How to Start Backcountry Skiing
I am not an expert.
In the last year, I feel like a lot of people have come to me asking how I got into backcountry skiing / ski mountaineering and what the best approach to getting into it is. The question that I get asked the most goes something along the lines of:
“I just got into skiing this season, and I’ve been doing black runs and moguls, but I’m not super fast. When do I know I can jump into climbing Mount St. Helen’s, Eldorado, etc?”
“What level would you say the easiest skiing is on Helens? What about on Adams? Just got skis for Christmas and am just learning!”
“When you learned how to ski did you take lessons or did you just send it?”
“I’ve never skied before but I’m going to get into backcountry this year!”
A quick summary of my relationship with skiing: I learned to ski when I was around 8-9 years old in New Mexico. We usually went there or Whistler once a year or so for a week or two where I would rip down groomers. I stopped skiing in college because, well, I was in college and skiing was expensive. I skied at Laax once while on a work trip while I was living in San Francisco, because I was already there so why not? While I was there, I realized how much I had missed the sport. So when I moved to Portland in 2015, I got a season pass and started skiing more regularly and I felt like a decent skier. It wasn’t until last season (winter of 2017/2018) when I started backcountry skiing that I realized that I had sorely underestimated the technical skills required to navigate variable conditions and terrain and that I desperately needed to buckle down on building a more solid foundation of skills.
I spent the money on a season pass and went multiple times a week to the resort in all kinds of snow and weather conditions to practice for variable backcountry conditions. I took an avalanche awareness course. I practiced avalanche rescue skills. I pushed myself hard – making it a goal for myself to get used to uncomfortable situations and terrain, first learning to maneuver it carefully with the goal of just getting down in one piece, then learning to ski it gracefully. I skied the same runs hundreds of times.
There are still lots of terrain I’m not comfortable with. I still have a strong dislike for tree skiing, especially densely packed trees. And narrow chutes. It’s not a physical incapability of skiing them, it’s a mental block of “holy crap I’m going to hit them!” Those are the skills I’m focusing on building this season.
So back to being asked those questions. I’m not an expert. By all accounts, I’m new to this too. I’m always learning, always asking questions, and going to the resort often.
What I can tell you is what I’ve learned based on my personal experiences. That being said:
Learn how to ski at the resort. I can’t stress this enough. The backcountry is not the place to be learning how to ski. Learn how to ski in a controlled environment. When you learn how to drive, you don’t immediately take the car out on the highway; you learn in a parking lot. Take lessons — paying for a couple of ski lessons is cheaper than paying for surgery. There are so many things you end up using your brain power for in the backcountry that skiing should not be one of those things.
Ski often and build up confidence and skill. I didn’t feel fully comfortable skiing in the backcountry lugging skis and a heavy pack everywhere until I could ski double black diamonds at the resort with a reasonable amount of confidence. I went rain or shine multiple times a week to practice for the variable conditions and terrain that you encounter in the backcountry.
Take an avalanche awareness course. No, not just the hour-long lecture that NWAC puts on during the season. But an AIARE 1 or an equivalent of that where there’s at least a day of a classroom portion and a day of a field portion where you actually practice assessing terrain, using your equipment, and doing practice searches. Learning to assess terrain and make decisions is just as important as knowing how to use your tools. Just because you own the gear to save your partners doesn’t mean you how to use it – take the class.
Put your ego aside. Approach things you’re new at with a beginner mindset. There will always be someone better than you, no matter where you are in the process. There is always room to grow and things to learn. Take that ski lesson or 10. Make conservative decisions (especially in the backcountry, they affect other people too!).
To get you started, here a few resources: