Alpine Winter
Die Berge im Winter

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Snowshoeing Snowshoes are the ideal means to explore the mountains and backcountry in winter. Snowshoeing is fun and easy to learn. If you can walk you can snowshoe, as far as the basic pattern of movement is concerned. A pair of poles help keep the balance and upgrade you to a "four limb drive". Arm-leg coordination may need some fine tuning but these little details won't keep you from enjoying the action. Most snowshoes have claws on the bottom that provide the necessary traction on steep hills and their wide surface help distribute your weight over a large area to keep you afloat in deep snow.
Backcountry Snowboarding and Ski Mountaineering Enjoy the freedom of the hills far away from crowded ski resorts. Instead of standing in a queue you can select your own ascent route, track down the best powder and leave your mark on the mountain. You can choose between a snowboard in combination with a suitable ascent tool such as the unique climb approach ski (go to the links page for more information), or skis fittet with alpine touring or telemark bindings.
Avalanche Safety Make sure you know what you are doing when venturing out of bounds. Learn a current method of risk management and get the necessary practical skills in an avalanche course. For a good introduction to avalanche safety, read the "powderguide", available at good bookstores. Click on the image to get to the powderguide homepage.