Mistresses of the high backcountry
Women learn how to enjoy the wilderness
By Kari J. Bodnarchuk, Globe Correspondent
| November 20, 2005
BRECKENRIDGE, Colo. -- On the backside of Peak 10, just beyond the lifts and groomed trails of Colorado's Breckenridge Ski Resort, a group of telemark skiers made their way up toward Crystal Lakes Basin, cutting through stands of spruce and across open fields of fresh powder, with views of snow-capped Mount Helen in the distance.
We ranged in ability from novice to expert, but one thing we had in common was a desire to experience the wilderness under the watchful eye of instructors who would guide us safely and teach us useful backcountry skills.
Leslie Ross, a graduate of the University of Vermont and a former ski instructor at Mount Snow in West Dover, Vt., runs this backcountry travel program. She has earned top places in telemark and extreme skiing competitions around the world, and is also a three-time national telemark free skiing champion.
Ross moved to Breckenridge in 1991. Five years later, she founded Babes in the Backcountry and now runs women's outdoor education programs to teach the skills and techniques needed to travel safely in the wilderness. As many as 500 women attend her clinics, workshops, and adventure trips around the world each year, and Ross hopes to begin similar programs in New England in the coming years.
Some of the programs focus more on the nuts and bolts of backcountry travel, like learning how to read the weather and terrain, and how to use an avalanche beacon, which is a transmitter that helps rescuers locate a buried skier. Other programs focus on rejuvenation of mind, body, and spirit through time spent in the wilderness.
''If you're not centered and balanced within yourself, you won't be as tuned in to the environment and conditions," said Ross.
The Breckenridge program had three components: a one-day telemark clinic where we learned the basics of ''free-heel" skiing, a one-day backcountry skills clinic in which we learned how to safely plan a trip through the wilderness, and a two-day hut trip to Francie's Cabin on which we put our new skills to the test.
My instructor for the telemark clinic was Karen Lapides, who had worked for 13 years for the National Outdoor Leadership School and 10 years with Outward Bound, specializing in mountaineering and staff training courses. That explained her wonderful skill and patience as an instructor. Lapides taught us the proper ''tele" stance, then made us leave our poles behind, like kids in a beginner lesson, as we practiced wide, easy turns down a gentle intermediate slope.
''Reach forward and slightly out with your downhill hand, like you're dribbling a basketball, and keep it low," Lapides urged us.
The next day, in the backcountry skills clinic, we learned about the safety aspects and hazards of backcountry travel. Fourteen women signed up for the clinic, including Mary Devlin of Breckenridge, who had never been on skis in her life. The rest of us were a mix of beginner to advanced alpine and telemark skiers, and several were snowshoers.
''I want to learn to make decisions on my own, so I'm not relying on guys or others around me," said Connie Myers of Fort Collins, Colo., who had been skiing for 16 years. ''That way, I can offer input, help determine the route, and be a part of the decision process."
The skills day started with a morning classroom session, where we learned to identify various types of snow, read the landscape and terrain, and identify hazards in order to avoid problems. Ross told us about avalanches -- what triggers them, how to avoid them, and what to do if we're caught in a slide (avalanches can move as fast as 150 miles per hour).
''It's the habits that we live and die by," Ross said. ''So if you learn good skills now, you'll build good habits."
She and Lapides also gave us an overview of the dangers of exposure, navigational challenges, reading the weather, and first-aid skills. Kim Nearpass, a doctor of naturopathic medicine at Breckenridge's Sacred Tree wellness center, discussed the importance of attitude and preparation for backcountry travel from a health perspective.
I had always known that it's important to rest for a day at 8,000 feet and then only go up in 1,500-foot increments per day after that. But I hadn't worked the acclimation time into my schedule. I left my Boston-area apartment at 40 feet above sea level one day and was taking a telemark clinic at 12,000 feet in the Colorado mountains the next morning. I should have built in an extra day or two to rest before skiing and also loaded up on fluids. Instead, I suffered several days of headaches.
We spent that afternoon on the mountain, learning how to ''skin up," or
attach climbing skins, strips of nonslip, feltlike material that are waxed
on one side and adhere to the bottom of the skis. They enable a telemark
skier to climb up a mountain without slipping backward. It was a strange,
unnerving feeling to be able to hike up a hill on skis, with the backs of
the skis facing right down the fall line.
''You need to learn to trust your skins," Lapides said.
