Backcountry Access TRACKER3 Advanced User's Manual - Three-Circle Method:
3
The following section highlights two
multiple-burial search techniques that
serious backcountry travelers and guides
should know.
thREE-CiRCLE MEthoD:
Most effective in large, flat areas
The three-circle method is used with your beacon in
standard search mode. It is most effective in large,
flat areas, as it will cover only a portion of the debris
pile and sometimes requires walking uphill of the
victim.
Figure A
Search (SE) mode
In search mode (SE), only the
strongest signal (beacon #1)
is shown. Signals further away
are received (beacon #2), but
not shown in the distance and
direction display.
2
To perform this method, stay in SE mode and take
three steps away from the first found victim. With
your beacon on the snow surface, walk in a circle of
this radius around the victim, attempting to acquire
another signal in SE mode. If a new signal is acquired,
begin bracketing until it has been pinpointed. For this
method to be successful the searcher should rely
on the distance readings and ignore the directional
arrows. Maintaining orientation of the searching
beacon is unimportant, as the goal is to lose the
strongest signal and capture the next strongest signal
as soon as possible.
If no other signal is captured, take another three
steps back and repeat up to a maximum of three
circles (nine steps). If a new signal is acquired and
pinpointed, and there are still more victims suspected
to be in close proximity, then return to the point where
you abandoned the circle search (in SE mode) and
begin searching again from there.
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Figure B
Three-Circle Method
When using the three-
circle method, walk
around beacon #1 in
concentric circles until
you detect the signal
of beacon #2. During
the first circle, keep
the searching beacon
as close as possible to
the snow surface.
MiCRo-SEARCh StRip
MEthoD:
Most effective in complex
multiple burials in a smaller search area
This method allows a searcher to use a simple,
systematic approach to solve a multiple burial.
It works well in small scenarios (such as guiding
exams) since it involves making many tight passes
through the debris pile. It also works well in steep
debris since it doesn’t require walking uphill.
Based on the number of buried victims, you will
determine how wide your search strips need to be
(this is usually an estimate as you’re “thinking on the
fly”). The width of your search strip will decrease as
the number of victims increases. If the Tracker3’s close
proximity brackets are illuminated, we suggest using
3-meter search strip widths.
Like the three-circle method, this technique is used with
your beacon in standard search mode. The searcher
must rely on the distance readings on the searching
beacon, not the directional arrows. This is because it
requires bracketing rather than following the flux lines.