Related: The ACMG Ski Guide Certificate: What Does It Take?

What’s The ACMG Ski Guide Exam All About

For those wondering, the ski guide exam is a 9-day, hands-on assessment of a guide’s skills on snow. It is the final milestone in the ACMG ski guide certification. Think of it as an all-around, real-world exam. Small groups of 3 to 4 students take turns leading a rotating group of examiners through complex glaciated terrain. The routes selected often include technical alpine features like couloir skiing, rappels, and roped glacier travel, with the occasional foray into the trees.

Under the examiner’s watchful eye, each student rotates through the guide role by track-setting, assessing hazards, managing the group, and coaching everyone through challenging sections. Examiners may even allow mistakes to unfold to better understand a student’s decision-making and problem-solving skills, stepping in only when it truly matters.

Keep Your Head On A Swivel

As a ski guide, you’re constantly monitoring dangers, from avalanche hazards to hidden crevasses. It all boils down to minimizing your group’s exposure to hazards while managing the guests when the hazards can’t be avoided. That’s where backcountry experience in complex glaciated terrain, leading to sound decision-making, is critical. Without a doubt, the avalanche hazard is a major player. Ski guides will spend a considerable amount of time investigating the snowpack to accurately evaluate the avalanche hazard – whether that means sticking our head in the snow or ski cutting unsupported features.

In an exam setting or at work, you’re making hundreds of small decisions, almost every minute, from where you’ll ski down to how you’ll lower guests into a couloir and where you’ll take your snack breaks. All those decisions must work in tandem to complete the objective and deliver an unforgettable experience. Guides in training spend a considerable amount of time completing challenging ski tours to test their decision-making while facing hazardous conditions. Sometimes, you just have to get creative! We’ll “mock guide” our peers and perform a debrief after each day, offering constructive criticism.

The Art Of Track-Setting

On the ACMG ski guide exam, we’re expected to master the art of track-setting, otherwise known as uptracking. You didn’t hit that bench quite right – FAIL! Your uptrack is too steep – FAIL! You didn’t flatten the corners enough for your guests – FAIL! Jokes aside, setting an uptrack as perfectly through dense forest as in convoluted, alpine terrain is challenging. Fortunately, most apprentice guides have 2-3 years of ski touring work to practice those skills. It definitely gets harder when you’ve exclusively heli-skied during your apprenticeship.

Guides aim for an uptrack incline of 12-18 degrees, striking a balance between vertical gain and energy conservation throughout the day. It’s important to maintain a consistent angle across features while minimizing direction changes. I always tell myself: “Use all the real estate you can when setting a track”. Sometimes, it’s important to climb at an aggressive incline or speed up the ascent, such as when crossing crevasse bridges or to escape from sketchy overhead hazards. Like any other guiding skillset, it all comes down to good decision-making. Guides will spend many days purposefully uptracking through difficult terrain in hopes of mastering the art of track-setting.

Nail The Downhill Lines

Like most ski guides, we track uphill to ski downhill. I genuinely love the downhill component. It’s the reason why I spend 60-70% of my winter around helicopters. The ACMG ski guide exam will test your ability to guide your group on the descent in unfamiliar terrain. After all, you’re expected to navigate thoughtfully through zones you’ve never visited before, intending to deliver the best possible ski product. With experience, guides learn how to best manage their guests while avoiding objective hazards or reducing their group’s exposure.

There’s no substitute for hard-earned experience. I’ve been fortunate enough to land a dream heli-ski job early in my career. Heli-skiing allowed me to dial in my downhill guiding, often skiing 10 backcountry runs. Due to Selkirk Tangiers Heli Skiing’s massive tenure, I get to explore new terrain every day and downhill guide in a variety of weather and snow conditions.

Navigate Glaciers Like A Pro

Glacier travel is one of the core components of the ACMG ski guide exam. It takes years of experience to decode glaciers and understand what’s happening underneath the snow. An unroped crevasse fall is typically our biggest concern. With much practice, guides can determine the strength of a snow bridge based on outside temperature, bridge thickness and snow hardness – sticking our probes in the snow and feeling the resistance. It’s an essential skill when you’re travelling through an icefall.

As guides in training, we’ll spend days traversing icefields in a whiteout, testing our GPS and compass-based navigation skills when we can barely see the tip of our skis. Being able to decipher a sagging crevasse bridge in poor visibility is an acquired skill. Glacier navigation is complicated and inherently high-stakes. A mistake here and you might fall into a gaping hole.

Master The Ropes

Rigging skills are thoroughly tested on the ACMG ski guide exam. We’ll often lower our group into steep lines or belay a guest scrambling on a rocky ridge. Examiners dedicate a day to testing crevasse rescue techniques using various scenarios, including an unroped fall where the victim is unconscious and a rope ascent while passing knots.

I spent several days rehearsing rigging techniques, practicing knots while watching TV and running through diverse rescue scenarios with my peers. A few examples:

• An unroped fall with an unconscious victim
• Ascending a rope with knots
• Rappelling through knots
• Drop loop and z-pulley rescue systems
• Building bomber snow/ice anchors (T-slots & V-threads)

Ever Heard Of The “Backcountry Butler”

The often forgotten component of ski guiding is client care. Sure, when we think of ski guides, we immediately think of powder skiing through an untouched white canvas. What guides don’t tell you is that 50% of our job is about caring for our clients and optimizing their experience. Examiners will judge you on quality-of-life decisions like taking a break in a sheltered location or emphasizing sunscreen use. They’ll even evaluate your coaching skills when working through challenging sections. That’s part of the game, and how a guide gets a great tip at the end of a day!

You might have to teach your clients how to remove skins on a summit while the winds are howling. You might have to sprinkle some fresh snow on an overused uptrack to increase grip. All those small things contribute to the guest experience. At the ACMG, the bar is set high.

