Skitouring

New: Download my skitouring guidebook (PDF, 2398kb)

Skitouring very clearly is my favorite winter outdoor activity. It is a wilderness adventure, that starts with climbing a mountain by ones own force, and then skiing down, over anything from moderatly shallow to extremly steep slopes. For these outings, we use special, adapted alpine skiing equipment. While the skis optically resemble their traditional alpine counterparts, they are built lighter. The bindings allow the heel to be release when climbing, but also to be clipped down when going downhill. For the climb, adhesive skins are used. They allow to slide the skis forward, but prevent the skitourist from slipping backwards. Finally, the boots are hybrids between skiing and hiking boots. This means that they are light and flexible enough for the uphill part, but still stiff enough to provide good control for skiing. Moreover, rescue equipment such as avalanche beacons, probes and shovels are always carried. 

Skitouring requires the ability to ski at a high skill level in rough terrain, deep powder snow and sometimes less than ideal conditions. Another need is a good fitness for the climbs, which can involve anything from 500m up to 3000m of vertical elevation gain. Two further very important requirements are good navigation skills, as well as good awareness for the dangers in the mountains, especially the risk of avalanches.

Once you have experienced the beauty of nature in winter, with its bright blue skies, clear air, deep powder snow, pristine scenery, solitude and silence, you will quickly understand why skitouring is very well worth the physical effort of the climb. And on top of this, every skitour ends with often excellent and demanding backcountry skiing, having very high fun factor. Within the last 10 years, I have enjoyed several hundred skitouring adventures in Switzerland. Please check out some of my picture galleries to gain an impression of this wonderful sport.