Beginners Backcountry

[Fatman no jitsu 1]

So while waiting for the snow.

 

 

I've been reading through the forums. And especially this backcountry section.

 

Man, it looks fun.

 

I know I'm more than a few seasons away from being good proficient enough to head in to the wild.

 

I wanted to ask a couple of questions.

 

 

How long before you were ready to go into the backcountry?

 

And what are the skills and techniques I could/should be practising now that would help me in the future.

 

 

cheers for any advice.

[ozsnowbum 9]

anyone who can ski to an intermediate level can have fun in the backcountry.

 

paying a guide is the best way to experience it and im sure the way most people get their first taste.

 

heli, cat, ski touring companies all cater to every skill level

 

i probably did 20 days of paid guiding of all the above plus avalanche course etc before i felt confident enough to know what i was doing.

 

if you havent ever been on one, usually they start the day with very basic avalanche talk and go over beacon, probe, shovel use.

 

i think being out there with a qualified guide is the best way to see what its all about.

[seemore 66]

I went backcountry on my 1st day ever on ski's (I think the guys who took me wished they had tightened my bindings up tighter) so it was always where I wanted to go.

Although many years later I have only just learnt of some of the dangers some times you don't have to look far to get your own lines and not stray too var away from the lifts

(more slack (off piste) than back but still the same fun)

[Gunma Boarder 14]

Ride as much on course powder as you can and practice making tight controlled turns. You might also go to a resort that has tree runs that are made to ride and practice in those. You might be closer to ready than you think.

[Tubby Beaver 209]

Getting tight turns down is good advice.....even the easy accessed stuff sometimes has narrow access routes before it opens up and getting used to that is a bit scary ????

[ippy 66]

You do what almost everyone else does. You "know" youre 'ready' when you start dipping in and out of the side piste, riding through some well spaced trees and crapping your pants when you realise that despite your brain screaming TURN FFS!!! YOURE HEADING RIGHT FOR IT!!! the message doesnt quite reach the legs and feet for a good few weeks or months (at anything but the slowest speeds). And if the invariable unclipping occurs and you have to walk back the 50 meters to the piste (uphill through waist deep snow - a good thirty minute extreme workout) doesnt put you off too much, you might start flirting with following a line or two under ropes. And as it goes youll gradually let the piste disappear for a few seconds until the next thing you know, youre on the lifts and gondolas looking for lines and paths and wondering "if i just remember to turn around that faceless cluster of trees (among a forest of faceless trees), i probably wont go off that cliff and into that river!" Eventually you just think "screw this! i sort of know that if i head roughly in that direction theres a decent chance theres a way down this mountain i think"

 

Or you do the proper way and go with guides/experienced and GOOD friends and get supervised experience. But as i say, not everyones a grown up on a snowboard, shocking as it might sound

[Anskiere 1]

I just started hitting lift+hike access terrain one day for whatever reason and things just snowballed. A day isn't a real ski day if it doesn't involve untracked powder.

[blu 3]

to walk back the 50 meters to the piste (uphill through waist deep snow - a good thirty minute extreme workout)

When skiing in the nearpiste trees, you need to be aware of not crossing the fall line, or skiing into a creek or hole, otherwise the above will apply. Spot your line, and an exit point back to the piste.

[seemore 66]

I think everyone should stick to the piste

[Peetan 10]

*THREADBUMP*

I'm looking forward to getting more off-piste experience this year- It was great going to Kawaba with Gunma Boarder this year and slipping down the sides. Really awesome stuff even if I felt bad for slowing him down!

 

Where is good for easing into backcountry more?

[ethanbaggett 2]

All I can say is that Bacakcountry is definitely worth it and really fun but you should not do it alone. Always have someone to be with you that knows the site well. It's hard to get lost and it's more harder when doing it the first time.