A Note On The Ridge Active Insulator

Premium outerwear designer Strafe was kind enough to send me their cutting-edge mid-layer, The Ridge Active Insulator Jacket, for testing. I’ve now taken it on a few ski tours, through old-growth forest, on huge glaciers and far into our backcountry playground. The Ridge Insulator is the perfect replacement for my old, raggedy mid-layer, which was falling apart at the seams. The fleece lining is not only comfortable, but also provides just the right amount of insulation for winter, high-output activities like ski touring or mountaineering. The insulation is strategically placed to maximize breathability. The jacket is also incredibly light, keeping only essential features such as a hood, wrist and waist elastic cinching and a few zippered pockets. The thin, yet durable, Pertex face fabric complements its low weight while granting it some water resistance when the snow starts flying. The Ridge Active Insulator is the only jacket I need for the ascent in mild to moderately cold temperatures. Since the synthetic insulation retains warmth when wet, I simply throw on my shell layer for the descent. The jacket just looks darn good, and the athletic fit is great for my slim, 6ft build in a size medium.

Features:

• Lightweight & air-permeable body mapped Pertex® Equilibrium NetPlus® & brrr° 4-way stretch fabrics
• Exposed body mapped PrimaLoft® Active Evolve insulation
• Fully lined integrated hood with elastic along the opening
• Zippered hand & chest pockets
• Mesh electronics sleeve inside right-hand pocket
• Elastic binding at sleeve cuffs, hood edge, & hem
• YKK® Vislon® & Regular Coil zippers
• Weight: 10.2oz/290g

The post The ACMG Ski Guide Exam: How I Trained For The Ultimate Test appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Balu Pass, Rogers Pass: Old Faithful Ski Tour

Report from November 27, 2025

After two days of heavy rain to 2300m, Freddy and I figured now was a great time to kick-start our ski touring season at Rogers Pass. Fortunately, the tail end of the storm system brought 20cm of dense powder, burying the burly melt-freeze crust. With a forecasted warm spell settling in over the day, we hoped the warm snow would stick to the crust and cushion our turns. We planned on skiing a classic of the Connaught Valley, the Cheops North Bowl.

We followed the standard Connaught uptrack, aiming to gain Balu Pass. With the low elevation coverage, we stepped over rocks, roots and cautiously maneuvered over gaping streams. In the early season, it’s best to budget some extra time to navigate the valley bottoms. Surprisingly, the fresh rain crust helped shield our skis from the rocks on the trail. After two hours of continuous side-hilling, we gained Balu Pass and stumbled into old friends, Chris and Will, who happened to share the same objective.

We took a breather at the pass, snacking on granola bars and dehydrated mangoes – my all-time favourite in the backcountry. Looking south, we could see the Loop Brook, Asulkan and Illecillewaet Valleys in the distance. It got me excited about our upcoming winter and all the epic terrain at our fingertips. We mosied across Balu Pass, arriving at the foot of the Cheops West Ridge, the next leg of the ski tour.

As we climbed the broad shoulder, I probed for potential wind slabs and evaluated our snowpack. For a heavily wind-scoured feature, I was surprised to find more than 180cm of snow across the slope. Beyond, the alpine was caked in snow. The warm temperature and heavy snow had coated our mountains, filling in boulder holes, open creeks and eroded gullies. Despite the recent rain, that’s a great start for the 2025-2026 season. With Will expertly breaking trail at the front, we gained the distinct bench, marking the entrance of the Cheops North Bowl.

While the crew executed a quick transition, Will (being Will) pulled a beer out of his bag and crushed it on the spot. Not my style, but I can appreciate the effort to haul it up the hill. Will and Chris decided to ski Nicci’s Notch, an advanced line nearby. We dropped into the bowl, ski cutting the convex entrance to evaluate the wind slab’s reactivity. The warm snow offered smooth, groomer-like skiing, thankfully cushioning the crust below. While I wouldn’t call that powder skiing, it was as enjoyable as it was different from what we’re used to at Rogers Pass. The vast alpine terrain was looming overhead, making us feel very small in comparison.

As we approached the traverse under STS Couloir, we noticed a string of avalanche debris emerging from the steep couloir above. The debris had carved out the terrain, leaving great big gullies of tough ice. We carefully descended through the challenging section and raced down to the valley bottom once clear of the debris. In times of better stability and snow quality, I often ski the steep chutes directly below the bowl. They are often loaded by the downflow winds, blowing from the top of Balu Pass.

Route Info

7-8 h	1020m	11 km	1330-2250 m

The post Cheops North Bowl: Great Alpine Skiing Despite Thin Coverage appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Fuzzy Knob, Revelstoke: Shredding Through The Big Timber

Report from December 29, 2025

Paul and I parked at the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Lodge below Mt Macpherson for a cruisy lap down the Burnt Knob slidepaths, whichever would have the least track. Having last seen each other in the Fall, we casually walked along the Main Loop as we caught up on our busy lives. The staff at the RNSC made it easy for ski tourers to access the Macpherson NE slopes with clear signage showing the way. Within 20 minutes, we made it to the old skid road that traverses below the Fingers and, further, the two Burnt Knob slidepaths.

Arriving at the end of the skid road, made obvious by the dense jungle ahead, we began climbing more aggressively, following a series of small clearings adjacent to Wells Creek. With an existing uptrack carved in the lumpy terrain at a reasonable incline, our progress to the wide col between the two minor peaks, Burnt and Fuzzy Knob, was effortless. I reworked some of the trail, finding more efficient ways to contour through the alders and cedar forest. This reminded me how bushy the eastern Monashees can get, even with our unusually thick coverage for late December. Due to its low elevation, I typically won’t even attempt a ski tour at Mt Macpherson before January rolls around and the temperatures plummet.

As the fog lifted and the skies opened up, we reached the top of Burnt Knob. As we shovelled nuts in our hungry mouths, we scoped out the slope below. A convoluted system of gullies, wind drifts, and pillows split along a natural shoulder and led into the two beautiful slidepaths. Noticing most tracks leading into the skier’s right path (#1), we decided it was best to aim for the left one.

