PHOTO: BLAKE JORGENSON LOCATION: REVELSTOKE, BC
Tibet’s Mount Kailas is considered the holiest mountain on earth. The unclimbed peak is sacred to one-fifth of the world’s population. An ancient site of pilgrimage, four religions circle the 22,028-foot mountain in devotion to different gods. Travel writer Paul Theroux describes a pilgrimage as a ritual journey with a hallowed purpose. “Every step along the way has meaning,” he writes. “Challenges will emerge. Insights are offered and a deeper understanding is attained. A pilgrimage is not a vacation; it is a transformational journey during which significant change takes place. New insights are given. Deeper understanding is attained. New and old places in the heart are visited. Blessings are received
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and healing takes place. On return from the pilgrimage, life is seen with different eyes.” Of course, a pilgrimage can be secular in nature. Within each sport, a hallowed site lures dedicated enthusiasts. Surfers voyage to Indonesia, mountain bikers to Moab, boaters to the Grand Canyon and fishermen to Alaska. Every environment can be inspiring, but there’s something supreme about the mystique of the high mountains. The Chinese characters for pilgrimage actually mean “paying one’s respect to a mountain.” And if ever there was an act that induced meditation, it’s the methodical climb up a skin track. For backcountry skiers, our superlative pilgrimage is to
the Alps—specifically, a hutto-hut route between Chamonix, France, and Zermatt, Switzerland, known as the Haute Route. This is hut skiing at its finest. Every March, backcountry skiers from around the world skin from refuge to refuge where a soft bed, hot meal and glass of wine await. Julien Regnier planned our Haute Route journey. We would leave Chamonix on February 22nd, weeks before the huts opened for the spring season. We would carry our own supplies, sleep in unheated huts and drink water instead of wine. This trip would be more pilgrimage and less vacation. Julien wanted us to have the route to ourselves. The goal was the in-between, to ski the lines
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between the huts that most Haute Route parties pass by. Our first three days were successful. Julien, JP Auclair and Callum Pettit skied the Couloir des Dorées, a visually stunning 400-meter line that dropped into Champex, Switzerland. Not until Verbier did the greater challenges present themselves. The temps skyrocketed to almost 60-degrees. Wet slides ripped to the ground. It was shaping up to be the most dangerous week of the winter. With six days and three huts left in our journey, we made the heartbreaking decision to turn back. The mountain gods allowed us to escape unharmed. Sadly, many of our friends weren’t as lucky last season. In this is-
sue, we honor nine avalanche victims who were experienced backcountry skiers. We assess last winter’s complicated snowpack. We take a train ride. We profile some interesting skiers, share some advice from the field, and offer inspiration to ski everything from your local sidecountry stash to the Alps. This season, do something that’s not easy. Skin instead of sitting on the lift. Splurge on an airbag. Take an Avy II course. When conditions allow, ski that iconic line beyond the boundary rope. Listen to your gut. Plan your first hut trip. Go forth, pilgrim, the backcountry is yours. Tess Weaver Project Editor