Ski Touring Resources

Will You Survive?

Last night I was browsing the world wide web so I could share some avalanche education with my readers. I stumbled across the Forest Service avalanche center website and uncovered this pretty cool little interactive avalanche game.(Although I suppose calling it a ‘game’ isn’t very appropriate.)

I applaud the forest service for providing such material, even if the outcome is somewhat obvious. Either way, I highly recommend everyone and anyone who plans on venturing into the backcountry, to check it out. http://www.avalanche.org/~nac/NAC/IBTpages/index.html. If anything, it will make you think about the next time you’re in this situation, because the fact of the matter is, you, I, we all, will be or have been.

7 Nov ’08 by

Backcountry Ski Photos: Fairy Meadows, BC

In the winter of ’05 a group of us took a chopper deep into the Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia. For a week we reveled in the backcountry ski terrain that surrounded us and the Fairy Meadows hut, mostly inspired, often intimidated. Temperatures were utterly freezing (at one point hitting -32 degrees!) and while we enjoyed deep powder in the trees, the alpine terrain was a bit intimidating and, over the course of the trip, quite avalanche prone. Regardless it was one of those unforgettable backcountry ski trips.

I highly recommend anyone with a sense of adventure and passion for backcountry ski touring, visit the Alpine Club of Canada website and put in your application for this very hard to get hut.

5 Nov ’08 by

Don’t Die In The Backcountry

Next Saturday, Nov 8, is the Northwest Snow & Avalanche Snow Summit here in Seattle. The full-day event is filled with talks and stories about avalanche awareness, ski touring in the Cascades, and such topics as “Decision Making in High-Risk Environments”. Martin Volken from Pro Guiding Service is just one of the speakers, so the caliber of talks is pretty high.

Following the summit is the Friends of NWAC’s annual Snowbash fundraiser at the Tractor Tavern.

You can buy tickets online for both:

Avi Summit – http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/44301
Snowbash fundraiser – http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/47281

Avalanche awareness is becoming more and more important as skiers head out in the “slackcountry” in droves. Don’t wait; be proactive and get some avalanche practice.

Descending Mt Stuart

31 Oct ’08 by

Winter Is Coming…Are You Ready?

Winter is coming. What proof do I have? Very little actually, except that many of us are talking about trying to fit in one last mountain bike ride before the snow starts falling. Which led me to looking back on some photographs I took last fall right about this time. We took a trip over to Mazama, rented a cabin for a couple days and took the mountain bikes out for a very cool spin up the Mazama River Trail. On the way back over the North Cascades Highway, we encountered the first signs of winter.

North Cascades Highway

The fading color of the larch trees, the jagged peaks of the North Cascades, all coated in snow. Winter is a com’eth.

Snow of course means skiing. Skiing means ski touring. Backcountry skiing can often lead to avalanches. It’s all time we took a moment to look at the avalanche rating scale. Click the image for a larger view

Avalanche Danger Scale

29 Oct ’08 by

Supporting Your Local Avalanche Center

As backcountry skiers, we’re pretty lucky here in the Pacific Northwest. Besides incredible terrain and a deep snow pack, we have world-class backcountry ski resources. Among them is the avalanche website and resources provided by The Friends of Northwest Avalanche and Weather Center. Without them and similar organizations (most of which are typically non-profit and volunteer run) most of us would be skinning up nearby mountains with but a clue to the actual conditions.

Anyone venturing into the backcountry should have an understanding of their local snow pack, because the fact of the matter is, we all want to live another day. No one, and I mean no one, wants to end up in one of these…

So before you head, check out the avalanche conditions in your area.

23 Oct ’08 by

Backcountryskiphotos.com is live…sort of.

Backcountryskiphotos.com (will be) officially launching with an inspiring and ever-changing selection of the best damn backcountry ski photos on the planet! Not only that, but expect to see interviews from the best adventure and ski photographers out there.

Mt Stuart Backcountry Ski Tour

20 Oct ’08 by