At the base of Peak 8, we practiced kick turns (a quick and easy technique used to change directions) and then made our way through deep snow in the woods to a turnaround point where we stopped to practice drills using avalanche beacons and probes.
''How do you take off your skins in the backcountry?" I asked. ''The snow could be this deep." I held my hand chest-high.
''Ideally, you want to learn to do it without taking off your skis," said Lapides. ''First, I use my skis and stomp down to create a flat, stable platform." She lifted a leg up behind her. ''Then, I pull off part of the skin, put the ski in front of me, and pull off the rest." It was a yogalike move that we proceeded to practice.
The next day, those of us doing the overnight hut trip met for a quick lesson on how to read a topographic map and then headed for the trailhead. For the next several hours, we wound up Spruce Creek Trail, stopping several times to consult our map and get our bearings. Avalanches typically occur in areas where there is a 30- to 45-degree slope (roughly the steepness of a black diamond or double-black diamond run). Our route wouldn't take us through any high-danger zones, but we learned what to look out for -- big cornices and ''sugary," unstable snow -- and studied the anatomy of the terrain as we skied.
Each of us wore an avalanche beacon, for practice and to get in the habit. A beacon sends out a signal. If someone gets buried in an avalanche, his or her fellow skiers set their beacons to ''receive" mode and can pick up the signal that's being transmitted from the buried skier's device. It comes across as a loud, rapid beeping sound that picks up the closer the rescuer gets to the lost skier. Thankfully, we didn't have to put these skills to the test.
Several miles later, we reached Francie's Cabin, one of 10 backcountry huts in Colorado's Summit Huts system that are linked by trails and are accessible to hikers and mountain bikers in summer, and to skiers and snowshoers in winter. This clean and cozy hut offered all the comforts we needed, and then some: a woodstove, solar-powered lights, a wood-burning sauna, an indoor composting toilet, a full kitchen with pots and pans and dishes, and bunk beds with mattresses and pillows.
The afternoon included several excursions to climb nearby hills and practice our telemark turns on the way down. We had sweeping views of the Crystal Lakes Basin, with Mount Helen and Red Mountain looming in the distance. Ross often schedules the overnight ski trips to coincide with a full moon, so we took advantage of it and went for a late-night ski outing, with the moon lighting our way and twinkling on the fresh snow around us.
The rest of the night was spent eating a big, organic dinner prepared by Nancy Hallett, a local gourmet chef; indulging in a wine tasting; hanging out in the sauna; and chatting about backcountry adventures and our new skills. At the very least, I knew I would feel more confident when venturing out into the New England wilderness come wintertime.
Contact Kari J. Bodnarchuk, a freelance writer and photographer in Somerville, at travelwriter@karib.us.
If you go: Women's Ski and Snowboard Programs
A partial list of women's ski and snowboard programs:
COLORADO
888-272-7246; www.arapahoebasin.com
Women’s Tele Clinic for skiers of all levels, Dec. 3, Jan. 7, Feb. 4, March 4 and April 1; $45 with pre-registration and $50 the day of the clinic, includes instruction.
Beaver Creek
1280 Village Road, Beaver Creek/Avon
970-845-5313; www.beavercreek.com
Women's
Telemark Workshop, Feb. 5; $130 includes instruction and lift ticket,
$67 instruction only.
Breckenridge Ski Resort
1559 Summit County Road #3
Breckenridge
www.breckenridge.snow.com
www.breckenridge.snow.com/info/winter/sr.specialty.womens.asp
888-LRN-2SKI
www.babesinthebackcountry.com
970-453-4060
Women's ski camp Jan. 30-Feb. 3 ($370 for program only) for novice to advanced skiers and March 2-4 ($220) for intermediate to advanced skiers. Introduction to the Backcountry Hut Trip, Jan. 21-23 ($375), Feb. 12-13, and April 9-10 ($250); Women's Telemark Day, Feb. 4 and April 8 ($85) and Women's Backcountry Skills Day, Feb. 5 ($95), all for novice to advanced skiers. Roxy Women's Learn-to-Ride Camp, Dec. 10 for beginner snowboarders ($101 for lessons, lunch, and lift ticket); and Roxy Women's Park and Pipe Camp, Feb. 11-12 ($238 for lessons, lunch, and lift ticket) for intermediate to advanced.
Copper Mountain
209 Ten Mile Circle, Copper Mountain
866-841-2481; www.coppercolorado.com
Women’s Learn to Ride Camps, Dec.
