Backcountry Skiing: Skills for Ski Touring and Ski Mountaineering (Mountaineers Outdoor Expert Series) (Paperback)

by Martin Volken (Author), Scott Schell (Author), Margaret Wheeler (Author) "Backcountry skiing comes with its own gear and equipment needs, but before launching into gear specifics, we'd like to address the weight dilemma..." (more)
Key Phrases: seated belay, long cordelette, direct weather effects, United States, North Cascades, Bernese Oberland (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Backcountry Skiing is a brain-dump of some of the most dialed ski mountaineers in the U.S.." -- Backcountry Magazine

"Impressive volume." -- AmericanTrails.org

"[A] backcountry bible." -- --Skiing Magazine

"Backcountry Skiing is strongly recommended for anyone contemplating skiing mountain terrain in winter conditions anywhere in the U.S. and Canada." -- The Midwest Book Review

"Great content, quality writing, excellent photos, attractive layout--it's the best and most authoritative book on ski touring and ski mountaineering." -- Wenatchee Outdoors by Andy Dappen

Product Description
Martin Volken and his co-authors provide skiers with all the tools and knowledge they need to safely and successfully travel in the mountains. The guide features intermediate-to-advanced techniques for ski touring and ski mountaineering, from planning wilderness trips to perfecting turns in rolling terrain and mastering uphill climbing. For those skiers ready for a more technical, high alpine environment, they draw on traditional mountaineering skills, including roped climbing, setting protection anchors, using ice axes, climbing on bare rock, and more.

In addition to mastering techniques, Backcountry Skiing also features information on recent evolutions in ski equipment; avalanche safety tips; a primer on mountain weather and glaciers, trip planning tools, a discussion of emergency situations, nutrition and fitness advice, and winter camping basics. Throughout this guide, a special emphasis is put on being well-informed and making good decisions-whenever you strap on your skis and skins and head out into the backcountry.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 339 pages
• Publisher: Mountaineers Books (November 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594850380
• ISBN-13: 978-1594850387
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 6.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #113,023 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #2 in	Books > Outdoors & Nature > Outdoor Recreation > Skiing > Cross-Country
  #21 in	Books > Sports > Mountaineering > Instructional
  #48 in	Books > Sports > Winter Sports

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Best Soup-to-Nuts Primer on How to Ski the Backcountry, December 16, 2007

By	Booker "Booker" - See all my reviews

It's bizarrre: For as huge as backcountry skiing has grown, the definitive "how-to" manual hasn't been written. Until now.
I own everything from Lito Tejado-Flores' ancient book "Backcountry Skiing" to the slim "Allen & Mike's Really Cool Backcountry Ski Book" and about three avvie and ski-guidebooks. None of those has everything that today's newbie Alpine ski-tourer needs to know.
But this book by Schell, Wheeler and Volken has it all. And while experienced backcountry skiers might be able to skip parts of chapters, and skim others, this longtime backcountry skier was surprised (and a little embarrassed) how much he learned -- the mountain-guide authors cover in detail things like seated belays, various shelters, placing protection on ice, and building several kinds of anchors. Pair this book with an even more detailed avalanche-awareness book (or better, a class) and you'll be ready for the mountains this winter.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have For Your Guidebook Library, December 14, 2007

By	Christopher G. Miske "Chris" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Scott Schell, Margaret Wheeler and Martin Volken have teamed together to write the definitive guidebook on backcountry skiing and ski mountaineering. All three authors, who are either IFMGA or AMGA certified mountain guides, have organized the discipline of backcountry skiing into ten concise chapters that take the reader through such topics as gear selection, avalanche preparedness, ski mountaineering, and mountain rescue techniques. One highlight of the book is the clear photos and graphics to demonstrate the useful skills and ideas that are helpful in the backcountry. For example, I recently used the skin cutting guide for my new touring skis. The step-by-step instructions and accompanying photos walk you through the essentials to match your skins perfectly to your skis. Instead of just describing what specific items you need for safe travel in the backcountry, the book has clear pictures of such items and procedures as a basic ski mountaineering rack, building an emergency sled, and crevasse rescue just to name a few. Make sure you have a highlighter and sticky notes to mark important information for you'll find yourself returning to this handy guidebook time and again for further reference. "Backcountry Skiing" is designed for both the experienced backcountry skier looking to hone his/her skills and the novice seeking to strectch his/her limits outside the ski area boundary.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book on the Best Type of Skiing, January 17, 2008

By	Alfromcolorado "Wish I Could Get Some News" (Baghdad) - See all my reviews

This is a great book. Not too basic and not too advanced for someone wanting to get into the best way to ski-the earn your turns way.

I used to teach alpine touring and ski mountaineering in the army and this would have been a great book to have around as the textbook. We taught all of this and then went in depth on the important items like avalanche safety (avoidance) and rescue. This book gives a beginning or intermediate ski mountaineer a taste and encourages AIARE level one certification (I recommend level two personally...)

I still have my copy of the past standard, Peter Cliff's out of print classic "Ski Mountaineering" (no, I won't be selling it on EBay) and this is an improvement on it.

It is great for learning and a great review for those that think they remember everything. I got some good tips on gear that, damn, I SHOULD have known!!!