The CalTopo mapping website and app provides SO much information it can be overwhelming, but it can also be an amazingly useful tool for backcountry travel. CalTopo maps can show you a wide variety of information including terrain shape and steepness, zone avalanche forecasts, which way the sun will be shining on certain slopes at particular hours of the day, details of weather at certain spots, where is treeline, what areas might make for a great day of backcountry skiing, and more! You can easily see zones where there would be potential avalanche safety concerns, plan a safer route in advance, and share it with your companions by QR, URL, or printed map. Pay for the feature and even see 3D plotting of your route.
Our Operations Manager and long time avalanche educator and lead guide, Justin Ibarra, filmed a CalTopo demo that will:
-Walk you through signing up (Find the app and desktop version here.)
-Examine some of the most useful layers and explain how to use and read them
-Show you how to mark up the map in useful ways when planning a backcountry tour
-Explain how to save and share the map with your touring companions.
Let us know what you think, and if you have any more great suggestions for how to use this amazing tool!
Inside the AIARE Rescue Course: Skills and Training Breakdown
Key Skills Taught in the AIARE Rescue Course
When venturing into the backcountry, safety is paramount. The American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education (AIARE) Rescue Course is designed to equip participants with essential skills for managing avalanche scenarios. Whether you’re a skier, snowboarder, or snowmobiler, this course provides invaluable training that could one day save lives. Let’s dive into the curriculum and activities involved, while also highlighting the importance of realistic practice and AIARE’s integrated approach to avalanche risk management.
What Is the AIARE Rescue Course?
The AIARE Rescue Course is a one-day program focused on teaching participants how to respond effectively in an avalanche rescue situation. It’s an essential follow-up to the AIARE 1 course and is open to all, regardless of previous avalanche education. The course is beneficial for both beginners looking to build foundational skills and experienced backcountry travelers wanting to refresh or refine their rescue techniques.
AIARE Rescue Course Curriculum
The AIARE Rescue Course blends some e-learning components with practical in-field exercises. Here’s what the curriculum typically covers including in-depth overviews and hands-on instruction:
Avalanche Risk Overview: Participants review basic avalanche safety concepts, such as understanding risk factors, and familiarizing themselves with the rescue process.
Avalanche Rescue Equipment: A top to bottom overview and use of avalanche transceivers, avalanche shovels, avalanche probes, airbag and snowsport-specific backpacks.
Avalanche Transceivers “beacons”: What are they, how they function, and proper use including how to locate a buried victim efficiently and learning its advanced features.
Probes: In-depth overview and important considerations of the avalanche probe and how to utilize proper techniques for pinpointing a victim’s exact location.
Shovels: In-depth overview and important considerations of avalanche shovels. Best practices for strategic and efficient digging.
Companion Rescue Protocol: Participants learn the step-by-step process of rescuing a partner buried in an avalanche whether solo or in a rescue team, from conducting a quick transceiver search, utilizing proper probing techniques, and efficient shoveling techniques.
Multiple Burial Scenarios: Strategies for managing multiple burials are a key focus, addressing the complexities of prioritizing and locating victims, and utilizing advanced avalanche transceiver features.
Self-Rescue Skills: Insight is provided into what to do if participants find themselves caught in an avalanche.
Team Dynamics and Leadership: Communication, group roles, and effective decision-making are emphasized to ensure rescues are efficient and organized.
Key Activities and Training Exercises
The heart of the AIARE Rescue Course lies in its practical field exercises. Participants can expect:
Transceiver Drills: These drills focus on mastering transceiver use to locate buried beacons efficiently, practicing both single-burial and multi-burial scenarios both in a team as well as a single rescuer.
Realistic Rescue Simulations: Participants are placed in realistic avalanche scenarios, where managing stress and following processes are critical to refining rescue skills under pressure.
Probing and Shoveling Techniques: Proper probing and shoveling techniques, both a solo rescuer or as part of a team are practiced to optimize energy use and reduce rescue time, which is often underestimated as a critical skill.
Realistic and Repeated Practice: AIARE stresses the importance of regular practice throughout the season. The course is designed to be retaken periodically, allowing participants to work with different teams and instructors, further building confidence and adaptability in unpredictable conditions, and to be apprised of the most recent techniques.