We also observed some noticeable wind effect along the top of the knob. As an exposed, prominent bump, this observation was no surprise after the variable winds overnight. Before starting the run, I cautiously ski cut the first steep pitch, grasping for a nearby tree. As expected, I triggered a small wind slab, 30cm thick.

With our avalanche control mission complete, we skied the top pitch, weaving through juvenile spruces and jumping off an endless stream of playful features carpeting the slope. This is typical Monashees skiing. We traversed to the skier’s left, lining ourselves up with the #2 slidepath below. The winds had compressed the snow, making the skiing challenging. While Paul, an expert snowboarder, had no problem staying afloat in the dense, creamy powder, I, on the other hand, kept having to shift my weight to the back of my skis in an effort to keep my tips up. Needless to say, the run was an absolute quad burner.

We spread our descent over three epic pitches. To my surprise, no one had skied the left path. This is awesome! Previous avalanches and meters after meters of snowfall had almost entirely covered the heinous alders. We skied nearly all the way to the old forestry trail. After a solid high five, we followed the undulating track down the skid road and back to Nordic ski club trails. What a day!

Route Info

5 h	1150 m	13 km	649-1765 m

The post Burnt Knob, Revelstoke: The Perfect Macpherson Slidepaths appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Montana Trees, Revelstoke: One Hella Deep December

Report from December 25, 2025

After Kaitlin and I took a brisk ride on the Stoke Chair, we arrived at the top of Revelstoke Mountain Resort, ready to go for a Christmas slackcountry mission. With no definite objective in mind, we headed south, aiming to ski an alpine line beyond the resort’s boundary. At the wind sock, I adhered my climbing skins to the Ferreol Surfeur 112 powder skis, surprised by the lack of crowds. I guess people would rather sleep in on Christmas Day!

Ferreol Surfeur 112 Ski Review

We ducked under the rope line and followed an existing uptrack contouring across the SW face of Mt Mackenzie. The views were spectacular. The sea of clouds hovering over the Columbia River to the west was lit up by the low December sun. Being so close to the winter equinox, the days are shorter, but the lighting is jaw-dropping. It was the first day we’d seen the sun in more than 3 weeks of a particularly snowy December.

We made our way towards Goat Peak, a prominent Thumb’s Up-looking mountain along the Mackenzie SE Shoulder. Battling various wind drifts and small Christmas Trees, we walked along the breezy ridge, keeping a safe distance from the large cornices above Highway Bowl to our left. Those cornices have caught experienced skiers by surprise in the past, resulting in injuries and difficult evacuations.

We pressed onwards towards the summit of Goat Peak. While you can easily traverse skier’s left through Montana trees to get to the bottom of Montana Bowl, we chose to extend our first lap with a south-facing descent from the summit into the bowl below. It’s a short detour that turns a traverse into a proper ski line. We transitioned a few meters below the peak to avoid a particularly wind-scoured section. With the clearer weather, we were granted panoramic views of Montana Peak and the surrounding area.

Ready for a ski, Kaitlin posted herself downhill of me for a photo opportunity, and I dropped in for my first descent of the day. With the high winds of the previous day, the surface snow on the upper section was wind-packed, offering a solid platform for making energetic turns. As we descended the slope, the snow quality improved into bottomless powder. We found our way through a series of wind lips, increasing our speed and confidence as we entered the large expanse of Montana Bowl.

At the bowl’s termination, we transitioned back into uphill mode, now ready for the ascent up the Montana Ridge leading up to its peak. We worked our way up the northern edge of the bowl, crossing below our fresh downhill tracks. The next section reminded me how technical this uptrack can be. With better avalanche stability, I typically track-set across the open west face. However, due to the considerable avalanche hazard in the alpine and treeline, we climbed conservatively along the ridge. Battling bushy trees, steep gullies and wind pillows, we eventually made it up Montana Peak with a scenic finish on the flat-topped feature.

With the winds whistling through our gear, we removed the climbing skins and buckled our ski boots. Lap #2 followed the distinct treed rib dividing the west from the southwest face. With the storm slab problem in mind, we opted for a supported line weaving through the sparse trees and opening up lower down Montana Bowl. Having been exposed to the recent winds, the cold snow was slightly pressed, but still skied great. 8/10 if I were to rate it. After all, backcountry skiing isn’t always about the snow quality – even for a powder snob such as me. It’s about the experience.

We continued our descent down Montana Bowl. Looking around, we felt quite small traversing underneath the boundless alpine slopes. After pushing past a flat frozen pond, we punched through the evergreens and skied down the southern-most lines of the Montana Trees area. We regrouped at the cul-de-sac where the Natural Selection Tour‘s Revelstoke chapter was held last March. We promptly made our way back to the resort, following the beginner-friendly Montana cat road.

Route Info

3 h	410 m	6 km	1860-2341 m

The post Montana Peak, Revelstoke: Big Mountain Lines For Christmas appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Kokanee Bowl, Radar Bowl: Unreal Lift-Accessed Ski Touring

Report from December 20, 2025

As Kaitlin and I took a bump up RMR’s Stoke Chair, we soon realized Montana Trees would be our perfect ski-date, my favourite kind of date. After unloading for the surprisingly quiet chair lift, as is expected of the resort before the Christmas break, we traversed towards the wind sock, the ever-recognizable orange fabric flapping in the moderate south winds. A few hundred meters south of the Stoke Chair, we transitioned for a frigid traverse below the Mt Mackenzie South Path. Given all the stormy action December has seen, visibility was naturally poor.

We contoured the terrain, spacing out as we traversed underneath the large SW-facing start zone. With the visibility further worsening, we felt our way along the Mackenzie South Shoulder, distinguishing Montana Trees to the west from Highway Bowl to the east. No more than 15 minutes later, we reached a vast treeline slope dotted with snow-glazed spruces. Stopping above the skier’s left of Montana Trees, where the glading is more open, we transitioned for the descent. I stabbed my Ferreol Surfeur 112 skis deep in the powder, afraid that the steady winds would blow them away.

