SGT ROUTE PLANS

It will be expected that each student individually completes a route plan for each SGT Training Day which is field based.

The following process is provided to assist you in the creation of these route plans.

Each entry or data point listed below is at minimum what is required to be included, and essential on each route plan you create.

1. Formulas for Estimation of Time per Distance Travelled and Elevation Gained/Lost:

• Relative Constant 1:

Travel speeds with consideration for “moderate” trail breaking can be estimated in flat terrain at:

3-3.5km/hr

*This speed is to be considered an average. You will be required to consistently track our moving speed, and stoppage time through use of your GPS each field day, and make adjustments to your route plan inputs as required.

• Relative Constant 2:
  Our travel days will not be entirely confined to flat terrain; therefore, we need to account for the amount of elevation gained and the time additions attached on any given trip or training day. The following time profile can further be added to the solution above in Relative Constant 1, to factor in the additional time required to ascend or gain elevation:

   

   

  For every 328 Meters, or for every 1000ft ascended (or portion thereof) – add 1 hour.
   

Note: Please keep in mind that as your fitness develops over the season, and as you become more efficient in your application in the field, the parameters above will be in constant need of your consideration for accuracy.

 

2. Process for Building Out Your Route Plan and Specific Inclusions:

1. 1. Have your tools open and available to you:
       

       

       

      • Open and log into Google Earth
      • Open and log into FATMAP
      • Open and log into GAIA GPS
         
   2. Formulate a General Idea of the location, trip, objective, route, hazards and formulate an idea of your general approach to the proposed trip by accessing the following:
       

       

       

      • Guidebooks
      • Online Trip Reports
      • Local Professional Knowledge
      • Your Guiding Team (Pose Questions in the Facebook Group)
      • You will be required to provide an ATES Rating for the trip. This can be copied directly from your Guidebook if it is provided, or you can use the parameters in Table 1 (below) to decide which ATES rating you feel is most fitting your proposed trip.
      • Open Google Earth. Now is time to do some window shopping of your trip – take some time, look around, view the imagery from multiple angles and multiple elevations and take note of not only features at the macro scale, but take time to consider the subtleties of the micro features. Take some time to look for patterns in the hazards present as compared to previous trips and work each time you build out a route plan to increase the depth and volume of your Hazard Catalogue.
         
   3. Create a New Folder In Google Earth for the Propose Trip
      • Label the trip with a recognizable name. Ie: “Surprise Pass”
      • All paths, pindrops, polygons etc should be nested under this new file folder to ensure each of these when added to your route plan are transferred to your GPS App in the final step.  
         

   4. Now - Use the Path Tool in Google Earth to Plot the Entire Route
      • Mark the trailhead or starting location and finishing location with a waypoint labeled “ROUTE START” or “ROUTE FINISH”. If the start and finish are the same location the waypoint should read: “ROUTE START/FINISH.
         

   5. Now – Use the PINDROP Tool to Create Waypoints which will Mark all relevant HAZARDS.
      • Once your route is established, we will now mark with a waypoint, using the pin drop tool, each hazard along your proposed route. Hazards will be separated into two categories:
         

         

         

        • Avalanche Related Hazard – Each waypoint defining and locating an avalanche related hazard should include each of the following points in the notes section of the pin drop:
           

           

           

          • Specific snowpack problem you expect to see in this area. Ie: Slab, Loose or PWL + their subcagorizations such as windslab, storm slab, loose dry, loose wet, etc. This information will most commonly be available to you via the Public Avalanche Bulletin, and the INFOex.
          • Include the following critical terrain parameters additionally in the pin drop / waypoint notes:
             

             

             

            • Type of Avalanche Problem
            • Likelihood of Triggering
            • Expected or Forecast Size of Avalanche
            • Path Length
            • Slope Angle
            • Aspect
            • Shape
            • Is the Hazard underfoot or overhead
            • Your expected vulnerability rated as LOW/MOD/HIGH
               

      • Keep in mind that in COMPLEX rated terrain, you may have dozens of exposure points to avalanche hazard from smaller features capable of producing Sz. 1-2 avalanches, to large avalanche paths capable of producing Sz 3-4 avalanches. When rating your vulnerability level, consider the forecast size of the avalanche problem, and the likelihood if an avalanche did occur that it would travel sufficiently far enough in the path to reach your proposed position or route, while at the same time considering our travel mode (walking, snowcat, snowmobile, helicopter etc)

 

1. 6. Now – We’ll Add Specific Waypoints to Break the Trip into ~1hr Sections or “Legs” & Create a Total Trip Time Estimate.
      • We will aim to break for 10min for roughly every 1 – 1.15hr of travel time. Use the formula above, as well as the Elevation Profile Tool in Google Earth to establish what distance can be traveled in a 1hr time frame.
         
      • Once rough estimates of break points are located along our route, we will need to consider whether the area is in fact safe for the group to stop for an extended period of time to break.

        For example – it would be sub-optimal to stop the entire group in the center of a large start zone for a 10min break, simply on the basis that we have been traveling for exactly 60 minutes. Reasonable break and regrouping locations with limited or no exposure to hazard will need to be established as a primary consideration, with further consideration to group comfort, the terrain we intend to break in, and with 60 min travel time brackets being secondary. 
         

      • Repeat this process dropping pins labelled “BREAK PT 1”, “BREAK PT 2” etc, until we have completed the process for the entire length or duration of our proposed tour.
         
      • Once all break points have been established, add a note of the total timing required to complete the trip in your final timing waypoint.
         
      • Consider where a logical turnaround point might exist, or at which point along the proposed route we will be become commited to completing the route in its entirety or consider the consequences of having to reverse the route once travelling beyond the turnaround point.
         

   7. Consider Your Emergency Response Resources & Required Communication Devices.
      • Add a pin drop / way point labelled Emergency Response. In the notes include the following information:
         

         

         

        • Resource Name. Ie: Banff National Park Dispatch
        • Communication Device Required for Contact. Ie: Cell Phone, Radio, InReach, Satellite Phone etc.
           

   8. Now – We’re Ready to Move your Completed Route Plan to GAIA & FATMAP:
      • Save the Google Earth File (not the individual nested items), as a KML or KMZ file, and save to your desktop.
         
      • Open GAIA and/or FATMAP and login
         
      • Select the UPLOAD tool in either GAIA and/or FATMAP, and upload your KML or KMZ file to the GPS App of your choosing (or both, better still)
         
      • Now open the GAIA or FATMAP App on your Smart Device, and verify that the new route plan is visible and ready for use in the field.

Route Planning Appendix: Table 1 – ATES Rating Parameters