Included: An experienced, certified local ski guide with extensive knowledge of the area 1-day backcountry skiing course, tour, or ski mountaineering day in the White Mountains Gear check and instruction throughout the day Add-ons (leave us a note at checkout): A night at The Bunkhouse (hostel-style shared beds) before your tour Not included: Ski touring gear (skis or splitboard, skins, boots, and poles) Avalanche safety gear, crampons, ice axe, and harness (available to rent) Transportation to the meeting point Food and snacks Accommodation Anything not mentioned in the “Included” section above Insurance — recommended, available to add at checkout Guide gratuities — optional

How fit do I need to be?

In order to join a backcountry ski day in the White Mountains, good to excellent fitness is required, depending on the trip . You’ll be on your feet for 8–10 hours, skinning uphill with a loaded pack and skiing down in variable conditions. For the uphill, you should be able to comfortably finish a moderate hike in the White Mountains or the Adirondacks. Skills course: No backcountry experience needed. You should be a confident resort skier on black-diamond terrain. Ski touring: No backcountry experience needed. You should be comfortable on intermediate (blue) glades at resorts like Attitash or Bretton Woods, and advanced (black-diamond) open slopes at Wildcat or Cannon. To ski Tuckerman, Huntington, or the Gulf of Slides, you need to have skied with your guides before. Ski mountaineering: Extensive backcountry experience is required. If you’re not sure you’re ready, contact us before booking. An AIARE 1 avalanche course is a good idea, too.

What if I’ve never backcountry skied before?

No problem. The Backcountry Skiing Skills Course is designed for people who have never skied in the backcountry. You’ll spend the day learning how to use touring gear, skin uphill, make smooth transitions, and stay safe, mostly on easy to moderate terrain where avalanches are unlikely. The Guided Backcountry Ski Tour doesn’t require any backcountry experience either. Your guide plans the route, reads the conditions, and teaches you as you go. For both trips, you do need to be a confident resort skier on black-diamond runs . New to skiing altogether? Spend a season or two at the resort first, then come back and make the jump to the backcountry. Ski mountaineering is the one exception: it requires extensive backcountry experience . A skills course or a few guided tours is a great place to start building it.

What equipment do I need to bring?

Here’s a list of the equipment you need to bring: Technical gear (available to rent): Alpine touring skis or splitboard Skins cut to fit your skis Touring boots Collapsible poles Avalanche transceiver, probe, and shovel Crampons (10–12 point, adjustable) Ice axe Harness (ski mountaineering only) Clothing and personal items: Backpack with a waist strap (20–30L, or 30–40L for ski mountaineering) Ski helmet Ski goggles Sunglasses (dark lenses with side shields) Warm hat Buff or neck gaiter Lightweight fleece gloves Medium-weight insulated gloves Heavy insulated mittens Long-sleeve base layer top and bottom (wool or synthetic) Wool or synthetic socks Fleece or softshell layer Hardshell jacket with a hood Insulated parka with an insulated hood Ski or snow pants Headlamp Sun hat or ball cap — optional Avoid cotton. It soaks up sweat and can freeze, which is dangerous in winter conditions. Stick to wool, synthetic, or fleece layers.

Can I rent equipment?

Yes, most of the gear you need can be rented locally. Avalanche safety gear (transceiver, probe, and shovel), crampons, ice axes, harnesses, and clothing are available through your guides’ rental partner, with a 20% discount for guests. Your guides don’t rent alpine touring skis or splitboards , but you can rent them from White Mountain Ski Company in the area. Leave us a note at checkout with what you need, and we’ll help you sort it out.

Group sizes and age requirements

Group sizes: Skills course: up to 4 skiers per guide Ski touring and ski mountaineering: up to 2 skiers per guide The cost per person decreases as the group grows, so it’s the perfect opportunity to ski with friends! Ski touring in the White Mountains can be arranged for larger groups. Contact us to make arrangements. Min. age requirements: Skills course and ski touring: ages 10 and up. Ski mountaineering: ages 16 and up Minors as young as 10 years old may be permitted to join private tours on a case-by-case basis. If your group has skiers under the age of 18, contact us prior to booking to make arrangements.

Getting there and meeting location

The starting point of your backcountry ski day is North Conway, in New Hampshire’s White Mountains. To get there, most people fly into Portland International Jetport (PWM) in Maine, about 2 hours away, or Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) , about 3 hours away. Renting a car is the easiest option. You will meet your guide at 7 am for check-in and a gear check: Skills course: at your guides’ shop in North Conway Ski touring and ski mountaineering: at The Bunkhouse, your guides’ basecamp between Jackson and Glen Your guide will send you the exact address and directions after booking.