We cautiously skied through the band of ghostly spruces and opened up the throttle in the vast treeline slope below. With its shallow incline incapable of producing avalanches, I felt perfectly comfortable party skiing it with Kaitlin in tow. After a quick regroup at the trim line marking the start of Montana Trees proper, we traversed towards a virgin hallway tucked between two denser tree bands. With temperatures plunging due to a developing Arctic outbreak, the snow quality was blower, 40cm of perfect champagne powder. As expected, the skiing was fabulous. Playing the Surfeur 112 to its strength, I was having way too much fun throwing the skis sideways, slashing powder into the air.

By the end of the Montana Trees run, the terrain benched out as we glided back to the Montana cat road, the easiest way to get back to inbounds RMR. Impressed by the top-notch skiing, we headed further south towards the Kokanee Ridge, hoping to ski another great lap. We slithered under the Natural Selection headwall, a nearly-vertical rock band where the freeride competition took place.

Following the disaffected cat road and a well-crafted uptrack, climbing Kokanee Ridge was a breeze. Wanting a shorter lap, we climbed up to 2100m and transitioned at the Natural Selection start gate.

We skied down Kokanee Ridge, passing many friendly faces as we raced down the cat road. We stopped at a notable notch leading into the Short Stop run. I tested the 40-degree treed slope by ski cutting the start zone. The snow was absolutely blower and showed no signs of reactivity. Fortunately, the band of trees cresting Kokanee Ridge had protected the terrain from the gale-force winds observed during the last storm cycle. We skied the run one-at-a-time, making sure we didn’t expose ourselves to the Natural Selection headwall to our skier’s right.

We high-fived at the bottom, now that we’re back in the safety of the Montana cat road. We stuck the rugs on our skis and toured back to the resort, traversing under the Jalapeno inbound run.

Route Info

2.5h	112m	3.2 km	1875-2180m

The post Montana Trees, Revelstoke: One Hella Deep December appeared first on The Uptrack.

Where’s Granite From?

Granite is actively being developed in one of Canada’s cherished mountain sports capitals, Squamish, BC. Software developers Esteban and Gabrielle are working tirelessly to improve Granite’s offering. It’s a pleasure to support a local initiative that focuses on building a strong community of outdoor enthusiasts. Here’s what they have to say:

Made in Squamish — We are climbers, skiers, and hikers building the platform we want for our own days in the mountains. Accurate maps, useful reports, and a community that keeps knowledge where it belongs, with the people who live it.

Why Granite?

Who’s tired of juggling multiple apps, all at once, to plan your outings? One app for satellite imagery, another for topo maps and a thick brick for route descriptions. It’s exhausting! In the past, I was jumping between Gaia GPS, FATMAP, Google Earth and CalTopo. Granite solved my problem by combining all this data into one app. They even partnered with Avalanche Canada to include their avalanche bulletins. It’s so darn convenient.

What About Their Features

From the outset, Granite was launched with a ton of exciting new features that work flawlessly. They’ve also been great to work with, keeping us posted on upcoming features. The founders are updating the app monthly. You can track their progress and vote on new features using their official roadmap.

Current Features:

• 3D offline maps, including summer and winter satellite basemaps, as well as topographic maps
• Advanced terrain overlays (avalanche Slope, aspect, flat terrain, ski lines, forest service road status, private and personal heatmap)
• Avalanche Canada bulletins
• Strava & Garmin integration (mountain stats, private activity history)
• Trip reports (mountain conditions, high-quality photos, clear route details)
• Digital guidebook published by Verified Experts (such as The Uptrack)

Explore The Granite Roadmap

In the coming months, they plan on expanding their winter satellite imagery and community content with active trip reports and trail conditions. They’ll be adding more features such as an advanced folder library to organize your routes, batch route import and weather layers. Honestly, I’m thrilled to see such a dedicated team working hard to make Granite the best 3D mapping app on the market! You can download the app on Google Play or the App Store (Apple).

What’s The Master Plan?

I’ll be duplicating the ski touring and mountaineering routes posted on The Uptrack, offering an abbreviated yet insightful version on Granite. The Revelstoke-based content will then be organized in regional collections (guidebooks) to accommodate Revelstoke’s expansive ski touring network. You’ll be able to browse a route on Granite, refer to it in the backcountry, and follow its link back to The Uptrack for the extensive trip report, including additional terrain photos and ski photography. To get you guys invested in the app, Granite is offering a 1-month free trial for visitors of The Uptrack.

Get Your 1-Month Free Trial On Granite

The post Granite X The Uptrack: A One-Stop-Shop Mapping App appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: The Early Season Snowpack: How It Affects Your Winter

McCrae Peak

Best time to visit: Mid-October to early November

5-6 h	820 m	10.5 km	1770-2415 m

As far as early-season ski touring goes, the McCrae Peak zone is an all-time classic. Its main glacier, the McCrae glacier, offers an enjoyable yet short descent, with a challenging finish down a windy canyon. For added vertical, you can bootpack up the peak’s west face to its summit (2500m), granting you panoramic views of the surrounding Selkirk Mountains and the Monashees’ Gold Range across the Columbia Valley. Why is this such a popular early-season spot? On one hand, you’ll start your tour at an elevation of just under 1800m at the top of the McCrae forestry road. You essentially drive all the way up to the snowline, skipping the typically heinous valley bottom bushwhack. Since the McCrae FSR is part of the broader Akolkolex forestry road network, bring a VHF radio along to monitor the busy logging traffic. This is an active logging zone, requiring a 4×4 vehicle to access. Check out this post about safety on forest service roads in BC.

Related: McCrae Glacier: Season’s First Powder Turns

On the other hand, McCrae’s west shoulder is a mellow grassy meadow, with more grass than rocks, perfect for some early-season backcountry skiing. For the keen adventurer, you can complete a variety of intricate loops involving alpine bowls and steep chutes as seen in my latest trip up McCrae Peak in spring.

