Backcountry Magazine 119 - The Skills Guide

FEATURES HIGHER LEARNING Knowledge is power and, in the mountains, it leads to powder. But getting there and doing it safely takes time, practice and plenty of lessons. In our first-ever Skills Guide, we tap all types of backcountry experts for their top tips and insights for safer, smarter mountain travel and pair their wisdom with a deep dive into the essential tools and techniques of the trade. Read up, refresh, rinse and repeat. STEEP SCHOOL Across the U.S., there's been a mass increase in the popularity of ski-mountaineering courses. Late last April, editor in chief Tyler Cohen headed to one such course in Montana's Tobacco Root Mountains to find out why. Along the way, while traveling through a range still draped in its midwinter snowpack, he learned lessons from skiers young and old, including why to always bring matches when a ski tour involves rappelling. DEPOSITION CONTRIBUTORS PERSPECTIVE Sunstruck EDITOR'S NOTE: BLIND SPOTS STRAIGHT LINES Uptrack struggles in Rogers Pass