Safety measures and insurance

We highly recommend that you cover all your bases with insurance. To make your booking and traveling experience as carefree as possible, you’ll be offered to simply insure your trip with Redpoint at checkout. Redpoint—the official 57hours insurance partner—tailors protection packages for adventure travel, offering a comprehensive travel program, even in remote locations! Trip cancellation, natural disasters, pandemic coverage, medical evacuation, primary medical expenses—regardless of the travel interruption that may happen, Redpoint will have you covered.

White Mountains | New Hampshire

Backcountry Skiing in New Hampshire’s White Mountains: Tours, Courses & Ski Mountaineering

Name: White Mountains Backcountry Skiing - Guided Tours
Brand: 57hours
Availability: InStock

1 day | Moderate to Challenging

From $375 ()

The White Mountains have been a backcountry skiing favorite since the 1930s, with a reliable snowpack, plenty of bluebird days, and terrain for every level. At 6,288 ft (1,917 m), Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeast, and its slopes hold legendary lines like Tuckerman Ravine. Whether you’re taking your first steps on skins, touring glades and open slopes, or heading up steep gullies with crampons and an ice axe, your guides will pick the best terrain of the day and help you earn every turn.

Adventure Highlights

Ski the legends of the East: Tuckerman Ravine, Gulf of Slides, Lincoln’s Throat, and more steep New England classics
From first skins to steep gullies: Learn the basics on a skills day, or level up with touring and ski mountaineering
Small groups, lots of learning: No more than four skiers per guide, and just two on the steeper days

Duration

1 day

Season

December through April

Group size

Up to 4 people

The adventure, day by day

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This full-day course is for confident resort skiers who want to take their first steps into the backcountry. The focus is on uphill travel and easy to moderate descents, so you’re unlikely to be in avalanche terrain. It’s mostly about learning. You’ll practice skinning technique, smooth transitions, and efficient uphill and downhill travel, and get an avalanche awareness briefing with beacon searches. If conditions aren’t right for the backcountry, the group may head to a local ski area that allows uphill travel. No prior backcountry experience needed.

Here's what our day will look like

What to expect

- Duration: 8–10 hours
- Group size: Up to 4 skiers per guide
- Meeting point: Your guides’ shop in North Conway, at 7 am

Schedule:

- 7–8 am: Check-in and gear check
- 8 am–3 pm: Skills and skiing in the field
- 3:30 pm: Wrap-up and departure

What you’ll learn: Skinning technique, efficient uphill and downhill travel, transitions, avalanche awareness and beacon searches, and downhill etiquette and group management.

This guided day tour is all about earning your turns: climbing on skins and skiing back down. We start with a gear check and a refresher on beacons, probes, and shovels. Then we go over the plan for the day and head out. Along the way, you’ll work on skinning in steeper terrain, kick turns, trail breaking, and avalanche safety. No prior backcountry experience is required, but you should be a confident black-diamond resort skier. If you’ve skied with your guides before, you can also head for the classic ravines: Tuckerman, Huntington, and the Gulf of Slides.

Here's what our day will look like

What to expect

- Duration: 8–10 hours
- Group size: Up to 2 skiers per guide
- Meeting point: The Bunkhouse, your guides’ basecamp, at 7 am

Schedule:

- 7–8 am: Check-in and gear check
- 8 am–3 pm: Ski touring
- 4 pm: Departure

This advanced day is for experienced backcountry skiers ready to take on New England’s steepest lines. Depending on the avalanche and weather forecast, we might head to Lincoln’s Throat in Franconia Notch, the Gulf of Slides, Monroe Brook, or Tuckerman Ravine. You’ll work on efficient travel in advanced terrain, terrain analysis and route choice, transitions in steep terrain, and steep skiing, with an avalanche briefing and beacon searches before we head out. Expect to use crampons, an ice axe, and a harness. Extensive backcountry experience is required.

Here's what our day will look like

What to expect

- Duration: Full day, 8 am–3 pm in the field
- Group size: Up to 2 skiers per guide
- Meeting point: The Bunkhouse, your guides’ basecamp, at 7 am
- Season: January through April

Schedule:

- 7–8 am: Check-in and gear check
- 8 am–3 pm: Ski mountaineering
- 4 pm: Departure

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Backcountry Skiing in New Hampshire’s White Mountains: Tours, Courses & Ski Mountaineering

Adventure Brochure

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Things to know

Included:
- - An experienced, certified local ski guide with extensive knowledge of the area
  - 1-day backcountry skiing course, tour, or ski mountaineering day in the White Mountains
  - Gear check and instruction throughout the day
Add-ons (leave us a note at checkout):
- - A night at The Bunkhouse (hostel-style shared beds) before your tour
Not included:
- - Ski touring gear (skis or splitboard, skins, boots, and poles)
  - Avalanche safety gear, crampons, ice axe, and harness (available to rent)
  - Transportation to the meeting point
  - Food and snacks
  - Accommodation
  - Anything not mentioned in the “Included” section above
  - Insurance — recommended, available to add at checkout
  - Guide gratuities — optional
In order to join a backcountry ski day in the White Mountains, good to excellent fitness is required, depending on the trip. You’ll be on your feet for 8–10 hours, skinning uphill with a loaded pack and skiing down in variable conditions. For the uphill, you should be able to comfortably finish a moderate hike in the White Mountains or the Adirondacks.
- - Skills course: No backcountry experience needed. You should be a confident resort skier on black-diamond terrain.
  - Ski touring: No backcountry experience needed. You should be comfortable on intermediate (blue) glades at resorts like Attitash or Bretton Woods, and advanced (black-diamond) open slopes at Wildcat or Cannon. To ski Tuckerman, Huntington, or the Gulf of Slides, you need to have skied with your guides before.
  - Ski mountaineering: Extensive backcountry experience is required. If you’re not sure you’re ready, contact us before booking. An AIARE 1 avalanche course is a good idea, too.
No problem. The Backcountry Skiing Skills Course is designed for people who have never skied in the backcountry. You’ll spend the day learning how to use touring gear, skin uphill, make smooth transitions, and stay safe, mostly on easy to moderate terrain where avalanches are unlikely. The Guided Backcountry Ski Tour doesn’t require any backcountry experience either. Your guide plans the route, reads the conditions, and teaches you as you go.

For both trips, you do need to be a confident resort skier on black-diamond runs. New to skiing altogether? Spend a season or two at the resort first, then come back and make the jump to the backcountry.

Ski mountaineering is the one exception: it requires extensive backcountry experience. A skills course or a few guided tours is a great place to start building it.
Here’s a list of the equipment you need to bring:

Technical gear (available to rent):
- - Alpine touring skis or splitboard
  - Skins cut to fit your skis
  - Touring boots
  - Collapsible poles
  - Avalanche transceiver, probe, and shovel
  - Crampons (10–12 point, adjustable)
  - Ice axe
  - Harness (ski mountaineering only)
Clothing and personal items:
- - Backpack with a waist strap (20–30L, or 30–40L for ski mountaineering)
  - Ski helmet
  - Ski goggles
  - Sunglasses (dark lenses with side shields)
  - Warm hat
  - Buff or neck gaiter
  - Lightweight fleece gloves
  - Medium-weight insulated gloves
  - Heavy insulated mittens
  - Long-sleeve base layer top and bottom (wool or synthetic)
  - Wool or synthetic socks
  - Fleece or softshell layer
  - Hardshell jacket with a hood
  - Insulated parka with an insulated hood
  - Ski or snow pants
  - Headlamp
  - Sun hat or ball cap — optional
Avoid cotton. It soaks up sweat and can freeze, which is dangerous in winter conditions. Stick to wool, synthetic, or fleece layers.
Yes, most of the gear you need can be rented locally. Avalanche safety gear (transceiver, probe, and shovel), crampons, ice axes, harnesses, and clothing are available through your guides’ rental partner, with a 20% discount for guests. Your guides don’t rent alpine touring skis or splitboards, but you can rent them from White Mountain Ski Company in the area.

Leave us a note at checkout with what you need, and we’ll help you sort it out.
Group sizes:
- - Skills course: up to 4 skiers per guide
  - Ski touring and ski mountaineering: up to 2 skiers per guide
  - The cost per person decreases as the group grows, so it’s the perfect opportunity to ski with friends!
Ski touring in the White Mountains can be arranged for larger groups. Contact us to make arrangements.

Min. age requirements:
- - Skills course and ski touring: ages 10 and up. Ski mountaineering: ages 16 and up
  - Minors as young as 10 years old may be permitted to join private tours on a case-by-case basis.
If your group has skiers under the age of 18, contact us prior to booking to make arrangements.
The starting point of your backcountry ski day is North Conway, in New Hampshire’s White Mountains. To get there, most people fly into Portland International Jetport (PWM) in Maine, about 2 hours away, or Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), about 3 hours away. Renting a car is the easiest option.

You will meet your guide at 7 am for check-in and a gear check:
- - Skills course: at your guides’ shop in North Conway
  - Ski touring and ski mountaineering: at The Bunkhouse, your guides’ basecamp between Jackson and Glen
Your guide will send you the exact address and directions after booking.
We highly recommend that you cover all your bases with insurance. To make your booking and traveling experience as carefree as possible, you’ll be offered to simply insure your trip with Redpoint at checkout.

Redpoint—the official 57hours insurance partner—tailors protection packages for adventure travel, offering a comprehensive travel program, even in remote locations! Trip cancellation, natural disasters, pandemic coverage, medical evacuation, primary medical expenses—regardless of the travel interruption that may happen, Redpoint will have you covered.
- Fully refundable within the initial 48 hours from booking, unless the trip date is less than 7 days from the time of the booking.
- Cancellations up to 7 days prior to the trip date are refundable 100%.
- Cancellations within 7 days prior to the trip date are non-refundable.

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