Joss Mountain

Best time to visit: Mid-October to early November

5-6 h	650 m	12.5 km	1490-2150 m

Peaking at 2386m, Joss Mountain is a prime early-season ski touring spot in the Monashee Mountains. The route requires a 4×4 vehicle and a VHF radio to navigate the generally well-maintained Wap Lake FSR. Beware: the journey’s last leg up one of the lesser-used branches is much steeper and rockier than the main artery. The challenging access is worth the effort, however. You’ll be rewarded with classic Monashee-style skiing, including chutes, pillows, booters and pristine alpine bowls. Thankfully, the 1-hour drive from Revelstoke and the harder access make Joss Mountain a lesser-known destination, a hidden gem. You’ll hardly cross anyone on the uptrack.

Related: Joss Mountain: Monashees: Seeking The Halloween Powder

The peak is crowned by an old fire lookout, worth the visit if you can muster the 850m ascent. With a little exploration, you’ll find that the south bowl harbours quality skiing. The ondulating alpine terrain offers a perfect opportunity to ski multiple laps, dust off the cobwebs and get your touring legs under you.

Rogers Pass

Rogers Pass winter permit required

Best time to visit: Early November to mid-April

If you’ve been lurking on The Uptrack for a while, you’ve probably figured it out. Rogers Pass is a world-class backcountry skiing destination that also delivers the goods in the early season. The ski season usually starts in early November in the Connaught Valley when there’s just enough snow for a marginal ascent and a hair-raising descent. I’m not going to sugarcoat this – October/November skiing at Rogers Pass is no joke. You’ll be hopping over sharp rocks, crossing open creeks and bashing alder bushes along the way. Nonetheless, the challenging valley bottom conditions give way to excellent skiing in the alpine bowls.

Most folks begin their season in the Connaught Valley with the Balu Pass ski tour. The gentle valley ascent, combined with the mellow open slopes at the valley’s headwaters, makes for a great first tour of the year. I’ve had some of my finest November faceshots there. For the expert skiers looking for challenging lines, a short climb from Balu Pass up the Cheops West Shoulder gets you to the entrance of Nicci’s Notch and the Cheops North Bowl on the valley’s south slope, two great options for early-season backcountry skiing.

On the north side of the Connaught Valley lies Ursus Trees, offering perfectly spaced tree skiing that can be lapped over and over again. Skiers and snowboarders with a penchant for mountaineering can easily summit Video Peak and ski down its south face. It’s a classic early-season objective. You’ll find some great alpine skiing in the vast Hospital Bowl below the peak. Beware: the valley’s lower slopes are carpeted with thick alder bushes, making progress difficult. Stick to the well-used uptracks below treeline to ease your ascent.

Dusting Off The Cobwebs

Since we’re talking about early-season backcountry skiing, it’s worth mentioning the steps you can take to get ready for the season. My latest pre-season preparation for ski touring post discusses those very steps, ranging from looking over your gear to physical conditioning for the season. I spend considerable time training my avalanche and crevasse rescue response before even clipping into my bindings for the first time of the year. You never know – you might be faced with an incident on your very first day out in the backcountry, and you must be ready for it.

Let’s be honest with ourselves: our first packing party of the year is often a rusty one. I’m slowly packing my backpack in the least effective way possible, often forgetting essential items. Well, look no further. This handy-dandy post on what to pack for a ski tour covers all the gear you’ll need for your first ski tour in October or November.

Lastly, not only is it good advice to practice avalanche safety scenarios before hitting the backcountry slopes, it’s also crucial to review the common avalanche problems encountered in October and November. This post on the early-season snowpack covers the fundamental weather mechanisms and avalanche problems that take shape in the early parts of the winter.

The post Best Early-Season Backcountry Skiing Near Revelstoke, BC appeared first on The Uptrack.

Later, I learned my partner had no idea I was still in the chute. A single call on the radio could have prevented the whole mess. That incident burned a key lesson into me: in the backcountry, clear and timely communication is mandatory. Ever since, no matter how small the mission, my VHF radio comes with me.

Related: Backcountry Skiing & Splitboarding Etiquette: The Dos and Don’ts

VHF Radios

A VHF (Very High Frequency) radio is a two-way communication device that operates between 30 MHz and 300 MHz. They provide handy two-way, line-of-sight communication (i.e. you can transmit and receive a signal) when out of cell service. Out in the bush, they’re commonly used in a mountain environment when driving on forest service roads.

The backcountry skiing and splitboarding communities use VHF radios to communicate key information when travelling apart. For instance, VHF radios are often used for group coordination when travelling through avalanche terrain and for emergency communication. They’re more reliable than cell phones in remote areas without cell service, but the radio’s range depends heavily on terrain. You’ll have a hard time reaching someone on the other side of a mountain pass or high ridge.

Communicating In The Field

After having been burnt by poor communication in the backcountry, I’ve noticed something: a group that talks well skis better. Not just in terms of safety, but in flow. Concise, timely radio transmissions or even simple shouts are great ways to share key information, such as an unexpected change of plan due to poor ski conditions or an increased avalanche hazard. Here are a few handy examples of backcountry communication:

• Call out “dropping in 3” or “all clear” so no one skis above someone else, and risks triggering an avalanche. That would have been handy during the incident that I described in the introduction.
• Give brief updates like “transitioning here” or “meeting at the trees” to avoid splitting up your group in complex terrain.
• Keep tabs on each other when the terrain or avalanche hazard forces you to spread out or lose line-of-sight.
• Yelling “stop” or “go” when travelling on a glacier roped up to maintain the correct spacing between your group. This is especially important in whiteout conditions – you may not see your group’s leader.

It’s simple stuff, but it makes a huge difference in improving your group’s safety and flow through the mountains. Obviously, radios are great at sharing information, but hand signals or your voice are great tools for staying in touch.

