plateau in worsening conditions.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53If you're up there, in something over 100, you're crawling.
0:46:53 > 0:46:57And it feels like the air has been sucked out of you,
0:46:57 > 0:47:01the wind sort of blasts by you, everything becomes much harder.
0:47:01 > 0:47:04Your hands are freezing, you can't work a compass properly
0:47:04 > 0:47:07and the weather is just getting worse and worse.
0:47:07 > 0:47:09You're trying to get to a fixed point
0:47:09 > 0:47:11where you can understand exactly where you are,
0:47:11 > 0:47:14you know, there are cliffs around that you could get wrong.
0:47:14 > 0:47:16It's scary.
0:47:16 > 0:47:20It's a really quite, quite belittling place to be when it's like that.
0:47:23 > 0:47:26I got a call to say the rest of the party
0:47:26 > 0:47:31hadn't made it back to the car park and...
0:47:31 > 0:47:34having known what the conditions were like when we left,
0:47:34 > 0:47:37that was very concerning.
0:47:37 > 0:47:40As the evening progressed,
0:47:40 > 0:47:44certainly, myself and the colleagues in the team were getting
0:47:44 > 0:47:49more and more concerned that we'd heard nothing from this party
0:47:49 > 0:47:55and pretty much forced the issue that this needed to become more formal.
0:47:55 > 0:47:58Al Gilmour led a team up into the storm.
0:47:58 > 0:48:03If you were choosing to go out in that as a pastime on your day off,
0:48:03 > 0:48:06then I think it would feel pretty horrendous.
0:48:06 > 0:48:10But I think when you're not given an option in the sense that
0:48:10 > 0:48:13there is a group of people, there's an individual,
0:48:13 > 0:48:17you know he's suffering and you know time is not on their side
0:48:17 > 0:48:20and if there is anything you can do to try and help that,
0:48:20 > 0:48:24then some of those conditions never quite seem as harsh.
0:48:24 > 0:48:27Despite their best efforts,
0:48:27 > 0:48:31the mission was becoming more and more dangerous for the rescue team.
0:48:31 > 0:48:36One of my big concerns wasn't just the party that were late,
0:48:36 > 0:48:39but it was also we could have lost one of us.
0:48:39 > 0:48:44Winds in excess of 70mph ensured a chill factor of minus 30.
0:48:44 > 0:48:47But, after hours on the mountain,
0:48:47 > 0:48:49the six climbers remained missing.
0:48:51 > 0:48:53Is the plan to head back now?
0:48:53 > 0:48:55Well, I think, I'm just going to double-check with control,
0:48:55 > 0:48:58but it's going to take a pretty amazing suggestion
0:48:58 > 0:49:02for us to decide to go to any other places tonight, I think.
0:49:03 > 0:49:06'So do you think there's any sense'
0:49:06 > 0:49:11in going on to spot 1099
0:49:11 > 0:49:13in your position?
0:49:15 > 0:49:18I don't, truthfully.
0:49:18 > 0:49:21So, if we're good to go, gang, let's get going, eh?
0:49:21 > 0:49:23It's chilly up here.
0:49:23 > 0:49:26'That was difficult going home at five o'clock in the morning,
0:49:26 > 0:49:28'trying to get a couple of hours' sleep,'
0:49:28 > 0:49:30knowing that they hadn't been found
0:49:30 > 0:49:33and you were the last person that spoke to them.
0:49:35 > 0:49:37It was difficult.
0:49:37 > 0:49:41I must admit, on the hill that night, the option in my head was
0:49:41 > 0:49:43they've either managed to stay together as a group
0:49:43 > 0:49:48or we're going to be faced with a terrible situation.
0:49:52 > 0:49:55The next morning, after only a few hours' sleep,
0:49:55 > 0:49:57the search was intensified.
0:49:57 > 0:50:00The only way of searching the area in poor conditions
0:50:00 > 0:50:02is with a large number of people.
0:50:02 > 0:50:06I think it ended up about seven different mountain rescue teams,
0:50:06 > 0:50:10it must have been about 150 people on the ground,
0:50:10 > 0:50:12two different aircraft.
0:50:12 > 0:50:16Flying rescue helicopters in these environments at low altitudes
0:50:16 > 0:50:18requires the most experienced pilots.
0:50:21 > 0:50:24The conditions in the mountains of Scotland
0:50:24 > 0:50:27are probably the most extreme conditions you're likely to find
0:50:27 > 0:50:29a search rescue helicopter in in the UK.
0:50:29 > 0:50:33When it comes to winter, that weather just becomes more extreme.
0:50:33 > 0:50:37Blizzards, icing clouds, subzero,
0:50:37 > 0:50:41a lot of strong winds which can force the helicopter into the land.
0:50:41 > 0:50:44There's always that respect there in the back of your mind
0:50:44 > 0:50:46for what the mountains can do.
0:50:47 > 0:50:52On the morning of February 11th, the RAF Search And Rescue Team set out
0:50:52 > 0:50:56to help find the missing climbers who, if still alive,
0:50:56 > 0:50:58had now suffered the poor weather conditions
0:50:58 > 0:51:00throughout the entire night.
0:51:01 > 0:51:05As midday approached, they received a crucial lead from a ground team
0:51:05 > 0:51:08far from the original search area.
0:51:08 > 0:51:11It was the Braemar Mountain Rescue guys,
0:51:11 > 0:51:14they said they'd seen footprints heading up to a certain area
0:51:14 > 0:51:15than had not been searched.
0:51:15 > 0:51:20So we flew up to this area, and there were the missing walkers.
0:51:21 > 0:51:24They'd travelled a huge distance overnight.
0:51:24 > 0:51:29That was probably a good thing, just keeping moving.
0:51:29 > 0:51:32When we picked them up, one of them just kept throwing his arms
0:51:32 > 0:51:34around me, he just kept saying, "Thank you."
0:51:34 > 0:51:36Another guy just couldn't speak.
0:51:36 > 0:51:38So he was quite worrying,
0:51:38 > 0:51:40we thought there might be something wrong with him,
0:51:40 > 0:51:43but he was just so emotionally and physically drained,
0:51:43 > 0:51:44he just couldn't speak.
0:51:46 > 0:51:49Got them on board, go them warm and then took them off
0:51:49 > 0:51:51to the mountain rescue base.
0:51:51 > 0:51:54How are you feeling, all right? Nice and steady. Nice and steady.
0:51:54 > 0:51:56When the guys come clattering in,
0:51:56 > 0:51:59all covered in snow with some bedraggled individual
0:51:59 > 0:52:03who thought that they were having a wee chat with the Grim Reaper
0:52:03 > 0:52:06and now, all of a sudden, they're in a warm base,
0:52:06 > 0:52:10realising they've got quite a bit more of a future
0:52:10 > 0:52:12than they thought they had,
0:52:12 > 0:52:14they're very happy teddies.
0:52:14 > 0:52:18And, yeah, it's nice to be able to do that, isn't it?
0:52:18 > 0:52:22The party that night were determined not to give up, I would imagine.
0:52:22 > 0:52:26A huge battle with a very small amount of food.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29They must have been cold, they must have been wet.
0:52:29 > 0:52:32It's amazing what we can put up with if our brains let us,
0:52:32 > 0:52:34and if we're determined enough.
0:52:34 > 0:52:37And that wee party seemed to be determined enough.
0:52:40 > 0:52:42The party had walked for over 26 hours
0:52:42 > 0:52:45through some of the worst conditions imaginable.
0:52:45 > 0:52:48But only five had been picked up.
0:52:48 > 0:52:50One last member remained unaccounted for.
0:52:52 > 0:52:55It was only at that point that we started to get some radio comms
0:52:55 > 0:53:00that another member of the party who'd become separated
0:53:00 > 0:53:03had also been found.
0:53:07 > 0:53:11The gentleman that died
0:53:11 > 0:53:16had become separated quite early on in the day,
0:53:16 > 0:53:18just after I spoke to them.
0:53:18 > 0:53:22I think they got confused
0:53:22 > 0:53:25and didn't know quite where they were and...
0:53:26 > 0:53:29..they were trying to make their way off the mountain
0:53:29 > 0:53:30and he slipped and fell.
0:53:34 > 0:53:36On a day-to-day basis,
0:53:36 > 0:53:39certainly, I think the search and rescue force will see death
0:53:39 > 0:53:41and serious injury,
0:53:41 > 0:53:45and there is an element of professional detachment from that.
0:53:45 > 0:53:49If we didn't do that, I think we wouldn't be very effective.
0:53:50 > 0:53:53It doesn't mean that it doesn't touch the heart from time to time.
0:54:04 > 0:54:05Certainly, the way I look at it
0:54:05 > 0:54:09and the way the guys in the team look at it is that's not a body,
0:54:09 > 0:54:12that's somebody's relative, somebody's loved one.
