Climber 'thought he would die' as he clung to axe while avalanche rained down on him

dailystar.co.uk:

climber cheated death after holding onto his axe as an avalanche rained down on him.On February 8, Leland Nisky was ice climbing alone and unroped when he was hit be an avalanche.The man held on for his life as he dangled 400ft off the ground while climbing The Ribbon in Ouray, Colorado.As soon as the avalanche started, Nisky axed the mountainside so he could have a fixed position.He used "absolutely every ounce of strength he could" to grip onto his tools before shuffling his feet to the side, seemingly getting himself out of the snow slide.The avalanche lasted for two minutes before he realised he had accidentally climbed ten feet above his anchor.Nisky climbed down to find his anchor, which then took two full-length 60m raps to get back to ground level.The mountaineer recalled the terrifying moment: "It was loose snow sloughing off the surface and building until it became an avalanche.

Probably caused by a gust of wind. In the video it’s hard to tell, but I was slightly under a bulge of ice, meaning that I did not see it coming."I was actually switching my hands to place my tool when it hit.

It was terrifying. I’ve been partially buried in an avalanche years ago in Washington, and the same terror overtook me."After calming himself down Nisky held on for dear life despite believing he "was going to die".He continued: "I knew if I stayed terrified I probably would die, so I concentrated on controlling my breathing, hugging in tight to the wall to prevent snow buildup on my body, and tucked my head down to breathe a little air bubble."It was immense pressure, and I felt chunks of snow bouncing off my backpack and body.