King Charles is looking back on the day he narrowly escaped death in a massive avalanche ... admitting nearly four decades later, "It was a close thing."
The 77-year-old monarch revisited the scare while hosting members of the Assynt Mountain Rescue Team in Scotland earlier this month ... praising the dangerous work rescuers do and celebrating the group's 50th anniversary.
The avalanche struck in 1988 while Charles and his group were skiing off-piste at a resort in Switzerland ... killing his close friend, Major Hugh Lindsay,and seriously injuring another member of the group.
King Charles hosted a shocking family get-together on Friday ... with major British outlets reporting he saw Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and their two young children for the first time in over four freaking years.
Chris Ship, a journalist at the well-known British outlet ITV, reported the royal reunion ... revealing the King of England and his wife Queen Camilla met with his youngest son, his American daughter-in-law and his two grandkids.
They reportedly met at Highgrove House -- Charles and Camilla's family residence in Southwest England.