16-18, Feb. 24-26 and April 7-9; $91 (one day), $173 (two days) and
$225 (three days) for lift tickets and instruction.
Durango Mountain Resort
Purgatory
800-982-6102;
SheRide
snowboarding program for riders of all levels, age 18 and above, Feb.
3-5; $349 for instruction and no lift tickets, $425 for instruction
and tickets, $665 for instruction, lodging and lift tickets. Keystone
Resort Highway
6, Keystone 800-468-5004;
www.keystoneresort.com Betty
Fest for skiers who are comfortable on green (beginner) terrain and
snowboarders of all levels, Dec. 10-11, Jan. 21-22 and Feb. 11-12, and
every Tuesday and Thursday from Jan. 5 to March 9; two-day Betty Fest
($195) includes on-hill training, video analysis, yoga, discussions on
nutrition, women’s equipment and pink boas; one-day program ($85)
includes on-hill training and tips. Ski
Cooper 232 County Road
29, Top of Tennessee Pass, Leadville 800-707-6114;
www.skicooper.com Women
in Powder Clinic, Feb. 25-26, includes a day of instruction at Ski
Cooper and a day at Chicago Ridge on a backcountry Snowcat tour for
intermediate to expert skiers; $255 per person for instruction, ski
rentals and lift tickets. Snowmass 40 Carriage Way, Snowmass
Village
800-923-8920; www.snowmass.com Women’s Edge clinics for intermediate
to advanced skiers every Monday through Thursday from Jan. 9 to March
23; $388, not including lift tickets. Kim Reichhelm, a two-time World
Extreme Skiing Champion and veteran of the U.S. Ski Team, runs a
women’s clinic/adventure for skiers of all abilities, Feb. 6-11;
$2,500 per person. Steamboat
Ski Resort 2305 Mount Werner Circle, Steamboat Springs 800-922-2722; www.steamboat.com Women’s Clinics for intermediate to
advanced skiers run Dec. 13-15, Jan. 17-19, Feb. 28-March 2 and March
14-16; $330 per person. Silverton
Mountain Ski Area 6226
Highway 110A, Silverton 970-387-5706;
www.silvertonmountain.com Sisters
in the Steeps program for skiers and snowboarders runs Jan. 14-15,
Jan. 20-22, Feb. 3-5 and April 1-2 (April program is geared to
telemark skiers and features guest coach 565 Mountain Village Blvd., Telluride 970-728-7490; www.tellurideskiresort.com Telluride Women’s Week takes place
Jan. 19-21, Feb. 12-16 and Feb. 27-March 3; $585 for three-day program
and lift tickets, $751 for four-day program and lift tickets, also
includes instruction, alignment session, evening seminars, a race
clinic and video analysis.
Vail
450 East Lions Head Circle, Vail 800-404-3535;
www.vail.com Her
Turn Adventure Workshops for intermediate to advanced skiers, Dec.
9-11 ($360 for instruction, $450 for instruction and lift tickets),
Feb. 3-5 and March 3-5 ($450 for instruction, $575 for instruction and
tickets). ReTreat Yourself women’s-only snowboard and yoga camp for
all levels and ages, Jan. 2-5; $799 including instruction, lift
tickets and demos. She Skis: A Women’s-Only Ski Testing Clinic,
March 10-12, for intermediate and advanced skiers who want to learn
about technique and gear while testing next year’s
women’s-specific equipment; $1,100 (www.sheskis.net). MAINE Bigrock SnowSchool 37 Graves Road, Mars Hill 866-529-2695, 207-425-6711, www.bigrockmaine.com Ladies' Night Out every Wednesday for skiers who want to improve
their skills; no on-snow coaching, but instructors are on hand to
answer questions and provide ski tips; $5. Sugarloaf 5092 Access Road, Carrabassett
Valley 207-237-2000, www.sugarloaf.com Women’s Turn programs run Feb. 3-5
and March 10-12 and include instruction, video analysis, equipment
demos and après-ski seminars for intermediate to expert skiers and
riders; $299 without lift tickets, $399 including lift tickets. Sunday River Ski Resort Skiway Road, Newry 207-824-5080, www.sundayriver.com/womensturn.html Women's turn clinics for upper-beginner to expert skiers, Dec.
