"Thanks again for everything on the Alaska Ski Mountaineering Course. You're very good at what you do and we all learned a tremendous amount! Not to mention the incredible skiing we did! Thanks again."
Jon N.
Costa Mesa, CA
Visit our blog page for an account of the 2010 course. Search "Alaska Skiing"
5 Days Of Ski Mountaineering With Two Heli-Drops
Our Alaska Ski Mountaineering Course includes five days of ski mountaineering instruction with two helicopter drops onto remote peaks. This combination of human powered ski touring and heli-drops allows us to access some of the biggest descents and most epic lines in the Chugach Mountains outside of Valdez, Alaska. Along the way our AMGA certified guides create powerful opportunities for you to hone your ski mountaineering skills.
Develop A Repertoire Of Skills For Ski Mountaineering
We teach you skills and techniques for ski mountaineering and then give you real-life opportunities to practice those skills during the pursuit of classic ski mountaineering objectives. Our AMGA certified guides have an intimate knowledge of the terrain and they are uniquely skilled as teachers so each day's activities are thoughtfully designed to maximize your learning and skill development. You will leave the course with a repertoire of skills that will serve you well in any of the great ski mountaineering ranges around the world. We commonly teach the following skills in the context of some outstanding ski mountaineering tours:
- Tour planning and terrain selection
- Map, compass, & GPS navigation
- Tracksetting for safety, efficiency, and observations
- Traveling skills: striding, pacing, AVA turn and kick turn
- Glacier travel and crevasse rescue
- Use of ski crampons, ice axe, and boot crampons
- Construction of THINX ski anchors
- Lowering and rappelling for access to steep terrain
- Steep skiing techniques
- Advanced snowpack stability assessment through layer identification, understanding of spatial variability, and understanding direct and indirect weather effects
Alaska Ski Mountaineering Course Sample Itinerary
Day 1:
We'll meet in the evening at the hotel to discuss current conditions and review maps of the area. Once we formulate an opinion about where the best snow is, and what the snow stability issues are, we'll create a route plan for our first tour. You will learn how to gather information for route selection, how to make a time plan, and how to create a low-vis navigation strategy with map, compass, & GPS.
Day 2:
We'll do one of the classic ski mountaineering tours on Thompson Pass such as Cracked Ice Peak, Nick's Happy Valley and the Berlin Wall, or the Crudbusters Peak. While touring we'll learn basic glaciology and techniques for glacier travel on skis, strategies for efficient tracksetting using the "safety, efficiency, observations" triad, and we'll make some baseline observations of the snowpack.
Day 3:
We begin the day at Valdez Heli Ski Guides with a helicopter safety briefing. Once we complete the orientation we'll be flown to a backcountry summit where we begin our day of ski mountaineering. Many possibilities exist for heli drops; we will choose one based on current conditions and suitable learning environs. We'll ski from the summit of this peak then tour to an adjacent peak, climb it, then ski a second long run to the road. As far as backcountry touring goes, we'll be able to get a massive amount of downhill vertical due to the assistance of the heli drop. On the tour we'll discuss strategies for managing steep terrain such as ski belays and rappels, we'll learn how to build ski anchors, and we'll practice steep skiing techniques.
Day 4:
Today we will use one of the nearby glaciers on Thompson Pass to practice glacier travel systems for whiteout, self arrest on skis, anchor building for crevasse rescue, and we'll learn an efficient and effective partner crevasse rescue system. Everyone will have the opportunity to rescue a real person in a real crevasse fall. Using a backup system to ensure safety, everyone will benefit from this realistic training opportunity. You will understand glacier travel and crevasse rescue very well after this session. If time permits we will also discuss a simple, lightweight, and effective system for crevasse self rescue.
Day 5:
We'll do another classic ski mountaineering tour near the pass that involves a complement of ski mountaineering skills such as glacier routefinding, snow stability assessment, and the use of mountaineering techniques for ascending and descending. We'll likely employ our ice axe and crampons for climbing on this day as we'll be climbing semi-technical terrain to access our ski descents.
Day 6:
For our final day we begin with another helicopter drop on a backcountry summit. We'll choose our drop location based on current conditions and the interests and energy level of the group. We'll ski from the summit of this peak then tour to an adjacent peak, climb it, then ski a second long run to the road. Again, we'll be able to get a massive amount of downhill vertical due to the assistance of the heli drop. This final day will offer further opportunities for applying the skills learned over the week.
Contact us to expand your ski mountaineering skills while experiencing the outstanding skiing in the Chugach. This is ski mountaineering at its finest!
*Peak Mountain Guides Alaska Ski Mountaineering programs are operated under special use permit from the Glennallen Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management. Peak Mountain Guides is an equal opportunity service provider.* |
