In Alberta’s already rich repertoire of skiing and climbing destinations, Lake Louise stands out as one of the highlights. And how could it not—in the Lake, wherever you turn you’ll see a magnificent powder bowl, a photogenic ridge, or a peak itching to be climbed. The area is so impressive that some ski events in the 1998 Winter Olympics were hosted there! However, if you aim to venture deeper into Alberta’s stunning wilderness, you should aim to keep safe. In the backcountry, proper crevasse rescue skills are paramount and could mean the difference between life and death. This course was designed to teach you or refresh your knowledge of optimal crevasse rescue practices and gear use. As such, it’s an essential tour for every backcountry adventurer. This winter, put safety first and push your crevasse rescue knowledge to the next level in the ever-alluring Lake Louise.
Explore Alberta’s beautiful backcountry
Refresh and update your knowledge with realistic scenario practice
Learn the fundamentals of crevasse rescue in the legendary Lake Louise area
Meet your guides in the Guides room at the Lake Louise Hostel and take care of the waivers. After a short theoretical presentation, start learning about simple knots and systems. Spend the afternoon outside, where you can practice and get introduced to more complex systems.
Head to a safe, but very realistic practice site at Crowfoot Meadows, just north of Lake Louise. You will spend the day doing rescue simulations, putting the theory and practice from day 1 to use.
What you get in this adventure:
What’s not included:
To get the most of this course, you need to have a moderate level of fitness. You will be on your feet for a full day. You will need to manage controlled descents in variable conditions. All participants should feel comfortable on challenging blue or black level resort runs and be able to carry a loaded daypack while skinning up variable degrees of terrain.
Prerequisites:
Students must be able to travel in the snow and bring appropriate equipment for traveling on snow to class. Skiers must be able to hike for several hours at a time while carrying a small pack. All participants should be comfortable traveling in snow while carrying touring gear. There are no other prerequisites.
For technical backcountry ski touring gear, you will need to bring:
For personal items, we recommend bringing:
All mandatory gear can be rented if you don’t have your own. You can rent:
Ski rental locations are in Lake Louise and should be picked up the night prior to your outing. If you need to rent gear, let us know and we can help make arrangements.
Group sizes and pricing:
Crevasse rescue courses in Lake Louise can be arranged for larger groups. Contact us to make arrangements.
Min. age requirements:
If your group has skiers under the age of 18, contact us prior to booking to make arrangements.
To get to Lake Louise, AB, most people fly into Calgary International Airport 2 hours southeast. From there, you can rent a car or take a bus to Lake Louise.
Once you and your guide agree on the details of your itinerary, your guide will suggest the best place to meet, whether that’s at the Guides room at the Lake Louise Hostel or a predetermined location. From there, you’ll head to your tour. The guide will choose the appropriate terrain dependent on conditions and the ski ability of the group.
57hours is committed to providing safe outdoor adventure experiences. We require all guides using our platform to have a COVID-19 safety plan and to make the details of that plan accessible to travelers. In most cases, group sizes will be reduced, guides will avoid overcrowded locations, and other safety measures will be met depending on the location and activity.
We also expect clients to respect local regulations and take measures to protect themselves, their guides, and the communities they’re traveling to. For more information on COVID-19 measures in Lake Louise, AB, please refer to Alberta’s official COVID-19 info website.
Please contact us if you have any questions or require further information. We are happy to provide you with the most up-to-date information!
This course is meant to prepare you for decision-making in complex rescue scenarios, and adapting said decisions to site-specific information. This will make you act quicker in real-life rescue situations. Throughout the course, you’ll learn about:
