Stories & Guides

To escape from the hectic activity on the pistes, more and more winter sports enthusiasts are exploring terrain outside designated ski areas. Independent and guided ski tours are also becoming increasingly popular. As in so many situations where people venture into open terrain, certain risks arise and these must be given due consideration. We met Franz Widmer, head of the Mammut Alpine School, to discuss these risks and what steps we can take to prepare for them – to ensure that touring is as safe an experience as possible, allowing participants to fully enjoy the panoramic ascent and fast-paced powder descent.

In freeriding culture, focus is often directed on what went well. But after a crew of seasoned and competitive freeriders experienced an avalanche, they decided to flip the script and share their story on Instagram and with us. We sat down with Forrest Schorderet to talk about why.

The story of avalanche transceivers is also the story of Felix Meier. This electronics engineer and alpinist has been involved in their development for almost four decades. Almost no one else in the world can rival his knowledge in the technology of these devices.

When Tim Banfield turned on his avalanche beacon to find his friend Michelle Kadatz buried four meters beneath him, he realized this rescue was not going to follow the textbook.

When planning an international ski trip, do you prepare for what it'll feel like when you're not a local, when you don't know the snowpack, the terrain or even the local language? Katie Combaluzier tells us about how a quick getaway to the French Alps changed her life and led her on a path to the Paralympics.