Advanced Problem Solving: For experienced participants, instructors may incorporate curveballs like deep burials or challenging terrain to simulate high-stress situations and enhance decision-making skills. Some courses also emphasize knowing what to do after you have located and freed a victim, including emergency sled construction, and first-aid and CPR training.
Why Take the AIARE Rescue Course?
Beyond the technical skills, the AIARE Rescue Course builds confidence and reinforces the importance of staying calm and organized during emergencies. By aligning with AIARE’s broader risk management framework, participants also learn to integrate these rescue techniques with pre-trip planning and group coordination. This holistic approach ensures safety extends beyond the moment of an avalanche incident to encompass all aspects of backcountry travel.
Tips for Success
Prepare Your Gear: Make sure your transceiver, probe, and shovel are in working order before attending the course. Dial in the organization of your pack and make sure you are carrying all the appropriate gear you need on a backcountry tour, including mode of travel, first aid kit, and a repair kit. View our recommended Backcountry Packing List.
Dress for the Conditions: Expect to spend hours in the snow including energy being expended while practicing and also time with less movement during presentations and discussions. Wear warm, waterproof layers. Have plenty of snacks & water, and we always recommend a thermos with a hot beverage.
Practice, Practice, Practice: Rescue skills require repetition to become second nature. AIARE encourages seasonal practice to stay sharp and maintain confidence.
Help Build a Safer Backcountry Community
The AIARE Rescue Course is a crucial step in becoming a responsible and prepared backcountry traveler. By blending e-learning and field time with hands-on practice and integrating it into AIARE’s overall risk management framework, the course equips participants with the knowledge and skills to respond effectively in an avalanche emergency.
Investing in this course isn’t just about your safety—it’s about fostering a safer backcountry community. Retaking the course regularly helps build confidence, reduces panic, and adds adaptability, ensuring you’re ready for the unexpected.
Ready to level up your avalanche safety skills? Sign up for an AIARE Rescue Course and gain the confidence to tackle the backcountry with greater preparedness and confidence.
Early Season Snowfall: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
Early season snowfall in the West brings both excitement for winter sports enthusiasts and warnings of potential hazards, as recent avalanche activity underscores the unpredictable nature of these early snow conditions.
As we welcome the first snowfall in the high country, some areas across the West are already reporting several inches—or even feet—of snow. While many of us are eager to hit the slopes, it’s crucial to remember that early season snow can pose significant dangers in the backcountry, some of which may set us up for instabilities throughout the winter to come.
Recent Avalanche Activity
This October has already seen avalanche activity in Colorado, highlighting the dangers of early season conditions. Our first avalanche was reported in the San Juan Mountains, prompting local officials to issue warnings about unstable conditions and early season snowfall. These incidents serve as a stark reminder of how quickly early season snow can become a hazard.
Photo courtesy of CAIC. Silverton area on Oct 20th, 2024. Near treeline on West facing aspect
People Come from Around the World to Study Colorado’s Continental Snowpack
Colorado’s snowpack is infamous for its cold, dry, and shallow conditions. Early season snow storms may bring a brief flurry of activity, but they’re frequently followed by long stretches of cold, dry weather before the next storm cycle arrives. If this early snow doesn’t melt away, the snow grains can break down into what we refer to as facets, or “sugar snow.” These unbonded, sugary crystals can then create weak layers in our snowpack that persist, meaning, they can stick with us for the duration of our winter season and plague us with instabilities – the root cause of many avalanches.
