Back Country Skiing in Utah - Anyone?

[lisaski]

Hi,

Are there any divas who ski in the Wasatch back country? Why do I ask?
During my last trip to Park City, I met a guy on a lift ride who offered to take me out of the gate at the top of the ninety-nine-ninety. It was two days after a powder day when snow had settled. He was very experienced. We did two boot back trips along the ridge and dropped down into the area near "the patch". I had a blast ripping through the powder. I got instantly hooked. I bought a pair of BCA trekkers. They click into alpine bindings to give you a free heal for skinning up slopes. I also bought a pair of skins. I still need an avalanche beacon, shovel and probe. I also need to read about avalanche hazards and also take a class, etc. My understanding is that the more one knows about reading the terrain for avalanche hazards, the better. I know better than to take the hazards of back country skiing lightly and really desire to learn how to do it in a safe manner.
Even with all the equipment and knowledge, the other essential is to have partners to go out in the back country with. I realize that the BCA trekkers are not a long term solution for doing serious back country trips because of their weight and level of non-ease of use. However, they are an inexpensive way to get me started.
All that said, I would really love to meet others to enjoy back country adventures with.

Lisa

 

[abc]

Park City has the advantage of starting from the top of lifts. But California also have a lot of backcountry skiing to be had. I used to know a guy who lives in Mommoth doing a lot of that. Mt Shasta is one you can hike up and ski down this time of year. And of course there's the Tahoe area. I vaguely recall there're groups you can hook up with.

I wish I did that when I lived there. But my S.O. wasn't keen on anything that requires climbing...

 

[lisaski]

Hi Abc,

Thanks for the reply. The reason I asked about backcountry skiing in Utah is because that is where I spend the majority of my ski days (25 out of 27 this past season). I did take a one-day backcountry skiing clinic in Tahoe a few years ago and I know there are plenty of great routes in the Tahoe basin. I love Tahoe. Since I have a second home in Park City, I spend all of my winter vacationing there.

Lisa

 

[altagirl]

https://utahavalanchecenter.org/education/classes

I'd sign up for some classes. You're also likely to meet some like-minded people there.


I haven't done anything with the Wasatch Mountain Club myself but one of my friends did and liked it:

https://www.wasatchmountainclub.org/ski/

 

[lisaski]

Altagirl,

Thank you for the links. I found them very helpful! The Wasatch Mountain Club looks like a great sports club with quite a few backcountry skiing activities. I joined the Park City Mountain Sports Club a few years ago. It is a good organization as well with many sports and social activities, but nothing for backcountry skiing. So, this is great!

Lisa

 

[tradygirl]

I've been touring the Wasatch heavily for 4 years. You're right - educate yourself first ("Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain" by Bruce Tremper is an excellent book). But nothing compares to learning by experience. Next season, start reading the avalanche forecast daily (https://utahavalanchecenter.org/) and do lots of CONSERVATIVE field days to try to gain an understanding of how the snowpack reacts to the weather. An Avy 1 class really helps with this - I would take it in Utah of possible since that's where you'll be skiing.

Other than that - just be patient and conservative. It takes a lot of time to learn this stuff, and you'll never know everything.

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

[lisaski]

Thank you for the advice. I ordered the book "Staying Alive in Avalanche Country". It appears to be in high demand. Also, I started calling the Utah Avalanche Safety phone number toward the end of the season before ski days. The wealth of and quality of information from the avalanche center is excellent! It's probably the best source for weather forecast information, not to mention info on likelihood of avalanches and various slope exposures to be weary of.

I have another question. Do any of the resorts in Utah allow people to skin up hill after the lifts have closed? That would be an easy way to get acquainted with using climbing skins and the BCA alpine trekkers that I have.

Thanks again! - Lisa

 

[tradygirl]

Yeah, you can skin up pretty much anywhere once the resorts close. Alta's probably your best bet since they have the most snow and you're less likely to run into dirt at lower elevations.

 

[dloveski]

The rumors were that Solitude was calling the sheriff on 'trespassing' hikers---I saw the sheriff cars at the bases last Sunday.

Though it would be tough to enforce from the top.