In many ways, snow acts as a universal language spoken by skiers and snowboarders the world over. Out of the backcountry and off the slopes, however, communication can get a bit more difficult when cultural barriers exist. For this reason, author and Japanophile Erinna McCarthy decided to write a guidebook, Speak Japanese and Shit, aimed to help ski and snowboard visitors to the Land of the Rising Sun navigate the sometimes confusing, sometimes outlandish ways of Japanese culture.

In the ski mountaineering world, April is considered prime time for big descents. It is the chosen season for such objectives because avalanche stability is often at its seasonal high, days are longer, and the heat of summer has not yet started to wreak havoc on the snowpack. But this window of opportunity may be closing due to recent climate warming trends that might be here to stay.

The last days of April are approaching fast and, with that, many avalanche forecasting centers across North America end their daily bulletins for the season. Montana’s Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center and Flathead Avalanche Center have already thrown in the daily forecasting towel for the season and other centers, such as the Utah Avalanche Center and the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information Center, are getting ready this week to call it quits for the summer months.

The 2016 Grand Traverse, an annual endurance skimo race, kicked off in the depths of night on March 25 at Crested Butte Mountain Resort. This year’s event drew more than 200 two-person teams hoping to race across Colorado’s Elk Mountains. To document the Traverse, Denver-based Duct Tape Studios interviewed participants upon their return to Crested Butte Mountain Resort.

As ski resorts begin to close, more skiers flock to the backcountry to savor the last taste of winter. Spring can be a time of long days and fun ski missions in the sun, but caution must still be exercised as springtime snowpack can be dangerous and variable.

In Canada this week, the avalanche conditions are cause for growing concern among forecasters in the western region, with warming temps posing the primary threat to backcountry safety. Avalanche Canada has officially released a special public avalanche warning to all backcountry users.

As we near the end of March, spring-like weather is hitting certain areas of the west. But along with tailgate season comes a heightened risk of wet avalanches and concerns for melt-freeze layers that can lead to other dangers in the snowpack, such as slab avalanches. Meanwhile, other areas are experiencing heavy, fresh snowfall and high winds, which have produced […]