Photo:Digging into the snow can help us gain valuable information across space and time. Justin Ibarra – Copyright 2023
Depth hoar and faceting
When snow begins to fall in earnest, new layers of snow accumulate on top of these weak, sugary facets which leads to a fragile base layer in the snowpack. This unstable layer can trigger avalanches, potentially impacting the entire snowpack. One key factor to the formation of facets is the large temperature gradient, that is, significant temperature fluctuations within the snowpack. In Colorado, colder fall air combined with warmer ground can create a steep temperature gradient in a shallow snowpack. Mother nature does not like drastic change, and these snow grains will then change shape into angular facets that don’t bond and thus create weak snow. Ideally, we want consistent snowfall early in the season, allowing for a deeper snowpack and a more gradual temperature change which helps prevent the formation of these weak layers near the ground.\
Photo: Justin Ibarra – Copyright 2023
The Role of Sun Exposure
Another important aspect to consider with early season storms is how varying sun exposure affects snow retention. As the fall equinox passes, the sun moves lower in the sky, leading to increased melting on southerly aspects. Extended periods without snow can cause southerly slopes to become nearly bare. In contrast, northerly and shaded slopes tend to remain colder and retain snow, increasing the danger. This is key in understanding the importance of tracking conditions throughout the season, and it starts with these early season snowfall events. Try to record where has the snow melted, and where has the snow persisted. This provides us clues which terrain might hold a more unstable and problematic snowpack.
Photo:Here is a great example of southerly aspects melting out, and northerly and shaded terrain harboring early season snowfall. Justin Ibarra – Copyright 2023
Warning Signs of Early Season Avalanche Danger in Colorado:
Recent snowfall: Large and rapid accumulations may overwhelm weak layers or create instability within the new storm snow.
Wind loading: Wind can transport snow and create new slabs on leeward slopes. Wind, the architect of our snowpack, can move and accumulate snow 3-5x faster than it falls out of the sky. This means with ideal wind speeds, a 6-inch storm can drift over 2 feet in certain areas.
Interface: What is the snow falling on? Again, to assess this factor, it is so important to have an understanding of what the conditions are on any given piece of terrain before each snowfall. In early season we clue into what terrain (aspects, elevations) the snow has melted on, and where in the terrain the early snow has remained. New snow falling on bare ground can provide less of a chance for snowpack instability but an increased chance of trauma of rocks, trees, etc. along with broken gear and core shots. New snow falling onto early season snow and weak layers will increase the danger of avalanches.
Here is an example of how to track conditions throughout the season using a spreadsheet. Justin Ibarra – Copyright 2023
Conditions that Mitigate Against Early Avalanches
1. No significant early season snow until November, followed by major snow events, with little wind.
2. Early season snow that melts away completely before significant snowfall accumulates.
Mitigation Strategies
To mitigate the risks associated with early season snow and avalanche conditions, consider the following strategies:
1. Get Education and Training: Attend clinics, read books, and take an avalanche safety course to better understand snowpack dynamics and to recognize hazards.
2. Gear Up: Always carry essential avalanche safety gear, including a beacon, shovel, and probe, even when it seems too early to be needed. Ensure your gear is in good condition.
4. Choose your partners wisely: Travel with others and maintain open communication. It is crucial that every member of your group is a contributing member and speaks up with what they see, feel, and hear.
5. Choose Your Terrain Wisely: Stick to low-angle slopes in unstable conditions. Avoid terrain traps, such as gullies, trees, and cliffs that can amplify the effects of an avalanche. Terrain is the main tool we use to manage risk when dealing with an unstable snowpack.
6. Practice with your safety gear and your backcountry companions. This is a great time of year to practice rescue scenarios!
7. Tune up and repair your ski or splitboard bindings, edges, boots, and skins. Go through and replenish your first aid and repair kits.
Set Yourself Up For A Successful Backcountry Skiing Season in Colorado
Prepare for an unforgettable backcountry skiing season in Colorado with our comprehensive guide. From checking your gear—ensuring your avalanche safety equipment, skis, and outerwear are in top shape—to physical training tips and avalanche education insights, get ready to conquer Colorado’s challenging terrain safely and confidently. Engage with the vibrant backcountry skiing community across the Front Range to enhance your skills, meet like-minded adventurers, and embark on memorable mountain expeditions together.
1: Check Your Gear
Preparing for a backcountry skiing season in Colorado begins with meticulous gear inspection to ensure safety and optimal performance. Start by examining your avalanche safety equipment, including beacon, probe, and shovel, to confirm they are functional and properly calibrated. Inspect your skis or splitboard for any signs of wear, checking bindings for tightness and function. Verify the condition of your outerwear, ensuring it provides adequate warmth and waterproofing for Colorado’s variable mountain weather. Finally, review your navigation tools, such as maps and GPS devices, and ensure you have a comprehensive emergency kit stocked with essentials like first aid supplies, extra food, and communication devices. This thorough check ensures readiness to navigate Colorado’s challenging backcountry terrain safely and confidently throughout the skiing season.