17-18, Jan. 21-22, and Feb. 25-26; $175 includes coaching but not lift
tickets. MASSACHUSETTS Bousquet Ski Resort 101 Dan Fox Drive, Pittsfield 413-442-8316, www.bousquets.com Ladies' Day for all skiers, five Mondays beginning in January, with
instruction on equipment fit and function; $130 includes one-hour
on-hill lesson and lift ticket 10 a.m.-noon. Wachusett Mountain 499 Mountain Road, Princeton 800-754-1234, www.wachusett.com Women of Wachusett five-week women's clinics for all skiers and
snowboarders Thursday mornings Jan. 5-Feb. 2, and Feb. 9-March 16
(excluding Feb. 23); $30 for one session, $119 for five-week clinic
(lift tickets are a special $105 for the five-week clinic). NEW HAMPSHIRE Bretton Woods Route 302, Bretton Woods 800-314-1752, www.brettonwoods.com Women First ski clinic Jan. 27-28 and March 11-12 for all alpine
skiers; $80 for one day, $150 for two days. Cannon Mountain Franconia Notch Parkway, Franconia 603-823-8800, www.cannonmt.com Women's Weekly program meets every nonholiday, 10 a.m.-noon, from
Jan. 2 to end of season; $25 includes lift ticket and workshop;
entitles participants to half-price day care, Cannon Kids, and
MountainExplorers. Women in Sports seasonal program runs 10 Sundays
Jan. 8-March 19, 9:30-11:30 a.m.; $220 includes instruction but no
lift tickets. Crotched
Mountain Rte.
47,
615 Francestown Road, 603-588-3668 Women’s
ski program (and Kids’ Kamp) every Wednesday, Granite Gorge Ski
Area
341 State Rte.
9, Roxbury 603-358-5000;
www.granitegorge.com Women's Ski Weekend
Clinic,
Mount
Route 103, Newbury 603-763-2356, www.mtsunapee.com Ultimate Groove
Women’s Telemark Clinic—run by Heather Paul, a two-time National
Telemark Champion and 1995 World Championships bronze medal
winner—on Feb. 28; $190 includes lift ticket, coaching and yoga.
Kristen Ulmer, a former U.S. Mogul Team member, runs her Ski to Live
clinic March 5, 10 a.m.-noon, for advanced skiers and riders, followed
by a clinic for intermediate skiers and riders, 2-4 p.m.; $35, not
including lift ticket.
Pats
Peak
24
Flanders Road Route 114, Henniker 603-428-3245,
www.patspeak.com Women’s
Only Wednesday (WOW) program, Jan. 4 to Feb. 15, offers on-hill
instruction for skiers and riders, plus talks on fitness; $50 per
session, $175 for entire program, $250.00
for program with lift tickets.
Waterville
Valley 1 Ski Area Road,
Waterville
Valley 800-468-2553, www.watervillevalley.com Roxy Snow Camp, Feb.
26, a one-day snowboard camp for intermediate riders 13 and older;
price TBD. Wildcat Mountain Route 16, Pinkham Notch 603-466-3326, www.skiwildcat.com On Ladies' Day, every nonholiday Thursday, women save $10 on a lift
ticket (cost is $45) and get a free 10 a.m. lesson.
UTAH
Alta
Ski Area 801-359-1078; www.altaskiarea.com Ski Like a Girl
Wasatch Telemark Clinic for beginners to experts, Dec. 11, and Feb. 11
(register at www.active.com;
801-424-3961 for information); $100 up until Dec. 9 or Feb. 9, $120
day of event, includes instruction and lift ticket. Kim Reichhelm, a
two-time World Extreme Skiing Champion and veteran of the U.S. Ski
Team, runs a women’s clinic/adventure for expert skiers who can
tackle double blacks, bumps and powder, March 13-18; from $820 to
$2,950 per person, includes instruction, video analysis,
accommodations, some meals, equipment demos and, depending on package,
lift tickets and lodging (www.skiwithkim.com). Deer
Valley Resort 2250 Deer Valley Drive South, Park
City 800-424-3337; www.deervalley.com Women’s Weekend
clinics for skiers of all abilities, Feb. 3-5 and March 3-5, $430, not
including lift tickets.
Powder
8000 North 5100 East,
Eden 801-745-3772, Ext.
127; www.powdermountain.com Holiday SheSkis
Clinics for skiers and snowboarders of all levels run daily Dec.
