It was a cold but sunny day in January 1995 when Mike Couillard, a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force on assignment in Ankara, Turkey, took his son Matthew skiing. The view of the 7,300-foot-high Kfartalkaya Mountain was breathtaking--magnificent peaks against a bright blue sky, wisps of clouds--nothing threatening. They headed for the T-bar that would take them to the summit.
It was about 2:30 when they reached the top, and although it had started to snow, they still had time to ski. Mike made note of his surroundings and decided to use the overhead line of the lift as a guide. They kept the line in sight as they glided downward, but moment by moment, the snow's intensity increased. Ice pellets stung their faces. Visibility decreased. Hidden rocks sent them plunging into the snow. Dense stands of pine trees loomed in front of them, forcing them to go right, then left, and off the trail. Desperately, they looked for the lift line-- or anything familiar. They saw nothing but white. They were lost...