2: Cross Training
Properly training physically for backcountry skiing in Colorado involves a multifaceted training regimen tailored to the demands of mountainous terrain. Incorporate cardio exercises like running, cycling, or uphill hiking to build endurance crucial for long ascents and descents. Engage in mountain ascents to simulate the challenges of uphill skiing, gradually increasing elevation gain to improve stamina and acclimatization. Incorporate stretching routines to maintain flexibility, enhancing agility and reducing the risk of injuries during dynamic movements. Focus on lower body workouts such as squats, lunges, and leg presses to strengthen muscles essential for skiing and improve overall stability on varied snow conditions. This holistic approach ensures that you’re physically prepared to tackle the rigorous demands of backcountry skiing in Colorado, maximizing enjoyment and safety throughout the season.
3: Avalanche Education and Continuing Education
Preparing for a successful backcountry skiing season in Colorado involves essential educational and preparatory steps. Enrolling in courses such as AIARE 1, AIARE 2, AIARE Rescue, or attending an AIARE Refresher course equips you with critical avalanche safety skills, including terrain assessment, route planning, and rescue techniques, crucial for navigating Colorado’s unpredictable snowpack. Additionally, reading or revisiting the book “Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain” by Bruce Tremper provides invaluable insights into avalanche science and decision-making processes, enhancing your understanding of snow stability and risk management. Combining practical training with theoretical knowledge ensures you approach the backcountry with confidence and preparedness, prioritizing safety and enjoyment throughout the skiing season
4: Get Involved In The Backcountry Community
Getting ready for backcountry season in Colorado involves immersing yourself in the vibrant community through attending backcountry events across the Front Range. These gatherings not only offer opportunities to learn from seasoned skiers and professionals but also provide a chance to network and forge connections with like-minded individuals passionate about backcountry exploration. Engaging in events such as workshops, gear swaps, and social gatherings allows you to exchange insights, discover new routes, and join group excursions, fostering camaraderie and expanding your knowledge base. Additionally, you can find more friends who share your enthusiasm for backcountry skiing, creating opportunities for memorable adventures together in Colorado’s stunning wilderness.
In conclusion, thorough preparation is key to enjoying a safe and successful backcountry skiing season in Colorado. By meticulously checking your gear, engaging in cross-training for physical readiness, pursuing avalanche education, and connecting with the local backcountry community, you’ll enhance your skills, build confidence, and forge lasting connections in this exhilarating outdoor pursuit. Get ready to embrace the challenges and rewards of backcountry skiing in Colorado’s stunning wilderness!
Interested in signing up for a AIARE course in Colorado? Colorado Adventure Guides has a variety of avalanche safety courses throughout the season based in Summit County. Contact a knowledgeable member of our reservation team to learn more about our courses and book your spot!
Backcountry Hut Activities, Courses, & Guided Trips
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.
1. Ice Climb and Backcountry Ski at Carner’s Cabin
Location: Fremont Pass
Difficulty: moderate.
Capacity: 8
Description/Activities: Surrounded by the San Isabel National Forest, hut guests can access incredible backcountry skiing and ice climbing from this hut! We provide climbing gear. Also possible, AIARE avalanche ed courses, or an Intro to Backcountry Ski/Split course. Snowmelt water, compostable indoor toilet.
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.
3. Learn about backcountry skiing or splitboarding near the North London Mill
Location: Mosquito Pass, near Alma
Difficulty: Easier
Capacity: 6
Description/Activities:Unique historical mine preservation project with recreational and educational uses. Renovated in 2023, the old mill office became NOLO’s first backcountry hut and education venue. It features hot-and-cold running water, shower, flush toilet, and WiFi.
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.
5. Ski or ride the backcountry then sauna at Janet’s Cabin
Location: Outside of Copper Mtn.
Access Difficulty: Harder
Capacity: 18
Description/Activities: Built in 1990 by Summit Huts, Janet’s attracts novice and expert skiers for nearby touring. Amenities include an amazing wood-fired sauna year-round, indoor composting toilet, snowmelt water, & solar lights. Guided tours and courses possible include Intro to Huts or Backcountry Ski/Splitboarding, AIARE courses.
