Alf Alderson's Ultimate Skiing Adventures
Ok, so we’re a splitboarding site, but we love all things mountain - be it: climbing, trail-running and yes even skiing. So we asked long time ski and surf journalist, Alf Alderson, to pick some of his favourite adventures from his new ‘ULTIMATE SKIING ADVENTURES’ book.
ALF - Choosing your five favourite ski areas out of a list of a hundred is an invidious task, especially when you’re a skier writing for a snowboarding site! But tbh all the hills mentioned in my book are just as viable for snowboarding as skiing.
I’m firmly of the opinion that any ski hill can be great if the conditions are right (why else would people persevere with Scotland?), but here goes anyway, in no particular order…
KAMCHATKA, RUSSIA
This place will blow your mind – get dropped off by a former Russian military helicopter on the upper slopes of a hissing, steaming volcano, descend 2000 vertical metres of untracked powder and finish with a skinny dip in the Pacific. Then repeat. Definitely not your average ski destination.
The incredible landscapes, amazing riding and fascinating culture all make this one to add to your bucket list – sure, it ain’t cheap and it’s a long way to go for your powder fix, but I’ve never met anyone who regretted a ski trip to Kamchatka.
ICELAND’S NORTH COAST
I’ve visited Iceland twice in winter, the first time to heliski on the Troll Peninsula, the second time to go ski-touring along the north coast by three-masted schooner. Which was the best? I’d do either of them again at the drop of a hat.
The heliskiing was fast and furious, the ski touring slow and leisurely (apart from the schlepping up various 1000-metre-high peaks from sea level, of course) and both were unforgettable ski-to-sea adventures amongst some of the most spectacular and primeval landscapes on Earth.
Like the sound of Iceland? Then check out Backdrop’s own film from the volcanic isle.
GEORGIA
One of the most fascinating countries I’ve ever visited, not just for the world-class backcountry around Tetnuldi (where the peaks are higher than Mont Blanc) but also for the intriguing mix of cultures at the point where Europe meets Asia, the delicious food and wine (Georgia is the birthplace of viticulture) and the wonderful city of Tbilisi – I know we’re talking about snow and mountains here but you’d be a fool not to set aside a couple of days to explore the Georgian capital.
A two-centre trip is the ideal way to do Georgia, with visits to the magnificent wild landscapes of Tetnuldi in the Greater Caucasus mountains and Gudauri, the country’s biggest ski area just a couple of hours out of Tbilisi.
McCALL, IDAHO
Located just over 100-miles north of Idaho’s state capital Boise, McCall is an attractive lakeside town with two nearby ski hills, Brundage and Tamarack. Brundage rather poetically boasts of having ‘The Best Snow in Idaho’ and it ain’t kidding – light blower pow is par for the course here, and it’s much the same at Tamarack.
Both hills are tiny, but offer endless back- and side-country options and little in the way of crowds. Surrounded by wild, spectacular mountains with names like the Sawtooths, Gospel Hump and Seven Devils, a visit to McCall is the perfect way to discover the ‘real’ Rocky Mountains in all their uncommercialised glory.
RED MOUNTAIN BC
‘Red’ changed my life. It was a visit here 20 years ago that made me decide that a badly paid, insecure life in ski journalism was the way forward, and I’m forever in its debt. It’s not just the powder, the famous tree skiing and the challenging steeps that make Red what it is though.
Any average Joe (like me) can also enjoy themselves here on less intense terrain, and if you’re a committed rider of whatever ability you’ll be welcomed by the locals as a like-minded soul and enjoy not just the riding but the crack in Rafters Bar at the end of the day and the happy, chilled out vibe of Red’s satellite town Rossland, where I may yet go and live..
