Hut trips are the quintessential Colorado experience for mountain adventurers of all skill levels. It is possible that you and your family can enjoy a weekend of guided skiing, snowshoeing, or riding, and then relax in the evenings with no tech. Many huts sit near avalanche terrain, but if your touring crew is ready to get serious about avalanche safety, you can organize a private AIARE course and learn inside and outside the hut, while riding some fresh powder, too. Colorado’s backcountry huts allow all this and more, but they can be really hard for private individuals to book. Here are the activities we recommend for each hut or cabin we operate in.

2. Snowshoe into High Lonesome Hut

Location: Meadow Creek, Grand County

Difficulty: easier

Capacity: 12

Description/Activities: Travel through pine forests and pass creeks using skis, your Nordic gear, or our snowshoes. Great for Introduction to Hut Trips! AIARE Rescue courses, too. This hut boasts a wood stove, firewood, indoor flush toilet, a shower, hot and cold running water, full kitchen, & solar electricity.

Click here for details and availability.

4. Go bold! Try ski or Splitboard mountaineering near Raven’s Nest Hut

Location: Steven’s Gulch, Clear Creek County

Difficulty: Harder

Capacity: 6

Description/Activities: Other options include AIARE Rescue, Intro to huts or backcountry courses, guided touring. Late season AIARE 1&2. Lots of availability. Updated, rustic decor, no electricity, running water or WiFi – a true respite. Meltwater, wood stove heat, kitchen.

Learn about options here.

6. Become a hut tripping pro at the Duck Lake Cabins

Location: Guanella Pass

Difficulty: Moderate

Capacity: 6-16 in one or two cabins

Description/Activities:

The original lodge and cabins, known as “Alpendorf on the Lake,” were once the Coors family getaway and a small ski resort. Indoor flush toilet & shower, electricity.

Guided tours and courses possible include Intro to Huts or Backcountry Ski/Splitboarding, late season AIARE courses.

Learn more here.

8. Become a Snow Safety Expert! Do AIARE 2 at Broome Hut

Location: Berthoud Pass.

Difficulty: Easier

Capacity: 12

Description/Activities:

A newer hut, with a pellet stove for heat and indoor composting toilet, this hut is easy to operate, with clear instructions posted. A day use area is nearby. Any AIARE or Intro course, winter mountaineering, or ski/split touring are all possible here!

Learn about the hut at the top of the divide.

AIARE Course Effectiveness Case Study

The American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education, AIARE, the leading provider of recreational avalanche education in the United States, conducted a first-of-its-kind study with Eastern Oregon University indicating that students who participate in AIARE courses increase their frequency of practicing safe backcountry behaviors after their courses.

Let Us Lead the Way

Colorado boasts some of the most intricate snow layers worldwide, attracting researchers globally. Navigating the backcountry, regardless of transportation means, necessitates a comprehensive grasp of avalanche dangers, along with the acumen to reduce such threats via suitable terrain evaluation and decision-making. If this sounds daunting, you may want to think about advancing through our Backcountry Mentorship Program. This tiered program is a fantastic opportunity whether you’re just beginning or planning to broaden your horizons. It’s an excellent way to experience the backcountry this winter and for many years into the future. Learn why Colorado Adventure Guides prefers the AIARE curriculum to teach avalanche safety education.

AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Safety Course

AIARE 1 is a 3-day course that introduces the AIARE Framework which helps participants work with a team to make better decisions in the backcountry and to manage avalanche risk. Get ready for some work: all of our Level 1 courses will include 24 hours of coursework at a minimum (e-learning and a live or virtual classroom day,) and two days on snow. We want to ensure that you get the education that you need, and we don’t cut corners in delivering the best safety course for your investment of time and energy! You’ll learn how to use an avalanche beacon, shovel and probe; what gear to bring with you; how to read an avalanche forecast; how to understand the formation of a snowpack and characteristics of avalanches; how to select a safer route; how to rescue a comrade, and more. Hut-based courses make the learning experience even more fun, and you get additional time to pick your instructors’ brains.