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.
7. Practice avalanche rescues with your backcountry crew at The Sisters Cabin
Location: Webster Gulch, Summit County
Access Difficulty: Harder
Capacity: 12
Description/Activities: Sisters Cabin is winter-only & the newest Summit Huts Division hut. Uses state-of-the-art design and green-building techniques to offer high amenities with low environmental impact. Other adventures: guided skiing and riding, AIARE 1, Intro to Backcountry or Hut Tripping.
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!
9. Book your whole backcountry crew for a private AIARE 1 at Francie’s Cabin
Location: South of Breckenridge, Summit County
Access Difficulty: Moderate
Capacity: 18
Description/Activities: One of the most popular huts in Colorado, Francie’s is equipped with firewood, propane cooktops, and snowmelt for water. Also possible here: Intro to Backcountry and/or Huts, & AIARE Rescue, touring.
AIARE Courses Proven Effective at Increasing Avalanche Preparedness Practices
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.
Colorado Adventure Guides is passionate about teaching avalanche safety, and to reach more backcountry travelers, we’re increasing our classes this year. To teach snow safety, we use the AIARE curriculum for many reasons, including that it provides a framework for a repeatable process that backcountry touring partners can use to assess adverse conditions and terrain.
But now we have another reason to choose AIARE-based courses: it’s been proven effective. AIARE hired the University to reach out to 1,700 students who’d take a course within the last 3 years to ask them if what they’d learned had made a difference in their backcountry practices. It had:
– 61% reported that they’d practiced rescue skills once or twice in the season after the class.
– They more often check if they have appropriate rescue gear including communication devices.
– They were more likely to review emergency plans with their comrades.
– They more often told people where they were going in case they did not return on time.
– They were more likely to practice safety protocols like choosing travel techniques to reduce avalanche exposure, noticing signs of unstable conditions, and were more likely to review with partners the day’s decisions after the outing.
These habits make it less likely that an individual and group will encounter avalanche conditions unexpectedly. Repetition, especially of rescue skills, makes it more likely that students will perform the necessary tasks faster in a critical situation. AIARE curriculum teaches how groups should handle human dynamics, as well. Good decisions are not just based on snow science! AIARE reports that this is the first study of its kind! Powder Magazine published a summary of the study, and you can read more about it here at AIARE’s site. Go here to learn more about our winter education program.
Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our friendly booking team, who are ready to assist you with any inquiries and guarantee your spot in an AIARE course at Colorado Adventure Guides. You can choose to reserve your spot online or give us a call to confirm your booking.
CAG’s Backcountry Avalanche Safety Mentorship Program
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.
What is Backcountry Skiing or Backcountry Snowboarding in Avalanche Terrain?
Test your interest in traveling the backcountry in winter by attending one of our free Avy Savvy clinics. These are held at partner locations throughout the fall and early winter, and topics include Ski/Split 101 (an introduction to the gear and prep work needed,) Hut Trip 101 (how to use Colorado’s backcountry hut system correctly,) Avalanche 101 (an introduction to the basics,) Trip Planning 101 (how to choose a safer route,) State of the Snowpack (examines the area’s snowpack conditions and how they got that way,) and more each year.
What Will I Learn in CAG’s Various Avalanche Safety Classes?
Introduction to Backcountry Skiing or Splitboarding
This class is a perfect introduction to the skills and gear necessary to venture into the pristine Colorado backcountry confidently and explore. A stepping stone to help get you off the ski resort and away from the crowds. An excellent full-day adventure for those new to backcountry skiing or riding, it’s also a great way to gain experience prior to taking an AIARE Level 1 Avalanche course. This class also touches on basics of trip planning and hazard management in avalanche terrain. If you don’t already have the gear then check out our backcountry demo center with discounted ski and splitboards along with avalanche safety equipment rentals, and our guides will give you tips on how to use it all.
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 Companion Avalanche Rescue Course
The one-day, on-snow Rescue course gives participants the tools to execute a fast and effective avalanche rescue, and teaches you how to practice those rescue skills between trips, season after season. This course is intended to be retaken on a regular basis to update best practices in rescue techniques and gear, and to reinforce correct habits. New participants will learn companion rescue, and returning students will expand their skills and knowledge with advanced topics and realistic scenario practice. Advanced topics include multiple burials, advanced beacon functions, and evacuation considerations.
