Backcountry & Avalanche Skills Course (2-Day)
This course is designed for those who’d like to learn it all over two days in legendary Wasatch terrain. During two days of touring, you’ll learn avalanche safety, companion rescue, route selection, efficient skinning, uphill kick turn, transitions and downhill technique on skis or a splitboard.
*Option to add a 3-hour Avi Fundamentals Lecture for $39.
Course Dates
- Dec 13-14, 2025 (Saturday-Sunday)
- Dec 29-30, 2025 (Monday-Tuesday)
- Jan 10-11, 2026 (Saturday-Sunday)
- Jan 24-25, 2026 (Saturday-Sunday)
- Feb 2-3, 2026 (Monday-Tuesday)
- Feb 21-22, 2026 (Saturday-Sunday)
- Mar 21-22, 2026 (Saturday-Sunday)
Backcountry touring skills and avalanche safety are the essential prerequisites for entering avalanche terrain without a guide. UMA’s 2-day Backcountry & Avalanche Skills Course is the ideal way to kick-start your splitboard or ski touring career. Two consecutive days of skinning and avalanche awareness with professional instructors sets you up to start touring independently in simple off-piste terrain. You also get to experience two different tours in the central Wasatch that you could go back to on your own.
Instructors will initially focus on equipment and procedures for travel and recognizing avalanche terrain. They will share systems and methods for developing tour plans, including how to use the local avalanche advisory. Guides will address route selection as the party ascends to level-appropriate runs.
You will learn where to set a safe skin track, how to spread out in avalanche terrain and how to recognize and find “islands of safety.” Guides will coach you on techniques to maximize your efficiency on skins and show you where and how to dig snowpits.
2-Day Backcountry & Avalanche Skills Course Outcomes
- Understand how to recognize avalanche terrain
- Gain basic route finding and navigational skills
- Learn how to skin uphill efficiently and transition quickly to downhill
- Know what to pack and how to stay warm, energized and hydrated
- Improve your ability to ski or ride in backcountry conditions
- Dig snowpits and perform stability tests
- Practice rescue with a beacon, shovel and probe
- Travel up and downhill employing avalanche-hazard mitigation procedures
- Implement safe travel and route-finding skills
Max Student : Instructor Ratio
4 : 1
Course dates don’t fit your schedule?
Any of our pre-scheduled courses can be run as custom outings. If you’re interested in a course but the dates don’t fit your schedule, please check out our private guiding options.
Course Prerequisites
- This is an introductory course; no backcountry experience is required.
Skill Level
Backcountry terrain offers challenges that are not found in the resorts. In the backcountry, unlike at the resort, runs are not designed by humans to ease the downhill experience by creating trails, removing obstacles and maintaining a more consistent snowpack.
To maximize your enjoyment and success in the backcountry, skiers and riders must be confident linking controlled turns on blue runs in the resort AND have experience skiing/riding “in” the snow (rather than only “on top” of the snow). Thus, skiing and riding off-piste at the resorts in variable snow conditions, soft snow and in trees is recommended before heading into the backcountry.
This course includes 2 full days in the backcountry skinning and skiing/splitboarding (expect to be in the field for 6-8 hours per day). Guests are expected to bring their own snacks, lunch and water (1-2 liters). UMA does not provide transportation. We encourage carpooling to help mitigate traffic in the canyons and crowded parking areas.
SCHEDULE & MEETING LOCATION
Meeting times are usually 8 am. Meeting locations are provided to registered guests prior to the course date. This course takes place in either Little Cottonwood Canyon or Big Cottonwood Canyon in the Central Wasatch Mountains in Salt Lake City, Utah.
GUIDE/INSTRUCTOR
You will receive a reminder with the contact information for your guide/instructor. They will contact you directly by email to confirm meeting time and location, as well as weather considerations and equipment needs.
TRANSPORTATION & PARKING
Transportation will not be provided. Most canyon parking lots require a parking fee.
How To Register
- Register Online
- Call us at (801) 550-3986
- Email us at [email protected]
UMA reserves the right to cancel or shorten the course if fewer than 2 participants register.
2-Day Backcountry Touring & Avalanche Skills Course EQUIPMENT LIST
- Non-cotton top and bottom base layer
- Puffy overcoat and/or other insulation layer (fleece, synthetic or down)
- Waterproof/windproof outer shell jacket and pants (or bibs)
- Wool socks
- Waterproof snow gloves and mittens (or a second pair of gloves)
- Lightweight gloves for uphill travel
- Warm hat and baseball cap
- Helmet (recommended)
- Sunglasses and goggles
- Sunscreen
- 2 liters of water (water bladders not recommended for winter use)
- Thermos of hot drink (optional)
- Sack lunch and snacks
- Ski touring or splitboard boots
- Alpine touring or telemark skis, or splitboard
- Ski poles with powder baskets
- Skins if using skis or a splitboard
- Clinometer, snow saw and snowpit kit (optional)
- Beacon
- Shovel
- Probe
- Backpack
Please see our Backcountry Touring Gear List & Rentals page for information on the items UMA provides and local shops where you can rent or purchase gear.
Please see the Backcountry Skiing & Splitboarding section on our main FAQ page for common course questions.
