Everett Skiing Committee

Everett Skiing Committee

Everett Skiing Committee oversees backcountry skiing and avalanche safety courses and activities.
ABOUT EVERETT BRANCH
ACTIVITIES COMMITTEES DOCUMENTS
EVENTS HISTORY AWARDS

 

BACKCOUNTRY SKI COURSE

Our course offers a great introduction to safely traveling in the Cascades backcountry on snow. It's designed for alpine tourers, telemarkers, and snowboarders of intermediate level or better. A prerequisite for the course is a completed AIARE or AAA Level 1 course within the last 3 years. You need to show your completion certificate at the first ski course lecture. We teach winter camping, emergency shelters, winter navigation and tour planning. You will become a competent backcountry winter traveler with the decision making knowledge to venture beyond the boundaries of the ski area and into the world of untracked lines.

The field trips are tours where we put it all together, including tour planning and route finding your way up and down hill. You will get the chance to practice these skills, while receiving coaching and feedback. The tour locations will depend on the avalanche hazard and group desires.

Graduates of our courses earn badges that permit them to sign up for trips offered by all branches of the club.

Join our Backcountry Ski & Avalanche group on Facebook !

BACKCOUNTRY INSTRUCTOR CLINIC

You are also encouraged to refresh their skills while learning the student progressions at the Instructor Clinics we offer, and to pursue trip leader qualification. 

AIARE 1 AVALANCHE COURSE

The course is ideal for recreational backcountry users like skiers, snowboarders, climbers, scramblers and snowshoers. The overall goal is to improve safety and decision making in avalanche terrain. It's a basic hazard management course and uses rule based tools in combination with introductory knowledge-based decision making tools.

We will include:

  • A basic understanding of avalanches.
  • How to make pertinent terrain and snowpack observations.
  • Decision making and risk management.
  • A focus on asking the right questions, rather than on providing all the answers.
  • Practical lessons and exercises that are useful in the field.
  • Rescue techniques on finding and digging out a buried person.

The course is stand alone, but provides a great link to an AIARE 2 avalanche course. It is a combination of home study, classroom work and field trip work.

Classroom lectures are held at Snohomish Co PUD in Everett. The field trip is in the Mt Baker backcountry with an optional overnight stay at the Mountaineers Lodge. The terrain is extremely well suited for an avalanche course.

Volunteer

Volunteering to help with courses, seminars, and ski trips is a great way to keep your skills set up, and give back to the mountaineering community. If you'd like to volunteer your time and skills please email ryan.kitchen@gmail.com.