Recreational Avalanche Course

Whether you have taken an avalanche course before and are looking to refresh or this is your first step in avalanche education this course is designed to provide a deeper and more thorough understanding of traveling in avalanche terrain, avalanche forecasting, rescue and equipment use.

This avalanche course is an American Institute of Avalanche Research and Educations AIARE Level 1 and we will provide a completion certificate at the end of the course.

The course will be taught in english with explanations in Icelandic when needed.

All instructors are internationally certified ski guides with CAA Level 2 certification and over 10 years of experience in the ski industry. 

Our goal is to give you as much valuable information as possible to feel more comfortable in your decision making while traveling in avalanche terrain and to give you an insight into the thought process of avalanche professionals.

Guest to Guide ratio: 6:1

Minimum 10 guests per course.

Course Requirements:

Participants should be intermediate or advanced skiers/snowboarders. All of our field time will be spent on alpine touring / split-board equipment and skin´s are required. See below the available rental equipment. We are unable to accommodate snowshoe´s as a mode of uphill transportation.

Itinerary:

Each day will include an inside component comprised of lectures and discussions and then a large part of the day spent in the field.

Friday:

• 13:00 Arrival at Klængshóll lodge
  
• Introductions
• Course goals and objectives
• Case study
• Avalanche types and characters
• Terrain analysis
• Beacon practice
• Emergency equipment

• Rescue scenarios

Saturday:

• 08:00 Snowpack
• Decision Making
• Travel Techniques
• Field observations
• Snowpack tests
• Human factors
• Trip planning 

Sunday

• Full day in the field
• Terrain analysis
• Route selection
• Safe travel techniques

Logistics:

Course will begin promptly at 13:00 Friday. Course cost includes accommodation, dinner Friday night, breakfast, lunch and dinner Sat and Sun, Students field book, student manual, instruction and guiding. Each participant will be required to sign a waiver at the start of the course.  

Equipment:

Many of the items on the list are available for rent. Please see available rental equipment below and contact us for any questions you might have.

Clothing

• Socks - Wool or synthetic.  Avoid cotton.  
• Soft Shell Pants - Synthetic preferred.   Make sure the cuffs of the pants fit over your touring boots.
• Long Underwear Top - Polypropylene or wool recommended.
• Warm long-sleeve shirt - A light fleece or wool top.  
• Insulated Jacket - Synthetic or Down.  
• Shell Jacket - GoreTex parka with hood.
• Shell Pants 
• Gloves - Two pairs. One insulated pair with a shell (mittens are also acceptable) and one lighter-weight pair to use while traveling uphill.
• Warm Hat - Wool or fleece hat.

Skiing/Riding Gear

• Boots - Alpine touring, plastic telemark or comfortable snowboard boots are recommended.  We do rent out ski boots but highly recommend that you bring a pair you are familiar with.
• Skis or Split-board -  For AT and Telemark skis we recommend skis with a waist width in the 95 to 120 range.  
• Poles - Adjustable poles are recommended.  For the snowboarders we recommend 3-section poles so they fit on your pack without getting in the way.
• Ski Straps - used for holding your skis together on your pack or your shoulder.
• Climbing skins - These should be trimmed to fit the shape of your ski.  If your skins are too skinny they will not work.  Make sure your skins cover your ski bases well, with a maximum only a few millimeters of base showing at the waist of the ski.
• Transceiver/Beacon - We highly recommend you bring a 3 antenna digital beacon, if you own an older model then please be prepared to rent one from our fleet if your is found lacking in any way.
• Shovel - Collapsible avalanche shovel.  Metal is preferable. 
• Probe – We recommend you bring a probe 240cm or longer. Ski poles that turn into probes are not acceptable.
• Helmet - Optional.  If you typically backcountry ski with a helmet we recommend you bring one.  Just make sure you have a good way of carrying it on/in your pack on the way up.  

Miscellaneous Gear

• Pack - 30 to 40 liters.  
• Headlamp 
• Water Bottles and/or Thermos - 2 liters.  If you use a hydration bladder we recommend you use an insulated tube to make sure it does not freeze.
• Food – Each day we will put out lunch fixings before heading out
• Sunscreen and Lib Balm - SPF 30 or higher
• Sunglasses - Changeable or Photochromic lenses are nice for variable light conditions.  Consider using retention straps.
• Ski Goggles 
• Foot Protection - For blisters and hotspots.  
• Repair Kit - Bring any spare parts specific to your bindings.  The guides will carry a full repair kit so keep yours light.
• Camera – Optional
• Pocket knife or Leatherman – Optional 

Available Rental Equipment:

• AT Skis – We have most sizes and many types of Völkl and BD skis but contact us to reserve your pair before the course start.
• Skins
• AT Boots – We carry most sizes of Scarpa AT boots. We recommend however you bring your own pair of boots, you will have a much nicer experience.
• Poles – We have 2 and 3 section adjustable poles.
• Shovel – Pieps Tour 
• Beacon – Pieps DSP digital beacon
• Probe  - Pieps 260cm