26-30; $80 for a single day or $200 for three days, prices include all
area day pass. Snowbasin
Resort 3925 E. Snowbasin Road, 888-437-5488, www.snowbasin.com Women’s Ski
Experience Classes help skiers of all levels improve their skills,
while providing them with a tour of the mountain; classes take place
Jan. 8, 11, 13, 18, 20, 22, 25, 27 and 29, and Feb. 1, 3, 5, 8, 10,
12, 15, 17 and 26; $185 per person, not including lift ticket. Highway
210, Little Cottonwood Canyon, Snowbird 800-232-9542;
www.snowbird.com Women’s
Ski and Snowboard Camp for intermediate to advanced skiers and riders,
Jan. 15-19 and March 12-16; includes optional lessons in carving,
bumps, racing, and park and pipe, plus a chance to demo equipment;
$600 per person. The
Canyons Ski Resort 4000 The Canyons
Resort Drive,
Park City 435-615-3449; www.thecanyons.com Holly Flanders,
two-time Olympian and three-time World Cup downhill champion, runs
three-day women’s workshops for skiers of all abilities, Jan. 6-8,
Feb. 3-5, and March 3-5; $407
includes instruction, video analysis, tips on ski
equipment, boot fitting and alignment, stance and balance, but doesn’t include lift tickets.
Wolf
3900
North Wolf Creek Drive, Eden
877-492-1061;
www.wolfmountaineden.com Women
on Wednesdays offers ski and snowboarding tips, demonstrations and
drills, and a chance to demo equipment, Jan. 11, and Feb. 1 and 22;
$130 per session includes lift ticket, with discounts for additional
sessions. VERMONT Craftsbury
Outdoor Center 535 Lost Nation Road, Craftsbury Common 802-586-7767; www.craftsbury.com TD Banknorth
Craftsbury Marathon Women’s Race, a point-to-point cross-country ski
race and tour, Jan. 28, with 25- and 50-kilometer options; $70-$90
online registration fee (additional $5 by mail). Grafton Ponds Nordic Ski Center 802-843-2400;
www.graftonponds.com Women’s
Classical Ski Clinic, Dec. 17, Mad
River Glen 802-496-3551, www.madriverglen.com Women’s telemark
and yoga clinics, Jan. 20, Feb. 10 and March 17; $90 (without lift
ticket) or $125 (with lift ticket), includes yoga, instruction and
video analysis. Women’s-only ski clinics also offered Jan. 21, Feb.
11 and March 4 for downhill and telemark skiers; $80 per day (not
including lift ticket) or $200 for all three sessions. Okemo
Mountain Resort 77 Okemo Ridge Road,
Ludlow
800-786-5366; www.okemo.com Women’s Intensive
Two-Day Clinic for intermediate to expert skiers and riders, Jan.
30-31 and Feb. 9-10 for $319; Complete Three-Day Program for skiers
and riders of all ability levels, Jan. 6-8, Jan. 18-20, Feb. 3-5 and
Feb. 13-15 for $479; and Premier Five-Day Week programs for skiers
(all ability levels) and riders (intermediates and up), Jan. 9-13 and
Jan. 23-27 for $639. All clinics and programs include instruction,
video analysis and lift tickets; three- and five-day programs also
include indoor presentations and demo equipment. 5781 Mountain Road, Stowe 800-253-4754, www.stowe.com Women in Motion clinics for
intermediate to advanced alpine skiers, Jan. 9-11, Feb. 7-9 and March
6-8; $596/$478 (with/without lift tickets), includes instruction,
video analysis, yoga and après-ski seminars. Stratton Mountain Road, Winhall 800-STRATTON;
www.stratton.com Ski
workshops for all ability levels, Dec. 12-14 and Jan.
Telluride Ski Resort
Sugarbush Resort
1840 Sugarbush Access Road, Warren
800-537-8427; www.sugarbush.com
Customizable Ladies Night Out overnight adventure packages for groups of women skiers, snowboarders and telemarkers; includes two days of skiing/riding with unlimited access to backcountry terrain, a night at rustic Alynn's Lodge, meals, and backcountry options: ski under a full moon, have lobster delivered by Snowcat or learn to survive in the wilderness. Dates are flexible; $250 per person midweek, $275 per person weekends and holidays.
Trapp Family Lodge
700 Trapp Hill Road, Stowe
802-253-5755; www.trappfamily.com
Hosts
the New England Nordic Ski Association’s (NENSA) Women's XC Ski Day,
Jan. 22, with ski clinics for all levels; $20/$25 fee for NENSA
members/nonmembers; after Jan. 9, $25/$30 fee, respectively;
registration includes trail pass, clinics and lunch at lodge (contact:
802-253-0810, www.nensa.net.
