ALPINE SKI TOURS IN THE CANADIAN ROCKIES BY CHIC SCOTT WITH MARK KLASSEN
Published by Rocky Mountain Books
Next to the skis, poles, boots, climbing skins, backpacks and avalanche safety gear of every keen Rockies’ backcountry skier is at least one dog-eared, page-folded edition of a Chic Scott ski touring and ski mountaineering guidebook.
In this third, full colour edition of his bestselling guidebook, Scott’s impeccable research and writing talents are augmented by the snow safety and terrain savvy of ACMG mountain guide Mark Klassen.
From Thunder Meadows cabin near Fernie to popular Kananaskis day trips such as Black Prince and the classic French/Haig/Robertson circuit to multi-day touring from one Alpine Club of Canada hut to the next across the Wapta Icefields, this book contains, as Scott promises, “enough choice to keep you busy for many years.”
Even for those who already have a previous edition, this newest Alpine Ski Tours provides an excellent supplement with the addition of new destinations as well as expanded, updated and in some cases rewritten information on old favourites. Print and e-book versions available. www.rmbooks.com
SNOWSHOEING IN THE CANADIAN ROCKIES BY ANDREW NUGARA
Published by Rocky Mountain Books
“Snowshoeing today encompasses a staggering spectrum of levels of expertise and abilities,” writes Andrew Nugara in the introduction to his newest guidebook, Snowshoeing in the Canadian Rockies.
Indeed, the 344 pages of this beefy book are testimony to that statement. Illustrated with clear, enticing photos of wild, untouched snowy mountain landscapes, at first glance the reader might be astonished to realize the historically simple activity of using snowshoes to travel from point A to B over a landscape buried in the snowy riches of a Canadian winter has evolved into a multi-faceted sport suitable for family weekends and determined mountaineers alike.
In addition to beginner-friendly valley-bottom excursions, this book encompasses an entire world of information, including trail etiquette, gear shopping suggestions, avalanche safety and trailhead locations from Waterton to the Columbia Icefield. Chapters include how to pick good weather days or warm, comfortable footwear; the benefits and advantages of snowshoeing; the finer points of recreational, racing and mountaineering snowshoe techniques and tips for travelling on frozen lakes and crevasse-furrowed glaciers.
With 61 route descriptions complete with tips on glissading and crazy carpets, this book provides enough information to hold the interest of the most intrepid voyageur or casual winter walker through an entire Canadian winter. Print and ebook versions available. www.rmbooks.com
ALL THAT GLITTERS: A CLIMBER’S JOURNEY THROUGH ADDICTION AND DEPRESSION BY MARGO TALBOT
Published by Sono Nis Press
Ice climbing is a challenging, demanding, exciting and frequently gritty sport.
In All That Glitters, Talbot, an internationally known ice climber, X-Games competitor, Chicks with Picks instructor and adventure writer, weaves a captivating, blatantly honest and thoroughly gritty account of how ice climbing helped her rise above a life tangled in drugs, depression, struggling self-esteem and even a close brush with a jail cell.
Like the activity of kicking crampons and hooking ice axes into vertical frozen waterfalls, Talbot’s story is at once elegant, captivating and hard-edged. Describing how growing up with a distant, indifferent mother and a rum and coke loving father led her to choose the destructive path of street drugs, Talbot shares intimately how therapy, close friendships and outdoor adventure brought her not just healthy doses of adrenaline, but spiritual salvation and ultimately, peace.
Both print and Kindle versions are available. www.allthatglittersbook.com
FIFTY CLASSIC SKI DESCENTS OF NORTH AMERICA BY CHRIS DAVENPORT, ART BURROWS AND PENN NEWHARD
Published by Wolverine Publishing
Dramatic chiseled summits, immaculate sprawling icefields, wind-sculpted cornices and needle-wide couloirs funneling between vertical rock walls – there’s much about ski mountaineering worthy of large-format full-colour photography printed on high quality paper.
And, it appears, the authors of this drop-dead stunning coffee table book know their subject matter intimately. What makes this book especially interesting, however, is the cast of featured lines.
Much richer than a mere run-down of tried and true mogul-infested slackcountry lines, Fifty Classic Descents showcases a truly imaginative selection compete with first-person descriptions of favourite descents by regional locals, including Canadian Rockies backcountry skiing guru Chic Scott and Golden, B.C.’s big mountain master Ptor Spricenieks who writes poetically about his and Troy Jungen’s first – and still only – ski descent of Mount Robson’s heart-stoppingly steep north face.
Featuring sections from the Sierra Nevada to Oregon’s Mount Hood to Mount Combatant in B.C.’s Coast Mountains to the Yukon and Baffin Island, this book serves up an inspiring and truly gorgeous feast of ski mountaineering dream lines. www.wolverinepublishing.com
