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Larry Goldie from North Cascades Mountain Guides just sent me a couple pics of skiing up near Slate Peak in the North Cascades. He and Paul Butler from North Cascade Heli headed up for an early season tour on some lightweight  XCD gear. Larry reports that it was thin but skiable and that it felt good to drop the knee on the light tele gear.

It is good to see the boys can still muster a solid tele turn given their affinity for AT gear these days. It is also good to see that the snowpack is slowly working its way toward ski season. It is a bit sparse around hood right now. The mountain biking remains excellent at lower elevations and south facing terrain though.

We finally got restocked on Off-Piste Ball caps (they are due in the office early next week). They went quickly last year. I ordered a few more this time, but if you missed the last round, get 'em now. We went with a single style and color this time - but they are still 100% organic cotton and $16 includes shipping in the US.

Have a good Thanksgiving week.

    Our new batch of Off-Piste stickers just arrived here at the office. We went for a new shape this year that is more elongated than earlier models. They are still the same high quality vinyl we have always used. For a limited time, just send us a self addresses stamped envelope (SASE) and we will drop a few in the mail for ya. You can find our address under the contact us heading.   new shape  old shape

Read More "New Off-Piste Stickers"

Well, I wish I was posting a ski trip report, but recent temps pushing 60 degrees have not been too cooperative for the snowpack.

Nonetheless, we just wrapped up the December issue and sent it off to our printer. The new issue takes a look at June Mountain, CA, a successful traverse of the Tordrillo range in Alaska, interpreting weather station data, and what to look for in your next avalanche course.

In addition, long time contributor, Nils Larsen, walks us through the building of a pair of Altai skis. Inspired in design and construction by skis Nils and I saw and used in the remote Altai Mountains of Northwestern China, the article offers a written and pictoral essay of constructing  a ski modeled on a ski design that is likely more than 1,000 years old.

The December issue will ship by December 1. Susbcribe now to ensure you receive it in a timely manner. We continue to prepare for the season with gear arriving weekly and ski chatter on the rise. A new shipment of custome Off-Piste Voile straps just arrived. They are the 15" variety, and if you don't have any, you need some - two for $9, four for $17, six for $24. 

We just received the Ortovox S1 avalanche transceiver with the updated software here at the office. It is a very interesting beacon, and we are stoked to check it out in the coming months. I have long used the Backcountry Access Tracker and still believe it is great beacon, but late last season I began testing several of the newer three antenna digital beacons. I must say I am impressed with their various operations.

The S1 takes the prize for the most high tech appearance - it reminds me of a Star Trek communications device - however, It is remarkably simple in its interface. I have not had it up in the snow yet this season, so I am not going to speak to its field performance yet. You can look for more beta on each of the different beacons as winter unfolds. In the meantime, you should check out the article we published last season about the Barryvox Pulse, the Pieps DSP, and the Ortovox S1. You can view a pdf version of the article here or download the entire January '08 Issue here.  I look forward to some extended use of these beacons this winter.

Check out the BCA tracker or shop a range of avalanche beacons at evo.com

Greg Hill is a respected name in the backcountry ski community. He has placed well in many randonee races, set some incredible endurance standards, and generally pushes the window for human powered big mountain ski exploration from his home in the Selkirk Mountains (read a profile on Greg from 2003 here ).

Last season, Greg decided to carry a video camera with him on his many touring adventures around the Rogers Pass region. The result, The Unbearable Lightness of Skiing, is a true grassroots ski touring based film. Greg's low key commentary compliments the excellent ski footage and inspiring adventures that he and his local ski posse undertake. The film is currently being shown at the Banff Mountain Film Festival.

The film is brief at just over twenty minutes, but left me and my fellow viewers fired up to get out and explore new tarrain this season more than any other film I have seen in a while. You can find movies with more mind blowing descents and epic powder skiing, but you will hard pressed to find a film that inspires exploration and adventure on skis like it does.

Last word from Greg was that the film will be ready for public sale very soon. You can find out more and keep an eye out for the film on Greg's website www.greghill.ca

You can get a taste of the film from this vid clip. There are several fun clips from Greg on You Tube, so if you have some time to explore, take a look.

Ah, the snow is beginning to arrive around the country. Even the East saw a good storm in late October. As the weather gods bring us the goods, there are a wide variety of events  happening this weekend to help fuel the ski season fire.

Beginning with a local event, Sweetgrass Productions is showing their film Hand Cut here in Hood River on Thursday Nov. 6 at Dog River Coffee at 7pm and they are in PDX tonight at the Kennedy School - Full tour details are here. The film is great and is worth checking out if you are can manage a night out after the big election last night. We've got the trailer on the blog here if you peruse the movie category.

Moving around the country a bit:

Boise, ID - Winter Wildlands Backcountry Film Festival Nov 7. 7pm - Egyptian Theater

Seattle, WA  - Snowbash & 2nd annual NWSAS Nov. 8 - Epiphany School/Tractor Tavern

Golden, CO - Backcountry Bash Fundraiser for BSA, Nov. 8 5:30pm

Finally, looking toward mid-winter is the Kootenay Coldsmoke Festival up in Nelson BC February 20-23, 2009. This event is worth planning ahead to attend. It is in its third season and every year has been great so far. There are numerous press releases associated with the event and you can find them here or visit www.coldsmokepowderfest.com.

Ever wanted to build your own skis? Well, John Hadley, a shop teacher at a local high school here in the Columbia Gorge, is building skis (and snowboards) with high school students in a class he teaches called Materials Science.

It is the second year he has offered the ski building class, and it is impressive. With support from local company Innovative Composite Engineering, John is able to source base and edge materials for students to build skis and snowboards from scratch in the high school shop.

Omar, our assistant editor and English teacher at the school, was able to join the materials science class and is building a pair of skis. We hope to hear more from Omar on the process, but for now here a few images from an afternoon that I stopped by to check out their progress.