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.
How Do You Refresh Your Avalanche Safety Skills? – Take CAG’s Avalanche Refresher Course
If your AIARE Level 1 was taken years ago, you might want to refresh your skills. Or, if AIARE 1 seemed overwhelming and you need more practice of those skills, get out and make some turns in a Refresher course. Grab a few of your regular backcountry buddies and book a day with a guide/instructor for private learning and touring. The day can be tailored to the skills you want to spend the most time on, from trip planning to route selection, field observations to snowpack analysis, or simply just learning how to execute a backcountry ski tour from beginning to end while finding the best conditions.
Feel free to contact our accommodating booking staff who are on standby to help you with any questions and ensure your place in an AIARE course at Colorado Adventure Guides. You have the option of either securing your slot online or phoning us now to confirm your reservation.
Industry Standard AIARE Avalanche Education Courses in Colorado
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.
What Makes the AIARE Curriculum More Useful?
All avalanche courses teach snow science, but Colorado Adventure Guides’ and AIARE’s course and certification system goes beyond weather and physics to give students a Framework they can use with backcountry teammates to make good decisions on snow while subject to group dynamics when the stakes are high. As the AIARE manual says, “Almost every avalanche accident involves a poor decision made by a human. Pre-conditioned biases, an individual’s tendencies, habits, and behavior patterns are described as human factors, or heuristics.”
CAG’s AIARE coursework will give you a framework and tools that can help you control for heuristic risk factors, too. Further, CAG’s instructors know that avalanche education evolves and keeping backcountry skills sharp is a lifelong journey.
Why Does CAG Think the AIARE Avalanche Safety Program is the Outstanding Choice?
1: The AIARE curriculum gives us the flexibility to give our students the benefit of the most hours of education off and on snow
At Colorado Adventure Guides, we believe that the amount of time our students spend honing their skills and knowledge directly affects their learning and safety. Our team is a huge proponent of maximizing the learning experience for our students, and we go well above and beyond the standard 24-hour curriculum.
All of our courses start with an e-learning component which takes students anywhere from 3-6 hours to complete. The flexible AIARE curriculum allows us to deliver to our students this hugely beneficial, self-paced, e-learning environment, and also the essential, face-to-face, full-day classroom component with our certified, knowledgeable, and passionate instructors. Thus, in all of our AIARE Level 1 and AIARE Level 2 courses students engage, soak in knowledge from our instructors, and get hands-on experience with their classmates in rounding out the lessons introduced by e-learning.
Colorado Adventure Guides really cares about our students’ safety, and we understand that people have different learning styles. We believe that the combination of the AIARE curriculum delivered with an advance e-learning opportunity, face-to-face classroom time, and two solid days on snow, provides the best learning outcomes for everybody who takes a class with 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.
3: CAG’s instructors and course leaders are certified by AIARE
AIARE guide certification ensures they are committed and experienced avalanche professionals. After completing various courses and time in the field, they then attend the Instructor Training Course or the Course Leader Course to hone their skills as educators.
After this rigorous preparation then they must apply to be recognized by AIARE. CAG is honored to have some of Colorado’s most-experienced, certified men and women leaders teaching our courses.
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.
5: The AIARE framework is a repeatable process
CAG instructors believe AIARE’s repeatable curriculum best organizes information and allows backcountry travelers to make informed decisions. Our courses will increase your confidence in your skills by providing tools you can use over and over, rather than just facts about snow and avalanches.
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.
7: Colorado Adventure Guides’ courses grow with you.
