ANCHORAGE - 
 
 Alaska State Troopers say two men skiing in the Rainbow Mountains were caught in an avalanche Saturday afternoon, with one killed and the other digging himself out from the snow to summon help. 
 
 
 
 In a Sunday AST dispatch, troopers say the dead man is “tentatively identified” as 35-year-old Eric Peterson of Delta Junction. AST spokeswoman says Peterson's next of kin have been notified, but his body hasn’t been recovered. 
 
 
 
 Black Rapids Lodge volunteer David Savage, about 20 miles down the road from the site of the avalanche, said Sunday that the lodge is owned by the man troopers named as the surviving skier -- 63-year-old Fairbanks resident Michael Hopper. According to Savage, Hopper has spent a lot of time in the mountains around Black Rapids, and the lodge holds a course in avalanche safety ever year. 
 
 
 
 “Mike is very educated in those mountains,” Savage said. “Those mountains can be unpredictable.” 
 
 
 
 Troopers say the avalanche occurred almost directly behind the two skiers. 
 
 
 
 “It was reported that (Hopper) had been skiing with a man tentatively identified as (Peterson) when they heard a ‘whoomp’ from the snow about 20 feet above them,” troopers wrote. “Hopper reported it took him 2-3 hours to dig himself out. Once he was free he located Peterson’s glove and dug down and found Peterson deceased.” 
 
 
 
 Kimberly McRoberts told Channel 2 she was driving at about Mile 205 on the Richardson Highway at about 6:30 p.m. Saturday when she saw a headlamp near the road. She drove on for about a mile, then turned around and spoke with Hopper, who said she was the second motorist to spot him; he had used the first driver's cellphone to call 911, and was seeking a ride north. 
 
 
 
 In addition to AST, military members from Black Rapids as well as the Fort Greely Fire Department and Rural Delta Fire and Rescue responded to the scene. 
 
 
 
 “The area Hopper was skiing in is widely unstable and continuing to deteriorate with the additional heavy snowfall,” troopers wrote. “AST will attempt to recover the body when the weather and conditions permit.” 
 
 
 
 This is a developing story. Please check KTUU.com and the Channel 2 newscasts for updates. 
 
 
 
 Channel 2’s Chris Klint contributed information to this story.
– A backcountry skier in the upper reaches of Alaska died after he was buried in a surprise avalanche in the Rainbow Mountains on Saturday evening, the Alaska Dispatch News reports. Eric Peterson, 35, and his friend, 63-year-old Michael Hopper, had been enjoying their late-afternoon ski when the two heard a "whoomp" sound from about 20 feet above them, an Alaska State Troopers dispatch noted yesterday. The snow barreled down the mountain and covered the two men, but Hopper was able to extricate himself after two to three hours of strenuous digging. He found his friend's glove and started clawing through the snow until he got to Peterson's body, at which point he hightailed it to the Richardson Highway to find help. David Savage, a volunteer at the Lodge at Black Rapids about 20 miles away, says Hopper is the owner of the lodge and very familiar with weather conditions in that neck of the woods, spending plenty of time in the mountains there and even holding an avalanche safety course once a year at the lodge, KTUU reports. "Mike is very educated in those mountains," Savage says, adding, "Those mountains can be unpredictable." Indeed, the trooper dispatch noted that where Hopper and Peterson were skiing "is widely unstable and continuing to deteriorate with the additional heavy snowfall," which is holding up efforts to recover Peterson's body. His family has been notified of his death, KTUU notes. (Avalanches could possibly halt future Everest attempts.)