The ability to navigate is probably the most important skill in the backcountry. In this chapter, you will learn how to use a compass and altimeter and learn to design ski routes that make the best of terrain, weather, and avalanche safety. Navigation takes into account many factors, including ski ability, physical condition, and terrain difficulty. It is not just map and compass work. While global positioning satellites (GPS) and cellular telephones are helpful, you still need to develop a three dimensional view of the terrain in your mind. To do this you need to know how to read a map and develop a sense of direction.

Image captions (looking at small icons on the left):

Top left: No we’re not skiing Everest – at least not this week anyway. The classic Everest topographical map produced by he National Geographic Society using aerotriangulation using vertical photography from a West German metric camera aboard the U.S. Space Craft Columbia, December 1983.

Top right: A photo of the area between waypoints 10 and 7 on the topo map on page 140. Colorado Haute Route between Keystone and Loveland Ski Area. Vivesphoto.

Middle left: Skiers on the John Muir Trail near Mount Whitney, Sierra Nevadas, California. Vivesphoto.

Middle right: Beware of signs giving you travel time, since there might be a different story in bad winter weather. Euro sign. Vivesphoto.

Bottom left: The Gervasutti Couloir first skied by Sylvain Saudan in 1968, Chamonix, France. The mother of all coulois. Vivesphotos.