Ski touring and splitboarding isn’t just about reading the snowpack – it’s about reading your partners, too. Periodically checking in with your ski buddies helps maintain a clear mind and a common understanding of the risks when making hazard-related decisions. It’ll also prevent foreseeable injuries. Speak up when you’re faced with unnecessary risks, unreasonable exposure or ski conditions beyond your skill level. This is especially important as the weather turns for the worse or the route has to change due to unexpected hazards. In short, clear and timely communication keeps everyone safe and turns a tour into a shared adventure instead of a series of solo missions. These days, my radio is as essential as my avalanche transceiver, shovel, and probe. Silence can be the most dangerous thing of all in the backcountry.

Morning Talks & Evening Debriefs

Learning how to communicate when backcountry skiing or splitboarding involves mastering morning briefings and evening debriefs. Heck, there’s a reason why they are an integral part of the workflow in the professional avalanche world – guides and forecasters alike.

Morning Briefing: In preparation for a great day of ski touring, we first discuss possible objectives the night before. We identify a few interesting tours in accordance with the weather forecast and avalanche conditions. In the morning, we update our plan based on the overnight weather as well as the weather and avalanche forecasts. In my locale, the Avalanche Canada bulletin is a great resource for daily avalanche conditions and weather forecasts. This process is a crucial part of trip planning and involves clear communication within your group. Everyone has to be on the same page; otherwise, you’ll risk having spicy, mid-uptrack arguments.

Evening Debrief: A good day in the backcountry doesn’t end when you click out of your skis. Taking five minutes at the trailhead, in the parking lot, or even back at the cabin to debrief can be just as important as checking the forecast. Talk about what went well, what felt sketchy, and where communication or decision-making could have been sharper. It doesn’t have to be formal – sometimes, you’re just exchanging thoughts over an ice-cold beer. Those conversations build trust, sharpen your team’s awareness, and make the next tour smoother and safer.

Emergency Communication Devices

Emergency devices to communicate in the backcountry should be a crucial item on your packing list. When backcountry skiing, you can’t always count on cell service when it matters most. Even if you stack the odds in your favour, do everything right, injuries still happen. A blown knee or a fractured arm isn’t that uncommon. That’s why carrying an emergency communication device is just as important as packing your avalanche tools in the morning. We’ve touched base on VHF radios and how they keep your group connected in real time—calling “all clear” or “hold up” can prevent accidents before they happen.

For reaching the outside world in the event of a backcountry rescue, satellite messengers like an InReach or ZOLEO let you text for help, while a personal locator beacon fires off a one-way SOS. I always carry a Garmin InReach Mini for its two-way text feature and Bluetooth pairing with your phone. I’ve used it in the past when faced with a serious injury in the Whistler backcountry. The helicopter rescue was surprisingly fast and efficient. Granted, the resources were at the ready before we placed our SOS call. This is Whisler after all – the busiest skiing destination in Canada. Most importantly, knowing how to use your emergency communication device and practicing its functions means you’re not relying on luck when the unexpected happens.

The post Communicate In The Backcountry: How To Stay In Touch appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Packing For A Backcountry Hut Trip: Tips For A Great Ski Tour

The Ski Touring (Splitboarding) Essentials

Avalanche transceiver, shovel and probe: This is the first thing that I pack. Going in the backcountry without the potentially life-saving avalanche equipment is a big no-no. While the shovel and probe live in my daypack, I usually stuff my avalanche transceiver in my “car” bag (a simple grocery bag) along with my climbing skins, a pre-hydration water bottle and some snacks.

Touring skis, ski boots, poles & skins: They are all bundled together so I don’t forget anything. Make sure your touring skis have workable bindings and ski boots, a selectable walk mode. I prefer two-piece adjustable poles, since they can be shortened when bootpacking and easily strapped to my pack. To avoid cold fingers, pre-mount your climbing skins in the comfort of your home.

Related: How To Choose Touring Skis, Bindings, Boots and Skins

Backpack: A well-fitted, comfortable backpack makes your day fly by. After conducting extensive research over many years, I’ve identified the key features to look for in a backpack suitable for ski touring day trips. I’ve found a 35-40L backpack works best for standard day trips, while a 40-45L pack, for technical ski-mountaineering missions. For a deeper insight into backpack features, check out How To Get Into Ski Touring (Backpacks).

Ski googles: On a wintery day, ski googles are a must when I pack for a ski tour. Bring an appropriate lens for the expected weather. On most days, I carry a low-light lens in the Interior British Columbia as it works for overcast days and skiing in those shady, north-facing bowls. By springtime, I’ll bust out the sunny lens. Nowadays, unless I’m expecting snorkel-deep powder, I wear “visor-like” sunglasses such as the Smith Wildcat with a photochromatic lens and low-light lens. The ski googles stay at home until it’s truly storming out there. Those sunglasses are lighter, more packable and work as well in knee-deep powder as your typical googles.

Skin Wax: On a warm spring day, moist snow will tend to pack under your climbing skins, hampering your glide. Skin wax is essentially a waterproof coating for your skins, making it harder for snow to stick to those prickly hairs. While it reduces grip slightly, having an unimpeded stride is far more important. Pro-tip: apply skin wax across the entire skin base, at the trailhead, before the climbing skin gets saturated with water. I usually leave the wax at home until mid-February when the temperatures soar.

• Avalanche transceiver
• Avalanche shovel
• Avalanche probe
• Touring skis (or splitboard)
• Touring boots (with walk-mode)
• Touring poles (adjustable ideally)
• Climbing skins
• Backpack (35-45L)
• Ski Googles (or visor-type sunglasses)
• Skin wax (optional unless expecting warm weather)

The Clothing

Base layers and socks: It’s hard to forget the base layers when you pack for a ski tour. You’ll hopefully be wearing them. I heavily recommend merino wool base layers. While they dry slower than their synthetic counterpart, they breathe well, wick moisture effectively, and don’t hold on to body odour. Also, I’d avoid driving to the trailhead with your ski sock. Do your best to keep those heavenly foot bags dry until you begin your ski tour. Slipping wet socks into your ski boots at the start of your tour is the absolute worst! You’ll know when you make that mistake.

