Sometimes across the street might as well be on the other side of the country. People get settled into their routines and stick with what's familiar. Though I lean on the side of comfort, I long to explore and check out new places. This ski season has taken me backcountry skiing in less-traveled areas like American Fork Canyon and Parley's Canyon. Most local backcountry skiers confine themselves to Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons, while areas to the north, south, east and west see significantly less--if any--backcountry traffic. For years, I've stared the Oquirrh Mountains dead in the face as I've commuted into Salt Lake City. Both Flat Top Mountain (10,620 ft.) and Lowe Peak (10,589 ft.) loom within arm's reach, but because they aren't quite as accessible, they might as well be in Egypt to most people living ...

Backcountry skiers are like the leg-shavin' XC mountain bike racers who count every gram, drill out every part, swap out all steel bolts for titanium ones and shave their legs too. Every gram counts whether you are pedaling or skinning uphill. Regardless of lightweight gear or not, I'm always the last one up the skintrack. I just like to take things slow and steady, but can still appreciate the weight savings. With so much high-quality, lightweight backcountry gear these days, there's a myriad of choices. Dynafit or Fritschi? Foam or bamboo core? Full-size or mid-size shovel? Carbon fiber or aluminum probe? The list is endless. Lets talk about an all-new piece of gear that not only can help reduce weight, but can also help keep your cool on those long skintracks: the Sierra Designs Mantra Pants....

I haven't been on a Dawn Patrol in over a month... having our third child has reduced my free time considerably. But, with the recent storms, I just had to get out--even if I was doing it all on only 4 hours of sleep. The email came from Kendall yesterday... "Hitting Mt. Aire tomorrow... anyone interested?" I've been wanting to hit Mt. Aire to see Kendall's trailwork and get a first-hand tour from the Mt. Aire addict himself, so I made it happen. Up at 4:45 am, quick breakfast and out the door by 5:15 am. I pulled into the mouth of Lambs Canyon off I-80 at 6:00 am on the dot. Not a bad drive for this kind of accessibility. Unfortunately, I missed Kendall and Rich at the parking lot--they got a 15-minute head start on me, ...

This has been an epic winter by any measurement. Alta has received 638" so far with another storm on the doorstep. Mid elevation stashes like Mt. Aire are still enjoying full winter coverage. Nearly all of Utah's ski resorts are still open but most of Utah's skiers have biking/hiking/running/golf on the brain. For me, when April rolls around and the ski resorts start to to shut down it's like the seventh inning stretch rather than the bottom of the 9th. Monday dawned white with Alta reporting 3", The Canyons 5" and a storm on the doorstep. It was dumping in the mountains where I live and quite frankly the storm caught be by surprise. All morning while working I had one eye on the computer screen, one eye to the window watching the snow stack up. ...

Until this season finding a solid 4 buckle alpine touring ski boot with Dynafit binding compatibility has been a short shopping experience of 1-2 options. These few options have primarily been soft flexing boots with a less than stable ride for bigger skiers like myself. So until now I've cut back to 3 buckles for conserving weight, accepted the fact that my backcountry skiing experience would include a soft boot and I've adjusted. Thankfully those days may be coming to an end. When it comes to shopping for alpine touring ski boots having selection should be the name of the game and thankfully this year (and in anticipation of next year) the selection of 4 buckle boots that feature Dynafit binding compatibility has exploded. One of the first boots introduced as a mid season release in this ...

Portland, Oregon-based Nau Clothing is committed to building environmentally-sustainable clothing and outerwear. This commitment is one that isn't especially easy when it comes to outerwear technology, which is dominated by many petroleum-based laminate materials. In spite of that challenge, Nau is leading the charge in sustainable materials and manufacturing while others are merely dabbling in it. Nau's full line of technical outerwear is subtly-styled, but filled with enough technical goodies to keep even the biggest gear junkie satisfied. With retail outlets in Portland, Seattle, Denver and Chicago and a solid online retail presence, Nau services outdoor enthusiasts worldwide. Built on the philosophy that companies don't merely exist for profit alone, Nau is committed to philanthropy, corporate responsibility, employee and customer satisfaction, open customer feedback and honest dialog about products and design. I'm very impressed by their core principles ...

New for 2007-2008 is the uber-fat and stout Black Diamond Zealot. This ski is big, burly and stiff and is built like a tank to float through deep pow and power through thick, heavy crud. This year's ski lineup from Black Diamond is stellar. Gone are the days that Black Diamond was just a euro-style touring or telemark ski manufacturer. Their lineup and pricepoints are enough to stir the pot and generate serious buzz in the industry. The Zealot was the flagship model until the newly-introduced Black Diamond Megawatt came on the scene last month. Still, the Zealot is an awesome example of how Black Diamond is pushing their ski designs further and further to accommodate not only backcountry skiers who enjoy pushing their limits, but aggressive skiers of all disciplines (tele, alpine or backcountry touring)....

The goal wasn't to summit, just to find some creamy, week-old powder on the northeast ridge of Box Elder Peak. In the end we had our fill of adventure and excellent turning conditions to boot. Box Elder sits at 11,101 ft. and is highly visible from the north end of Utah County. With its near-perfect pyramid shape, it's one of those peaks that draws attention. But with all that visual attention, the peak gets little actual traffic because it's not quite as accessible as others in the area. During the winter, I always stare at its summit, thinking about how awesome the ski-descent would be. As I've begun exploring American Fork Canyon's backcountry skiing potential, Box Elder has been of of the most wanted descents in the area. The approach is long and there's a ton of vert ...

It's been three seasons now since I made the switch to Dynafit bindings. That first season I kept a pair of skis mounted up with Fritschi Freerides but after a few months of touring with Dynafit bindings I pulled the Freerides, promptly sold them and bought a second pair of Dynafits. I had become a Dynafit Disciple. I realize that it's hard for some (ahem... Jason) to envision themselves skiing on a binding that looks so...primitive and so...simple, but making the leap is putting yourself on a path of enLIGHTenment, about 2-4 pounds lighter that is. I've skied steep terrain on peaks like Timpanogos, Middle Teton, Mount Superior with no problems. I've skied them inbounds and out of bounds, slackcountry and backcountry. With likely 150 days on my first pair ...

I had to learn the hard way the other day... fat skis require fat skins. Well, duh! Yeah... duh! It's easy to say that now, but I thought the 3/4 inch or so of exposed ski bases on either side of my Black Diamond GlideLite STS climbing skins would be no big deal. Had the snow been deeper, maybe it wouldn't have been a huge deal, but the dust-on-crust conditions exposed the flaw in my thinking. An early-morning dawn patrol up American Fork Canyon ended up being an 1000 ft. exercise with no real turns. My all-around touring skis are a 5-year-old pair of Atomic Beta Rides with Fritschi Freeride bindings. Their 84mm waist and fairly straight dimensions were wide 5 years ago, but now they seem skinny compared to most skis. The "skinny-ness" of the Beta Rides was further ...