Remembering Sylvian Saudan, “Le skieur de l’impossible”

Steep skiing pioneer Sylvian Saudan, 87, died of a heart attack on July 14, 2024. Saudan is remembered for his 23 first descents, including Mount Hood’s Newton-Clark headwall, which Tom Hallberg wrote about in our Feburary 2023 issue.

Black Joy

“Tele Mike” Russell has helped Black skiers climb mountains all over the world. Through storytelling, advocacy and a yearly party at the National Brotherhood of Skiers’ annual Summit, he’s showing his community that skiing isn’t just a white sport.

(Not So) Hard Travelin’

The perfect skintrack may not exist, but by lowering travel angles and not overtaxing ourselves, we can learn to move efficiently through the mountains.

Teleskier, Humanitarian Kasha Rigby Leaves a Legacy of Uplifting Others

On Tuesday, Feb. 13, the world lost beloved, legendary ski mountaineer Kasha Rigby. But her impact extended far beyond the mountains.

The Decision: How to Say Yes (or No) When It Counts

After all the planning, observing and communicating comes the moment of truth—when it’s time to decide what to ride.

A Century On Abbot Pass

After a century standing, all that remains of the Abbot Pass Hut in Canada’s Yoho National Park is a low-slung rock wall and decades of memories.

Tips to Get the Most Out of Your Ski Mountaineering Course

It’s easy to get caught up in the hardskills when you take a course, instead Tom Hallberg shares the human factors he found improved his learning experience.

Dust-on-Snow Events Threaten Winter and Spring Snowpacks

Dust on snow events are sure to make your skiing less fun, but they also pose major risks to streams and rivers by changing snow runoff.

In Relatively Average Season for Avalanche Deaths Across U.S., Colorado Approaches Record Number of Fatalities

Avalanche deaths across the country are so far just shy of the 10-year average, but in Colorado that’s not the case.

OOO: Gear Test Week

Thanks for coming to our website and for your interest in backcountry skiing! We are away from the office at our annual Gear Test Week at Powder Mountain in Utah. We’ll be spending the week testing next year’s skis, splitboards, boots and apparel for our annual Gear Guide. We will not have time to publish […]

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