- Most Popular
- Intermediate
- Ages 16+
Join us for a one-day course learning about the best practices in avalanche rescue techniques and how to use the types of equipment in realistic scenarios.
Quick Details
Avalanche Safety
Overview:
This Course in partnership with Fortune Peak Huts.
Experience a fully immersive learning experience through our hut-based avalanche education courses. This is the best way to take the next step in your avalanche education with an AIARE 2 + 2 additional days of valuable touring time with feedback & coaching from your professional instructors.
Join us on this fantastic five-day adventure, based in cozy huts. You’ll dive headfirst into decision-making, terrain management, and tour planning like a pro. Get ready to explore some of Washington’s finest terrain – trust us, it’s like no other!
Our AIARE 2 course provides higher level backcountry training and advances avalanche decision-making skills. The AIARE 2 is a three-day course for those who have taken an AIARE 1 and Avalanche Rescue and have had at least a year of backcountry travel experience & this one is built into the hut trip of your dreams! Enjoy the sauna and group cooking each evening plus 2 additional days of touring time.
The AIARE 2 provides backcountry travelers with foundational skills to hone their leadership & gain confidence facilitating team decision-making. Students will have the opportunity to advance their avalanche knowledge and decision-making skills by applying their skills to new terrain and situations. Avalanche Rescue is a prerequisite for the AIARE 2. It is highly recommended that participants gain at least one season’s worth of backcountry travel experience between taking the AIARE 1 and AIARE 2.
An AIARE Level 2 certification consists of 24-hours of learning divided over 3 days. This hut-based option is in a hybrid format with additional touring days with your instructor. Participants must complete an online training segment prior to the field portion. Plan for around 8 hours of online learning.
**All of our AIARE Level 2 courses require attendance at an online pretrip meeting 2 evenings before your course start date. Your instructor will reach out before the course with more information.**
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Day 1: Approach and L1 Review
Meet up at 29 Pines Sno-Park and embark on an exciting journey with snowmobiles. Snowmobiles will transport overnight gear all the way to the hut & we will tour the remaining 4 miles & 600’ after snowmobile support half way. Once at the hut, gear up, and then we’ll hit the snowy trails for an afternoon tour. Expect some transceiver practice, snowpit review & a fun tour to stretch the legs. We will focus on snowpack structure and practice documenting snow profiles. To top it off, we’ll debrief the day, relax in the sauna, enjoy appetizers, and discuss the next day’s plan!Day 2: Student Led Tour
We’ll spend a full day in the field as you lead the tour planning and decision points. Instructional focus will be on snowpack assessment techniques like hand shears, hand pits, test slopes & adding some tools to your snowpit toolbox all to help you reduce uncertainty. At the end of the day, we’ll debrief, share lessons learned, and plan for the next day’s adventure.Day 3: Student Led Tour (Part 2)
The adventure continues! Today, we’ll focus on teamwork, communication, and making smart decisions as a group. You’ll take the lead again, & instructors will take more of a backseat offering feedback and coaching. Time to practice those vital discussion facilitations at key decision points with the support of professionals. And of course, we’ll end the day with a post-tour debrief, sauna time, and delicious snacks!Day 4: Ski Day!
Thus ends the official AIARE portion of the trip & we have an entire extra day to solidify the new skills you just learned & pick up more tips and tricks about backcountry travel and tour planning. We will end the day with the traditional debrief, sauna & meal.
Day 5: Student Led Tour/Exit
Our final morning tour is filled with a mix of emotions – excitement and a hint of nostalgia. After wrapping up our overnight gear, we’ll hit the trails for one last adventure. Mid-day, we’ll gather to debrief the entire course and provide you with valuable feedback and resources for your future journeys. And remember, this is only the beginning of your backcountry endeavors! -
- 18+ for adult courses or 16+ with consent from a guardian and Kaf approval
- 12-18 for youth courses
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The AIARE 2 is a three-day course for those who have taken an AIARE 1 and Avalanche Rescue and have had at least a year of backcountry travel experience. The AIARE 2 provides backcountry leaders the opportunity to advance their avalanche knowledge and decision making skills by applying their skills to new terrain and situations. Avalanche Rescue is a prerequisite for the AIARE 2. It is highly recommended that participants gain at least one season’s worth of backcountry travel experience between taking the AIARE 1 and the AIARE 2. This program requires advanced skiing or snowboarding ability (ability to ski or ride various snow conditions on black diamond runs) & physical ability to hike for 4-5 hours, ascending about 2000′, with a 30lb pack.
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- A solid understanding of mountain snowpack variations and layering, avalanche formation and release
- How to identify meteorological factors and use temperature/precipitation observations to anticipate snow conditions and weather effects on snowpack
- How to use checklists and bulletins as tools to evaluate hazards, target field observations and assess terrain options.
- How to identify components and their relevance to an avalanche problem, and apply those observations to field decisions
- How to submit observations to the local avalanche center
- Effective trip planning and risk management
- How to be more efficient, more proficient backcountry travelers.
- A solid understanding of mountain snowpack variations and layering, avalanche formation and release
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- 4 night hut stay & 5 field days with professional AIARE Instructors & Course Leaders
- ~8 hours of online learning
- AIARE Field Book
- Group Snow Study Kit
- 6:1 max student:guide ratio
- 2 excellent meals prepared daily (please bring your own lunches & snacks)
- Portering of equipment to the hut
- Shuttle halfway to camp (4-miles)
- Evening sauna sessions
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- Winter touring equipment (skis, splitboard, telemark + skins)
- Transportation to/from the trailhead
- Lunches & snacks
- Personal layers & sauna-wear
- Personal sleep kits
- Beverages (besides water)
- Personal avalanche safety gear: beacon, probe, and shovel
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You will need to provide one of the following snow travel tools:
- Skis, boots, and bindings (Metal edge skis, plastic boots, and Randonee/alpine touring/downhill Telemark bindings). Please note: Cross-country skis will not work for backcountry tours.
- Splitboard with adjustable bindings that move into “tour” mode efficiently (Soft boots are okay, and hard boots are preferred)
Additional equipment needed:
- Personal avalanche safety gear: beacon, probe, and shovel.
- Personal layers
- Sleep setup for in the hut
- Evening hut shoes/sauna-wear
- Extra duffel to carry camp items to hut
- Skis, boots, and bindings (Metal edge skis, plastic boots, and Randonee/alpine touring/downhill Telemark bindings). Please note: Cross-country skis will not work for backcountry tours.
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Transportation and times will be coordinated by email when the pre-trip announcement is sent to all registrants.
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Consider joining a Skiing/Splitboarding: Intermediate course to spend more time with a professional instructor in the field.