Midlayer “active” jacket: This midlayer goes under your outer weatherproof shell. Since you’ll often be wearing this jacket on the uphill, it’s best to choose a midlayer that’s lightly insulated, breathable and wind-resistant. Striking the balance between warmth, breathability and wind-resistance involves much trial and error with different brands and models. It depends on how your body manages heat and sweat during high-output exercise.

Uphill and downhill gloves: Why carry two pairs of gloves? For starters, you’ll need a backup pair when the first one eventually wets out. You also want to avoid soaking your downhill gloves in sweat to maintain their insulating property. Since I get clammy hands, my uphill gloves are breathable, quick-drying and dexterous. I also get cold fingers, so my downhill gloves are ultra-warm and relatively water-resistant. As for ideal material, I favour leather treated with a waterproofing wax such as Nikwax. Leather offers a great balance of durability and dexterity.

Puffy jacket and pants: When it’s truly arctic out on your ski tour, you’ll want to pack a large puffy jacket (either synthetic or down). While down tends to pack smaller, synthetic insulation such as PlumaFill (Patagonia) retains heat when wet. Nevertheless, I always carry a light, midlayer puffy jacket. The puffy pants are entirely optional, and whether you get cold legs. I don’t see a need for it unless I’m winter camping in frigid weather.

• Synthetic or wool base layers (top & bottom)
• Synthetic or wool ski socks
• Midlayer “active” jacket (preferably wind-resistant)
• Weatherproof puffy jacket (down or synthetic)
• Weatherproof ski shell & pants (waterproof/breathable membrane)
• Neck warmer (Buff)
• Neck warmer (Buff)
• Brimmed “active” cap and toque (wool or synthetic)
• Light uphill gloves
• Warm downhill gloves (weatherproof outer shell)
• Puffy pants or shorts (optional)

The Personal Items

Sunglasses: Sport sunglasses with a lens of at least category 3 rating are an important part of the ski touring quiver. You’ll find yourself wearing them on overcast days, as the sunlight gets amplified by the reflective snow surface. As previously mentioned, I favour visor-like sunglasses since they provide optimal coverage for both the ascent and descent and shelter from the wind. On a truly deep day, the googles will come out of my bag.

Sunscreen and lip cream: Even in the dead of winter, the solar radiation can still pierce through the clouds and affect your skin. It’s crucial to apply sunscreen, with a minimum rating of SPF 50, regularly throughout your ski tour. Zinc-oxide paste becomes especially handy during spring ski tours to protect your face, neck and arms from a nasty burn. You’ll always find a small tube of SPF 50 sunscreen at the top of my pack.

Insulated water bottle: With temperatures dipping below -15 °C regularly during our Canadian winter, water will freeze in a bare water bottle, and you’ll be left with nothing to drink. A quality insulated bottle will keep your tea or water warm throughout the day. There’s nothing better than a hot tea in bitterly cold weather. When spring rolls around, my water intake goes through the roof. Instead of my usual 1L, I tend to drink about 1.5-2L of water, especially when the blazing sun is beating down on my neck. I pack a 500mL-1L Nalgene to supplement my 1L insulated mug.

Repair Kit: Slip a repair kit at the bottom of your bag when you pack for a ski tour. While we all want to avoid being stranded in the backcountry, your equipment will fail at some point. That’s where the repair kit comes in handy. A simple collection of zip ties, bailing wire, pole splint, binding screws, pocket screwdriver, ski straps and gorilla tape will get you back to the trailhead.

.

• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen and lip cream (minimum SPF 50)
• Insulated water bottle (1 – 1.5L)
• Wide-mouth water bottle (1L)
• Food (stored in a lightweight bag)
• Pocket knife
• Repair kit (for boots, bindings and poles)
• First aid kit (with pain & blister care)
• Headlamp (with spare batteries)
• Smartphone & camera
• Toilet paper

The Group Gear

Some equipment can be shared between your group, which spreads some heavyweight items across your party.

Emergency toboggan: Not many backcountry skiers or splitboarders carry an emergency toboggan. To be fair, they are expensive, and you’re probably never going to use a toboggan. Think again! The reality of ski touring in the high mountains is that a helicopter rescue may be impossible in some locations. You’ll be travelling through complex, unforgiving terrain. The only solution is to drag the injured person using a toboggan to an area where an air rescue works or back to the trailhead.

Emergency shelter: Using the same line of thought, you’ll need an emergency shelter to cover the injured person while waiting for a rescue or to spend the night in the backcountry. Some products, such as the Ski Guides Rescue Tarp by Alpine Threadworks, can double as a toboggan.

Bush saw and fire starter kit: If you’re spending the night in the mountains, you’ll want to make a fire. Staying warm is paramount. A bush saw that doubles as a snow study saw and a fire starter kit will go a long way to keeping you alive in an emergency.

• GPS
• Emergency satellite comunication device
• Emergency toboggan & shelter
• Snow/bush saw
• Fire starter kit
• Map (paper or digital), altimeter & compass
• Snow study kit (optional)

The Ski-Mountaineering Gack

Ski-mountaineering rope: You’ll bring different ropes depending on the objective. Glacier travel, rappels or even lead climbing introduce specific requirements on your rope systems. Gone are the days when you’d have to haul a burly 11mm single rope up a mountain. During most ski-mountaineering trips, I’ll bring a 6mm glacier cord for glacier travel, crevasse rescue, and sometimes rappelling (depending on the complexity of the rappel). If I’m expecting complex scrambling or technical climbing, I’ll bring a lightweight 9mm single rope to belay my partner or short rope.

Glacier harness with gear: While a regular climbing harness works fine, a lightweight ski touring harness will help reduce your pack weight and size. While not the most comfortable if left dangling above a crevasse, the harness will hold your weight. For the most part, you’ll forget you’re wearing it as you slide along the glacier.

