Ultimate Backcountry Ski Mountaineering Course

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Day One 6:30 meeting at Beamers Café Canmore
Skills Day
• Morning Meeting: Coffee or tea, Revue current Weather & Avalanche Forecast, discuss day plan, Q & A session, equipment check.
• Drive: Drive to Rogers Pass
• Walk over to visitor center- gather relevant information, obtain any closed area permits
• Lesson 1: Ski into Class 3 Alpine terrain; Situational Awareness, Hazard management, Route Finding, Track setting, Glacier Travel and Crevace Rescue review.
• Ski mountaineering Skills, how to do kick-turns.
• Lesson 2: Snow and Ice School- Introduction to Ski mountaineering equipment, Ski Crampon & Boot Crampon use.
• Lesson 3: Ascending/Descending and moving in steeper firmer/crusted/icy slopes: Ice axe in piolet Canes position, step cutting, step kicking, crampon school.
• Lesson 4: Self Arrest with ice axe.
• Lesson 5: Ascent Safety Protocols- Roped terrain vs unroped- belaying, rope management and short roping, boot packing and stowing the ski’s on pack- ridge walking mode.
• Lesson 6: Anchors; ski anchors, rock, ice and snow anchors.
• Lesson 7: Dealing with Bergschrunds, Crevaces, Snow Plugs and Cornices
• Drive to Rogers Pass Hotel
• 19:00 Meeting- Discuss the day, hazards, avalanche and snowpack observation- Next days Avalanche Bulletin, Weather Forecast
• Lesson 8: How to do a Basic Route Plan.

 

Day Two 6:30 meeting in Rogers Pass hotel Lobby
Ski Mountaineering Day
• Morning Meeting: Coffee or tea, Revue current Weather and day plan, Q & A session, Days agenda, equipment check.
• Drive or ski to days objective
• Lesson 32: Ski Mountaineering objective: Situational Awareness, Route Finding, Track setting refinement- in class 3 complex terrain.
• Lesson 33: Anticipating Transitions, Glacier travel rope up point- Glacier snowpack & crevasse bridge and alpine hazard evaluation
• Lesson 34:. Ski mountaineering ascent technique and strategy- Alpine Skills use
• Lesson 35: Descent technique and strategy: Downhill leadership, flat light, white-out, snow stability test (cornice test, ski cutting, etc), Re-grouping, efficient yo-yo technique…
• Lesson 36: Tuff conditions and “survival skiing” technique
• Drive or ski back to Rogers Pass Hotel
• 19:00 Meeting- discuss day, hazards, avalanche and snowpack observation- Next days Avalanche Bulletin, Weather Forecast, and do next days Route Plan.

 

 
Day Three 6:30 meeting in Rogers Pass hotel Lobby
Ski Mountaineering Day
• Morning Meeting: Coffee or tea, Revue current Weather and day plan, Q & A session, Days agenda, equipment check.
• Drive or ski to days objective
• Ski Mountaineering objective: Situational Awareness, Route Finding, Track setting refinement- in class 3 complex terrain.
• Lesson 37: Ski Mountaineering leadership- Ascension
• Lesson 38: Ski Mountaineering leadership- Descent
• Ski Mountaineering skills demo, practice, feedback, fine-tuning.
• Drive back to Canmore
• Golden or Lake Louise Supper stop-  Day debrief, course debrief- next steps
• Drive back to Canmore & Course Closure
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Accommodation

2 nights accommodation at Glacier Park Lodge in Rogers Pass is included. 

Should you require accommodation in Canmore, we have organized for your convenience excellent value accommodation packages with local providers: economy option at the Alpine Club of Canada Clubhouse $30 per night w/ kitchen facilities, superior option at the Rocky Mountain Ski Lodge $123 per night based on double occupancy and luxury options - prices range on luxury level. These choices are made available during the booking process.

Food

2 breakfasts and 2 dinners is included.

Make sure you have a packed lunch with snacks everyday, or we can also arrange this for you at an additional cost. 

For your convenience, MSA offers discounted meal deals set up with local providers. 

Transportation

Students are responsible for their own transportation. We encourage car-pooling and usually this works out very well. Transport for the week is available for an extra $10.00 per person per day and $60.00 extra per person for the Rogers Pass transport both ways.

Equipment

This course does not include equipment, however we have an excellent package deal for full or partial backcountry ski and snowboard packages of high quality equipment. These are made available during the booking process. Own your equipment already? We recommend you use it, since it is best to be familiar with your own equipments specific attributes.

Clothing

• Changes of warm top and bottom under layers and socks.
•  Mid layer fleece top, optional soft shell top, Hard shell Jacket.
• Soft or hard shell pants.
• Gaiters
• Warm hat, optional baklava or neck tube.
• 2 pairs of gloves, optional mitts.
• Sunglasses and sunscreen.
• Street clothes and shoes.
• Bathing suite.

Equipment

• Backcountry Ski/snowboard boots
• Backcountry Skis/snowboard
• Skins
• Ski poles
• Ski Crampons
• Avalanche beacon
• Probe
• Shovel
• Ski touring Mountaineering Ice Axe
• Harness
• 3 locking carabiners
• 4 non locking carabiners
• 2 x 5 meter 7mil prussic
• 1 double length sling
• 1 ice screw
• .5 meter prussic
• 50 meter ski touring rope
• Minimal alpine rock rack; 2-3 cams, 3-4 stoppers- 4 shoulder length draws
• Ski goggles
• Write in the rain book and mechanical pencil
• First Aid Kit with blister kit
• Glop stopper
• Ski scraper
• Compass (optional)
• Map (optional)
• Laptop computer (optional)
• GPS (optional)
•  

Food & Water

Please ensure you have enough high energy food for the day and lots of fluids.

Other
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