Check out Off-Piste Magazine’s expert ski gear reviews including backcountry skis, tech bindings, avalanche beacons, avalanche safety gear, avalanche shovels, ski jackets, backcountry ski pants, ski packs, headlamps, AT ski boots, crampons, climbing skins and more. We use the gear we write up, and the reviews here represent the best of the gear we have tested.
Uphill Ease, Downhill Power – La Sportiva Vega We ask a lot of our ski boots when backcountry skiing. They need to be light and flexible enough for easy uphill travel, stiff and responsive enough to drive skis in a wide range of conditions, and comfortable enough to wear all day long. The new La Sportiva Vega ski boots do it… Read More
Tip Rise Meets Camber and Control If you’re not familiar with Ogso skis, it’s time to get acquainted. Based in Chamonix, France, Ogso Mountain Essentials is a rising new ski brand that makes a range of very fun and versatile touring skis – read more about Ogso and our review of the Ogso Schwarztor ski, which we awarded a qiver-of-one label…. Read More
Breathability vs Weather Protection When evaluating waterproof, breathable outerwear, the question is rarely how waterproof a jacket is, rather it’s whether the jacket is actually breathable enough to keep you comfortable while working hard on the skin track. Breathability, however, is a somewhat relative term. We all heat up and sweat at different rates, and some breathable membranes are simply… Read More
Leather Ski Gloves Put your skins on. Take your skins off. Buckle your boots. Loosen your boots. Fuss with your bindings. Open your pack. Eat a snack. Take a photo. A typical day in the backcountry asks a lot of our gloved hands – far more than a day at the resort. Good gloves for backcountry skiing need to be… Read More
Ultralight Insulated Jacket Down vs Synthetic A puffy or insulated jacket is essential gear for backcountry skiing. Ask a skier if they prefer down or synthetic, and you’ll find less consensus. While synthetic insulation is more durable, stays warm when wet and is better suited to the repeated stuffing and re-stuffing that a puffy experiences in the life of a… Read More
Osprey Soelden 32 Backcountry Ski Pack Skins. Shovel. Probe. Layers. Goggles. Food. Water. Check. Packing for a ski tour isn’t rocket science, but dialing in your ski pack for easy access to the gear you want when you want it takes practice and a pack with thoughtful organization. The Osprey Soelden 32 backcountry ski pack balances a quick-access main body… Read More
Multi-Tools For SkiersThree Leatherman Multi-Tools with Bit Drivers My backcountry repair kit is on the thin side when compared to many skiers, but I do always carry a multi-tool in my pack – read more about backcountry repair kits. In my experience, the highest use tools for addressing boot, binding and unforeseen backcountry issues are a scewdriver of one sort… Read More
Backcountry Ski Packing List What’s in your ski pack? It’s a good question, and one that I occasionally ask myself as I heft the weight of my pack to my shoulder in the morning. There’s no sense in carrying more up the hill than you need to, but there are key items that you should always have with you in… Read More
Hut Trip Packing List Eat. Sleep. Ski. Repeat. Few experiences capture this mantra like a week-long backcountry hut trip. Waking up with the first climb just steps away from the front door is good living. And few places serve up the experience better than one of the many huts and lodges that make up the Backcountry Lodges of British Columbia… Read More
Rocker Ski Racks Skis have a way of cluttering your garage, hallway, closet or wherever it is that you happen to store them. We all know what happens when you simply lean your skis against the nearest available wall – if they don’t fall over right away, they will fall over eventually, often taking a few other choice items with them on… Read More
Outdoor Research Face Mask Review Welcome to the new norm – face mask required. There’s no need to debate or explain. The bottom line is that face mask wearing is going to be with us for the foreseeable future. Lots of great outdoor brands have jumped on face mask production, we thought we’d see what a nice commercially made face… Read More
DPS Lotus 124 2.0 – Alchemist Edition For the most part, backcountry ski waist widths have settled into the 100-115mm zone the last couple of seasons. You can confidently grab a pair of skis with a waist in the low hundreds for just about any day of touring. Between rocker, sidecut and lightweight core materials, these skis are agile, light,… Read More
G3 Minimist Climbing Skins I’m a minimalist by nature. Less is more has proven to be a solid motto for most things backcountry skiing. Well, maybe not when it comes to the width of my skis, but today’s wide skis help fuel the less is more mantra, because if you’re gonna slide around on 110-130mm underfoot, you better lighten your… Read More
DPS Phantom I’ve always enjoyed the ritual of waxing of skis. In the fall, it marks the approaching ski season. During the season, it harkens the call of a powder day or the anticipation of an extended trip deserving of fresh glide. Ski waxing can be a social event or a good reason to dissappear into your workshop. So when… Read More
Ski Crampons When the snow conditions are firm, nothing offers uphill security like ski crampons or, as they say in German, ”harscheisen”. The What Ski crampons are climbing tools that attach to your ski bindings (or ski as with some aftermarket telemark solutions) and pivot underfoot as you skin up the hill. They are made for use on firm snow… Read More
