Oregon Ski Guides

Ski Mountaineering Seminar

CCummings — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 21:20:28 +0000

Going even higher! Moving through alpine terrain on skis is one of the greatest mountain experiences. We will spend two nights in the field while learning skills to enjoy skiing big mountains. This course focuses on adding snow climbing, rope use, and glacier skiing to your mountain ‘bag of tricks’. A highlight will be an attempt to summit and ski one of Oregon’s big peaks. This seminar is suitable for experienced backcountry skiers with prior avalanche education and overnight backcountry experience.

Other dates available upon request.

Mt. Shasta Ski Mountaineering Camp

CCummings — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 21:31:40 +0000

Come learn the basics of ski mountaineering on some of the best ski mountaineering terrain in the lower 48 and ski off Northern California’s most iconic peak! Our 4 day ski mountaineering camp will give you the tools you need to more safely ascend and descend classic Northwest ski mountaineering objectives. Topics include: steep skinning, basic and advanced snow climbing techniques, steep skiing techniques, whiteout navigation, fast and light camping, and Springtime avalanche awareness. Mt. Shasta offers unparalleled Springtime corn skiing opportunities and is a great training ground for aspiring ski mountaineers. The camp will culminate in a summit bid with a potential ski descent of the classic Avalanche Gulch route offering up to 7000′ of corn skiing right back to the car. Backcountry ski experience and the ability to ski variable snow with a 40 lb. pack is required.

Other dates available upon request.

Three Sisters Spring Camp

SDesmond — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 02:03:09 +0000

With the wealth of skiable lines in the Three Sisters Wilderness, it’s hard to know where to begin! We’ll ski in to establish base camp and make daily forays out to seek the best conditions in the area. This trip differs from our traverses in that we will be operating out of a base camp giving us …trip details

Haute Route

CCummings — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 22:34:46 +0000

European Skiing on The Haute Route

Part trek, part ski tour, part cultural adventure, the Haute Route offers a brilliant combination of mountain scenery, excellent skiing, camaraderie, exercise, and nights spent in simple, elegant huts. Sprinkled a day of skiing apart, these simple huts are perched in impossible spots with comfortable bedding, excellent food, beer, and coffee. The huts allow us to travel with reasonably light backpacks and enjoy each day of alpine ski touring free of tents, stoves, sleeping bags, and the other usual burdens of overnight backcountry ski touring. Haute Route literally means “high road” and is pronounced “oat root.”

This high alpine traverse was first done as a walking trip in 1861. Over time this became a popular ski route and different versions of haute route evolved. The Verbier Haute Route is often called the skiers version because it skips a few of the more technical cruxes providing time for more skiing. This traverse runs from Chamonix to Zermatt and the Northwest Mountain School offers it as an seven-day program. We use this first day in Chamonix to orient the group while skiing the classic Mer de Glace in the Valle Blanche which descends from the Aguille du Midi all the way back to Chamonix or a small train station just above the valley (depending on seasonal snow depth). We then spend six days on the actual traverse, and have built in one extra day to use as a contingency if weather or avalanche conditions delay us. If we do not use our contingency day we will offer a one-day tour in the Zermatt area on day 8 before catching an afternoon ride back to Chamonix.

Our Haute Route Ski Tour is run by the Northwest Mountain School utilizing IFMGA Mountain Guides from Timberline Mountain Guides and the Northwest Mountain School. We have limited space on our guided Haute Route tours, so contact us now if you are considering joining this program. We are available to help you train for your Haute Route ski trip and are always happy to spend time discussing the program with you to see if this is a program that makes sense at your current ski ability.

AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Course

miker — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 22:54:32 +0000

The level one course is a 3 day/24 hour introduction to avalanche hazard and management.

The course is expected to:

Provide a basic understanding of avalanches
Describe a framework for decision making and risk management in avalanche terrain
Focus on identifying the right questions, rather than on providing “answers”
Give lessons and exercises that are practically oriented, useful, and applicable in the field

Students can expect to develop a good grounding in how to prepare for and carry out a trip, to understand basic decision making while in the field, and to learn rescue techniques required to find and dig up a buried person (if an avalanche occurs and someone in the party is caught).

Student Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course the student should be able to:
Plan and prepare for travel in avalanche terrain
Recognize avalanche terrain
Describe a basic framework for making decisions in avalanche terrain
Learn and apply effective companion rescue

Student Prerequisites

Students must be able to travel in avalanche terrain on skis, splitboard, or snowshoes. In addition, students must be prepared for both inside and outside coursework.

Course Locations

Bend Location

All instruction takes place in the Central Oregon Cascades over 3 days.

Bend Dates:
December 16-18, 2011
March 9-11, 2012

NEW DATE ADDED: March 30- April 1, 2012

Portland Location

This course provides 2 evening classes in Portland followed by in-field instruction on Mt. Hood for 2 days.

Portland Dates:
January 24 & 26, 2012 6-9 PM in Portland
then
January 28-29, 2012 in the field at Mt. Hood

Oh My Gosh It’s Monday! (OMGIM!)

miker — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 01:41:02 +0000

Take a play day and come sample some of Oregon’s best backcountry ski day trips! All throughout the winter we beat the ‘Monday Blues’ and get some exercise too. We run these tours in the Central Oregon Cascades. This is our answer to TGIF!

Other dates available upon request.

First Tracks!

miker — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 17:26:29 +0000

Haven’t ventured into the backcountry to ski yet?! Join us for this one-day introductory program for skiers. We will begin with the basics; intro to equipment, skinning techniques, where to look for good powder in the area, etc. This program is ideal for folks who have never skied outside of the resorts before. We run this program in Central Oregon in the winter and up on Mt Hood in May and June.

Other dates available upon request.

Introduction to Avalanche Safety: Mt Hood

petek — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 22:04:58 +0000

This course is a mixture of classroom and field time.

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Introduction To Backcountry Splitboarding

miker — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 22:53:10 +0000

Itching to venture beyond the lifts and resorts? Join us for this introduction to the backcountry for splitboarders. We’ll spend an evening introducing the equipment and setting up splitboards and bindings properly. During the remainder of the two days we will cover all of the basics of equipment, setting skin tracks, skinning techniques, and basic backcountry practices. Suitable for intermediate to expert in-bounds snowboarders comfortable in changing snow conditions.

Join us and let us introduce you to the best of all worlds- The up, and the down!

Other dates available upon request.

AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Course: Portland @ Mt. Hood

SDesmond — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 20:04:07 +0000

This is the in the field portion of the Portland course on Mt. Hood.
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