Ski crampons: Nobody enjoys wearing ski crampons. They slow down your stride, but they’ll get you out of an uncomfortable situation in a pinch. They are useful – especially in Spring – when you’ll often travel over wind-scoured ridges and refrozen crusts. Verify that the ski crampons are compatible with your bindings and fitted tightly to your skis while moving freely around their pivot. Trust me – too wide of a crampon will ruin your stride – and your day.

Boot crampons: Boot crampons are critical when bootpacking up icy or wind-scoured slopes. While backcountry skiers can often get away with kicking in steps, snowboarders on soft boots are left in the dust. Avoid those heavy steel crampons like the plague. Nowadays, hybrid designs, such as the Pezl Irvis Hybrid, combine the durability of steel front points with the weight savings of aluminum construction and packability of a flexible spine. Some opt for full aluminum boot crampons. Keep in mind that they will wear down quickly when scrambling on rocks.

Related: Spring Ski Touring Gear: The Essential Goes A Long Way

• Ski-mountaineering rope (for rappelling and glacier travel)
• Glacier harness with gear
• Ice axe
• Helmet (can be ski helmet)
• Ski crampons
• Boot crampons

How To Pack Your Backpack

Packing your backpack smartly will get you further up the mountain. It’s crucial for comfort, balance and both uphill and downhill efficiency. In the long run, it’ll help avoid nasty back injuries. Let’s divide the backpack into three sections: the main compartment, top lid, and side pockets (if available).

Main compartment in three layers from bottom to top:

• First aid kit, pocket mask (for CPR), repair kit, rescue toboggan (which doubles as a tarp shelter), and spare accessory cord at the very bottom of my bag. Some would argue that the emergency gear should be stored at the top of your pack. I’ve heavily trained with my emergency gear, and am pretty quick at getting to them. I would rather locate its bulk at the bottom of the pack, right above my hip belt.
• Food, an insulated bottle, and googles in the middle of the main compartment.
• Spare gloves, jackets, and a neck warmer at the top of the main compartment. The lightest items are stored at the top, where there’s the most side-to-side sway.

Top Lid: The top lid houses small, light items such as the sunscreen, granola bars and toilet paper. An emergency satellite communication device, such as a Garmin InReach, also lives in the top lid.

Side & Accessory Pockets: Some bags have side or accessory pockets, perfect to store all the other knick-knacks.

Packing Tips:

• Make sure externally strapped items are secured to your pack so you don’t drop key gear on the uptrack or, even worse, lose it in an avalanche.
• Avalanche safety tools should always be stored internally, ideally in a designated quick-access pocket.
• Store your water bottle in an internal pocket to avoid the water freezing.
• The water hose on Camelback-type hydration systems will freeze in sub-zero temperatures.
• Adjust your pack so that it’s comfortable during your tour.

The Complete Checklist

After all this talk about specific equipment to pack in your bag, I’ve compiled an interactive packing list that you can use every time you go out in the backcountry.

The post What To Pack For A Ski Tour: A Comprehensive Guide appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Highway Bowl, Revelstoke Mountain Resort: Chasing Big Lines

Report from December 10, 2019

After catching a ride on the Stoke Chair, Miles, Freddy, and I traversed the top of the lower North Bowl with ease through boot-deep powder. We then crossed over the top of Gracias Ridge and descended Greely Bowl, still within the boundary of Revelstoke Mountain Resort (RMR). December 2019 was incredibly snowy, seeing consistent daily precipitation. With much overhead exposure below the chutes spanning from the Mackenzie North Shoulder (The Doors) and large cornices forming along the ridge, we opted to remain inbounds until we reached the bowl’s terminus. This would put us a safe distance from the avalanche hazards.

We quickly transitioned for the ascent, ducked the rope line, and broke trail heading East through deep powder, spacing out as we crossed below a series of chutes, namely Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down, Split Milk, Lover’s Lane and Birthday Chute. All great ski touring routes when the avalanche hazard is decent; those weren’t in the books for today.

We continued up the Mackenzie North Shoulder, which would put us right above Greely Trees, our objective. Some call the shoulder’s treeline and alpine section the Upper Playground. After a few tricky switchbacks, we were right above our starting point. We removed our climbing skins and eagerly readied up for an amazing descent. Miles took the first line down the Upper Playground, aiming to stay on the shoulder’s crest. This would link us nicely with the forested section.

To give you a lay of the land, Greely Trees can be tricky. The terrain tends to force you down the skier’s right toward sizable cliffs and an eroded gully. It’s a great line in good avalanche stability. However, we wanted to remain in the trees, minimizing our exposure to large features, so we skied slightly off-fallline, hugging the skier’s left and avoiding the larger drops. From there, this route took us down a relatively planar, 30-degree slope littered with fun booters and manageable features.

We skied through deep powder, continuously trending skier’s left until we were funnelled through a wide trough. This led us to an open boulder field, which made for a perfect turnaround point. After skiing Highway Bowl, a few days prior, I knew the forest below the boulder field was bushy with a thin snow coverage. It was best to cut our descent short and start the ascent.

We slapped our skins on and began the 350m ascent towards the RMR boundary. We tracked through a magical old-growth forest, staring in awe at the massive 200+ year-old trees. What a sight to behold! After a short time, we gained Greely Lake (1820m), an important milestone as we make our way back to the RMR boundary. From the lake, we travelled a few hundred meters NW until we crossed back into the resort area. We effortlessly descended Baxters, a run leading back to the Ripper Chair at 1435m.

Thankfully, we made it back before the chair’s operational closure at 2:30 PM. The closure time varies from early winter to spring. To better plan your day, it’s best to check the operational hours sign at the base of the gondola and Stoke Chair in the morning. All in all, our crew had an amazing day of old-growth tree skiing, pillow popping, and cliff jumping. This route is truly one of RMR’s finest.

Route Info

3-5 h	615m	7.3 km	1430-2120 m

The post Greely Trees, Revelstoke: Slackcountry Tree Skiing At Its Best appeared first on The Uptrack.