0:54:12 > 0:54:15You bring them back to their family or to people that care about them
0:54:15 > 0:54:20and that can be quite a good outcome as well.
0:54:20 > 0:54:22You're bringing folk back for folk.
0:54:25 > 0:54:27Graham Connell had been
0:54:27 > 0:54:29the most experienced mountaineer in the party.
0:54:31 > 0:54:33Since this happened,
0:54:33 > 0:54:36me and the family have been quite a few times to Aviemore
0:54:36 > 0:54:37and to the Cairngorms,
0:54:37 > 0:54:40and we've obviously been to the site where he fell,
0:54:40 > 0:54:43and we've walked and we've climbed the exact same route he did
0:54:43 > 0:54:46and seeing the terrain and seeing how far he actually fell
0:54:46 > 0:54:49and how sheer the cliff that he fell down was,
0:54:49 > 0:54:51there's no way anybody could have gone after him at all.
0:54:51 > 0:54:55They'd be putting their own life at risk and that has got to be the key,
0:54:55 > 0:54:56they've got to survive themselves.
0:54:56 > 0:54:59And, to be honest, they did well to survive.
0:54:59 > 0:55:02He had a brilliant sense of humour.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05He seemed to have an inordinate ability
0:55:05 > 0:55:07to put up with suffering.
0:55:07 > 0:55:09If it was a long day and his feet were hurting,
0:55:09 > 0:55:11and he was wet and he was soaking cold,
0:55:11 > 0:55:14and he'd still have a grin on his face at the end of the day.
0:55:14 > 0:55:19I'm really going to miss that. He was just such a likeable chap.
0:55:19 > 0:55:22I walked more miles with him than I've walked with anybody else.
0:55:27 > 0:55:31There are people who are experienced who have mishaps.
0:55:31 > 0:55:34There are people who are in their first-ever day out in the mountains
0:55:34 > 0:55:38and the...you know, one is not worse than the other, I don't think.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42I think it's just, you know, people have misfortune, things happen.
0:55:46 > 0:55:48It's not just a person that dies in the hill,
0:55:48 > 0:55:50there's family that's left behind.
0:55:50 > 0:55:54Some relatives, friends maybe weren't mountaineers
0:55:54 > 0:55:57and don't understand the passion that drove the person to do that
0:55:57 > 0:56:00and that they were doing what they loved doing.
0:56:14 > 0:56:16PIANO MUSIC
0:56:19 > 0:56:22I wouldn't have wanted to change anything for him.
0:56:22 > 0:56:29Because he was living, he truly was living in a place that he loved
0:56:29 > 0:56:33and he died there with people that he loved.
0:56:39 > 0:56:45But it's true, it's true, yeah.
0:56:48 > 0:56:51If you'd have asked them,
0:56:51 > 0:56:54would they do it all again, yeah, of course they would, you know.
0:56:54 > 0:56:58If they'd just had a lucky escape,
0:56:58 > 0:57:00they'd have been back on the mountain.
0:57:19 > 0:57:23The Scottish Mountains are Britain's biggest playground,
0:57:23 > 0:57:26and while the overwhelming majority of adventurers
0:57:26 > 0:57:28return without mishap,
0:57:28 > 0:57:32playing here does carry some risk, especially in winter.
0:57:33 > 0:57:38We have to be alert to everything all the time.
0:57:38 > 0:57:40The most important thing is gathering information
0:57:40 > 0:57:43before you set out on your journey.
0:57:43 > 0:57:47Each winter, lessons of survival can be learned as scientists
0:57:47 > 0:57:51unravel the mechanics of avalanches on the mountainside
0:57:51 > 0:57:55and demystify snow crystals under the microscope and scanner.
0:57:58 > 0:58:04Scotland will face many more winters like the winter of 2012 to '13.
0:58:04 > 0:58:06They will transform our mountains
0:58:06 > 0:58:09into sites of immense beauty and wonder.
0:58:09 > 0:58:13But to enjoy these mountains safely and the great rewards they offer,
0:58:13 > 0:58:16we must learn to understand them.
0:58:23 > 0:58:25That's it, finished.
0:58:31 > 0:58:33Look at that!
0:58:33 > 0:58:34It's wonderful.
0:58:35 > 0:58:37WOMAN CHUCKLES
0:58:37 > 0:58:39It just gets better and better.