Provided by Utah Mountain Adventures
MIDWINTER BACKCOUNTRY MENTORSHIP (5-DAY, 1-OVERNIGHT)
In town for a month of skiing? Make it count. The Midwinter Backcountry Mentorship packs our season-long mentorship model into February: 3 Sunday tours and 1 overnight with UMA’s professional guides, tracking the snowpack and building your skills all month.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
PROGRAM DATES
- Feb 7, 2027 (Sunday)
- Feb 14, 2027 (Sunday)
- Feb 20-21, 2027 (Saturday-Sunday) Overnight
- Feb 28, 2027 (Sunday)
Every winter, skiers and riders from around the country spend a month or more in Salt Lake City and Park City chasing the Greatest Snow on Earth®. Our season-long Backcountry Mentorship Series asks for a commitment from December to March. The Midwinter Backcountry Mentorship is built for people who are only here for part of the season.
The core idea is the same: snowpacks tell a story, and you learn the most by following that story over time. Over four weeks you’ll watch the snowpack develop with your guide. You’ll track storms, wind events and persistent weak layers, see how they affect terrain choices from one tour to the next, and set goals for the group to revisit on every tour.
The program starts with a Sunday tour where you’ll get to know each other, check your skills and set goals. It ends with a debrief and a personal plan for touring on your own. In the middle is an overnight in the Wasatch backcountry, with evening tour planning, early starts and terrain you can’t reach in a single day.
MIDWINTER BACKCOUNTRY MENTORSHIP OBJECTIVES
- Track snowpack and weather over a full month and see how it drives terrain choices
- Read and apply the Utah Avalanche Center forecast to your own tour plans
- Take the lead in tour planning, route-finding and group decision-making
- Dig snowpits and do stability tests, and practice quick observations while moving
- Practice companion rescue and beacon searches
- Improve skinning, kick turns and transitions
- Ski and ride better in powder, variable snow and steep terrain
- Plan, pack for and run an overnight backcountry tour
- Meet touring partners at your level
- Leave with a personal plan for touring after the program
MAX STUDENT : INSTRUCTOR RATIO
4 : 1
WHO SHOULD TAKE THIS COURSE?
This program is designed for visiting and seasonal skiers and splitboarders who are in Salt Lake City or Park City in February. It’s also for locals who can’t commit to a full season. You should already be comfortable touring and want to grow your judgment, efficiency and local terrain knowledge with a guide.
GUIDES
Our most experienced senior guides lead this program. You will receive a reminder with the contact information for your guide. They will contact you ahead of each tour to confirm meeting time and location, as well as weather considerations and equipment needs.
COST:
- $1699 plus tax
COURSE PREREQUISITES
- Avalanche Level 1 training is recommended.
- Previous backcountry touring experience is required.
FITNESS & SKILL LEVEL
- You should be able to ascend 3,000’+ of elevation per day at a steady pace.
- You should be comfortable linking turns in varied ungroomed snow and terrain.
- You should be able to carry an overnight pack while touring.
MEETING LOCATION: Meeting location is generally at the UMA Office in Cottonwood Heights or at a trailhead in Little Cottonwood Canyon or Big Cottonwood Canyon just outside Salt Lake City, Utah.
TRANSPORTATION & PARKING: Transportation will not be provided. Most canyon parking lots require a parking fee and we encourage carpooling for the overflow lot. Feel free to reach out to the other participants in your group to carpool.
- Register here or contact Utah Mountain Adventures:
- [email protected]
- 801-550-3986
- UtahMountainAdventures.com
