friend or foe

  Most of us remember a time when our parents told us not to talk to strangers, but as we get older, “stranger danger” becomes a laughable phrase.  So the question begs to be asked, is stranger danger still something to be wary about? When it comes to backcountry skiing and snowboarding, maybe it is. By no means am I saying we shouldn’t talk to strangers; but should we entrust them with our lives? If something goes wrong in the backcountry, the company you keep are often the only ones that can help.

  My first time on a splitboard, I was that stranger. I was new to the town, new to the hill, and new to the backcountry. Sure, I had taken an AST course a few years back—I had ducked rope lines, boot-packed, and snowshoed my way into avalanche terrain, but I didn’t really know what was up. I remember hitch-hiking to the hill that morning, hoping to find a group to tag along with. The car that picked me up had already picked up a couple of others, and as we unloaded in the parking lot, I noticed they had touring gear with them. I figured this was as good a chance as any, and asked if I could join them on their mission.

Just walkin'.

  They were kind enough to let me join, and even gave me pointers while watching my struggles with kick-turns, edging, and the finer points of skinning. We ended up getting to the top of the pitch a little slower than they had planned, but I could keep up on the way down which seemed to smooth things over. I was lucky to have found a group that not only knew what they were doing, but had the patience to show me the ropes.

  Years later, I found myself heading to that same zone, but this time, I was the one leading the stranger into the backcountry. I met Rob on the chairlift while doing some warm-up laps, and on that 16-minute lift ride we had decided to go for a tour. He was up from Montana for the weekend and had been at Kootenay Pass the day before. It sounded like many of his ski days at home were spent in the backcountry so at least I wouldn’t have to worry about teaching him to kick-turn.

Rob ready to get going after our first run.

  In the years since my first time splitboarding I’ve learned much more about avalanche safety and safe backcountry travel. One of the most important things I’ve learned is to be cautious of those you travel with, so naturally flags were being raised in the back of my mind while traveling with someone I had just met. I had done one run in-bounds with this guy so I knew he could ski, and chatting on the chair gave me comfort as he used words like “water equivalent” to describe the quality of snow. After the skin up to the ridge and a quick switch to ride mode, any and all worries were washed away as the first few turns threw soft powder up over my head.

  Turns out Rob from Big Fork Montana was a great stranger to have started talking to. We did three slackcountry runs that day, and in-between those runs he was kind enough to share a couple of IPA’s from Flat Head Lake Brewery where he worked back home. Coincidentally, he had come to Canada with someone whom he had not met before, and this weekend trip was a way for them to get to know one another before they went on a cabin trip a mutual friend had put together for the spring.

 So go ahead, talk to that stranger; it might even be fun.