Colorado Adventure Guides teaches a broad range of avalanche courses from our own free clinics, Introduction to Backcountry Ski or Splitboard classes, and Avalanche Refresher courses to AIARE-certified Level 1, Rescue, and AIARE Level 2 courses. ‘
While we’ve blogged before about why you would want to take an avalanche course at all, you may not be sure what winter backcountry travel entails, or how to use the specialized equipment. Before you buy equipment or invest in a 3-day AIARE Level 1 class, we recommend that you make sure you like the challenges of backcountry winter travel. Take a couple of our free, hour-and-a-half clinics held around the Front Range and mountain counties. Then, get discounted rentals of top-of-the-line backcountry gear from our Backcountry Demo Center, and take CAG’s one-day Introduction to Backcountry Skiing and Splitboarding course first to make sure you will enjoy your backcountry experience. ‘
Because avalanche education skills are perishable, AIARE recommends taking the AIARE Avalanche Rescue course about every other year with your backcountry touring partners. Quick rescues happen only if you and your companions practice various scenarios often. We hope you never need to rescue anyone buried, but if you do, you and your friends will have learned and practiced using the AIARE framework with your companions and Colorado Adventure Guide instructors to speed the response. Another option for graduates of earlier AIARE courses is to take CAG’s Avalanche Refresher Course which we designed to refresh topics covered in an AIARE Level 1, AIARE Level 2, or AIARE Avalanche Rescue course.
Book an AIARE course with Colorado Adventure Guides today!
You can reach out to our helpful reservation team who are ready and waiting to assist you with any inquiries and secure your spot for an AIARE course at Colorado Adventure Guides. Choose between booking online or giving us a call today to guarantee your reservation.
Why Should I Take an AIARE Course with Colorado Adventure Guides?
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.
Trusted AIARE Avalanche Instructors in Colorado
We are about education not cost
Backcountry and Avalanche Education is an investment into a lifetime of new adventures and possibilities, and we recognize that there is a cost-factor involved, which is why we have a series of discounts for you to take advantage of. The value you are getting out of the course is instruction from highly passionate, experienced, and qualified instructors, sharing combined decades of backcountry experience and helping to gain the knowledge and confidence to take on your own backcountry adventures. In calculating a price that is fair to our students, we also offer several perks and discounts for our students to take advantage of. Groups, returning clients, locals of Summit, Eagle, and Park Counties, students who sign up for more than one course, and students who are continuing their education post Avalanche Level 1, all receive generous increasing discounts and perks for going through Colorado Adventure Guides.
We can provide gear rentals from top brands for use during the courses from our in house Backcountry Demo Center. When taking an avalanche course, many are not ready to make the investment into backcountry equipment or are not sure which equipment they should get. Colorado Adventure Guides is a proud partner of Ortovox Avalanche Equipment, DPS Skis, and Weston Splitboards, where we have a full demo center with this top of the line gear available during your course. So at the start of your backcountry life, you are supported with some of the best brand names in the industry. All students who take our Level 1, Avalanche Rescue, or Level 2 Courses are eligible for a FREE rental of an Ortovox avalanche safety package (Beacon, Shovel, and Probe) at no additional cost. Students also have discounted access to our demo center with DPS Skis and splitboards from Weston Backcountry, giving them access to the latest backcountry models. At the end of the course, students also are eligible for exclusive discounts on gear through our partners.
AIARE 2 Avalanche Education
An inviting and diverse classroom
The backcountry community has an image problem that makes it look predominantly white and male and in recognizing this fact, we aim to create an environment that is diverse and welcoming to all genders and ethnicities. Our courses are led through a diverse range of instructors, including many women and people of color, and we aim to be what we want to see in our industry. Our goal is to open the backcountry to anybody and make it inclusive and welcoming in order to buck the image and trend that we are currently seeing.
Weekend and Weekday Courses Available
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.
We have the longevity and experience to give you a comprehensive experience
Colorado Adventure Guides has been operating in the Summit County Area since 1996 and has intimate knowledge of our snowpack, and terrain giving you firsthand beta on some of the most beloved mountains in Colorado. We’ll learn about our unique geography and climate, helping you not only understand our local snowpack but also some of our favorite secret spots.
When you take a course with Colorado Adventure Guides, you’re investing in a lifetime of adventure. While there are many AIARE Course Providers out there, we are the experts with the Summit County knowledge, and we strive on building a course and classroom that is accommodating for every person and schedule. We would love to have you in our courses this year.
Book an AIARE course with Colorado Adventure Guides today!
Our friendly reservation team is standing by to answer any questions and book your AIARE course with Colorado Adventure Guides. Book directly online or call today to reserve your spot.