AIARE Level 2 – What is the Difference Between AIARE Level 1 and Level 2?

The 3-day AIARE Level 2 course builds on the introductory avalanche hazard management model introduced in the AIARE 1, and adds the evaluation of critical hazard assessment factors, group leadership, and decision-making skills. All students must have taken an AIARE Level 1, AIARE Avalanche Rescue, and have at least one season of practical experience after taking the AIARE 1 course. Our AIARE 2 courses are unique because we often run them in a hut or snow camping format. This is an amazing way to immerse yourself in the environment while also learning how to execute a winter overnight in the backcountry. Students will describe and discuss weather, snowpack, and avalanche processes; and identify how these relate to observations and travel within avalanche terrain in more complex situations on unfamiliar terrain. Participants on an AIARE Level 2 will receive direct coaching and mentoring from an Instructor.

Did you know that “AIARE” is not synonymous with all avalanche education programs? AIARE is the American Institute of Avalanche Research and Education, but the governing body of avalanche education in the U.S is the American Avalanche Association, aka A3. A3 has approved the AIARE curriculum for avalanche safety education.

AIARE is an educator, but they focus on educating and creating certified and qualified instructors, and course curriculum and materials for companies like Colorado Adventure Guides which in turn deliver AIARE Level 1 and other avalanche education in Colorado. We teach and supplement AIARE-based avalanche safety courses because we believe that it is the best, most versatile, and most useful system available in the US.

2: Time on Snow

Strange as it sounds, some curriculums don’t require you to learn about snow while on snow. At Colorado Adventure Guides, we strongly believe that the field component is essential to learning about Colorado’s snowpack. Also, the on-snow practice with new friends is the best way to practice new decision-making skills in a real-world setting. We begin our three day courses with a classroom or virtual classroom day, but days 2 and 3 are conducted in the field with your cohorts.

4: The AIARE curriculum allows Colorado Adventure Guides the flexibility to offer fun and unusual course options.

Consider gathering your backcountry crew and heading off with your AIARE-certified instructor to learn about avalanche safety at a backcountry hut! You can take AIARE Level 2 while camping out. These settings allow you the most time to pick your instructors’ brains about everything snow-related. 

6: AIARE’s curriculum is continually updated and evolving

As researchers and industry experts learn more about snow science, the human brain, and educational best practices the AIARE guidelines continue to evolve.

The growth of backcountry skiing and riding in recent years has been incredible. With the fantastic images that we see in ski movies and a backlash against the lines and crowds of resorts, more people than ever are starting to explore beyond the ski area. With that growth comes the risks that pertains to backcountry travel, and the need for quality education from local guides who live and work in the backcountry every day, and a highly reputable company with vast experience in the area.

With priority access in the Summit County area, and a wide span of teaching areas from Vail Pass to Loveland Pass and beyond, Colorado Adventure Guides builds its courses based around the best conditions over a wide variety of terrain. This in return helps to provide more comprehensive education for our students. There are numerous reasons to take an AIARE Avalanche Course with Colorado Adventure Guides, and here are the reasons that set us apart from the pack and make CAG a top leader within Colorado’s backcountry education scene.

Having courses that are close to home and in a variety of timeframes is important, and we are varying our course schedules to make way for more weekday, weekend, hybrid courses, and more locations across the State. For the 2022/2023 season we are offering our in-person classrooms as well as virtual classrooms (the field days remain outside). The virtual classroom allows students to take Day 1 from the comfort of their own home and takes a potential day of lodging out of the mix.

We also run hut-based courses out of 4 different huts and the price includes the hut and some of the food. We are also partnering with Winter Park Resort, for a lift-assisted AIARE Level 1 that’s closer to the Front Range. We’re building a course schedule that’s more friendly and accommodating to different schedules and locations.