guided mountain adventure
Zinal is a great destination for perfecting your off piste skiing skills for the winter ahead: this is an early season off piste skiing techniques course allowing you to plan the rest of the season's adventures! The off piste skills course is based in the Val d’Anniviers, which offers vast scope and potential for off piste skiers looking to find their off piste mojo and hit the new season where they left off. We rate this area as one of the very best places to ski off piste in the Alps, offering varied backcountry to get the season started with a bang!
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This course provides instruction in off piste skiing techniques and also includes sessions on avalanche safety, transceiver use and ski touring equipment and techniques.
Day 1
Travel to Zinal. Evening meeting and briefing with the Mountain Tracks team.
Days 2 to 5
4 days of intensive off piste skiing instruction and skills training. There will be technique sessions on and off piste. On most evenings there will be some video analysis of your off piste skiing and we'll also include sessions on avalanche safety and equipment.
Day 6
Breakfast followed by outward travel.
The itinerary is flexible depending on the weather and snow conditions, the preferences of the group and the recommendations of the instructors.
The price includes: 4 full days ski instruction, 5 nights half-board accommodation (4 evening meals) in fully catered chalet (twin rooms).
The price does not include travel to Zinal, lift pass, lunches, personal insurance and equipment hire.
The minimum number is 4. The maximum group size is 12. For groups of 8 or more, the off piste ski instructor will be joined by a mountain guide and the group will alternate between skiing with the instructor and the guide.
In Zinal our preferred accommodation is Chalet Edelweiss in the hamlet of Mottec, 2kms from Zinal. The chalet was fully restored in 2008 and offers very comfortable accommodation with 5 ensuite rooms. The chalet is owned by Eric and Penny Kendall. Penny is a whizz in the kitchen and meals are delicious!
This course will be led by BASI Ski Instructors. They'll ensure you have a fantastic week.
"The trip was excellent in every way. Great chalet, very nice accommodation and splendid food.....Claire was also excellent: enthusiastic, good teaching, patient and safety conscious. And we all had great fun. All in all I’d happily recommend Zinal, Chalet Edelweiss and Claire."
I had a fantastic time in Zinal. Penny and Eric were excellent hosts. The accomodation and food were superb. Clare was an enthusiatic and thoughtful instructor, ensuring that we all our needs were catered for in different ways. I really enjoyed the opportunity to try out some skins on our short trips to find some untracked snow. She was entertaining in the evenings and i would certainly go on another course if she was the tutor. It would be good visit Zinal again to explore all the areas that were unavailable due to lack of snow. An excellent trip and one that I would be happy to repeat.
I can ski red and black runs on piste without a problem. I am new to off piste skiing or maybe I have skied a little on the sides of the piste, or even attended a previous off piste specific course. I would like to ski powder snow with confidence and learn to link turns off piste. Learning to vary turn radius and control speed is an important goal. Gaining confidence in a variety of terrain would move my skiing to the next level.
I have at least a couple of weeks off piste skiing experience and/or received some previous instruction on an off piste specific course. I can link at least 8 – 10 turns together in reasonable control, speed and style, following the fall line in most snow conditions. I would like to improve my skiing in deep powder, heavy crusty snow uneven terrain and trees. I am happy to hike or ski tour for short distances to get to the best snow and terrain. I aspire to ski fluidly off piste and to ski steeper slopes. At this level all ski tourers must have some previous experience of using a touring set up, skinning and kick-turns.
I am confident skiing challenging terrain and steeper slopes. I can sideslip forward and backwards, side-step up and downhill and traverse steep slopes with no problems. I am happy to ski tour and hike for 1 – 2 hrs to reach the best snow and terrain. I aspire to ski the best snow available, push myself to ski steeper slopes and extend my ski touring experience. At this level all ski tourers must have some previous experience of using a touring set up, skinning and kick-turns.
I can ski fluidly and autonomously on all terrain. I often ski couloirs and gullies and seek out steep slopes to ski. I can jump turn in narrow couloirs and have experience of abseiling and side-slipping on steep terrain. I dream of skiing powder snow, I can ski fast, fluid “freeride” style turns, I can jump off small rocks, ski trees and challenging terrain with no fear or problems. I will often hike and ski tour to reach the best snow and terrain. I am familiar with using ice axe and crampons and some basic rope techniques. My aim is to push my skills and challenge myself further.
On all our off-piste weeks you'll be staying in comfortable catered chalets or hotels. When skiing you need to carry just a small day pack, which contains your safety equipment and any personal items you may need.
Possible characteristics might include bib-style front with braces (to keep the snow out), side-openings (useful for when you get hot), breathable fabric (Gore-Tex or similar), stretch knee pads, integral snow gaiters. Bib-style trousers can be too warm in spring in which case waist-cut trousers would be better..
Made of breathable material (Gore-Tex or similar) and built-in hood. We advocate the ‘layering principle’ so a shell is recommended rather than a padded jacket.
Comfortable underwear with good wicking properties.
An approach that gives better heat retention and good flexibility. These tops are known as ‘mid layers’.
We use a 'buff' - a light, stretchable tube. Consider a fleece/cotton version for warmth or just a cotton one to keep the sun off.
To include warm hat. Mountain Tracks fully supports the wearing of helmets for skiing.
Must be good quality. Mitts are good if you suffer from cold hands.
Optional
Optional, but useful if you feel the cold.
Recent years have seen big changes in ski, boot and binding design and technology, which make off-piste skiing much more accessible. Standard downhill equipment is fully acceptable for our off-piste performance ski courses.
There are many ‘all-mountain’ or ‘freeride’ skis to choose from and we highly recommend Movement’s and Dynastar's ranges. Width is good but it is important to choose a ski with the right dimensions for the task. Ideally you want a ski that is in excess of 80mm underfoot but no wider than 95mm. This will give you enough floatation in powder snow but enable you to still carve on the piste and make short radius turns. A wide ski will give stability in soft and powder snow but for inexperienced skiers they can be hard to turn on the piste, through bumps and in narrow spaces.
For examples of skis that fit the profile outlined above check out these options:
We recommend downhill ski boots for our performance courses but if you have ski touring boots then by all means bring these. If buying boots they should be fitted by a professional boot fitter. There are too many boots to make specific recommendations.
It essential you break-in and wear the boots prior to skiing for the first time, even if this is just walking round the house or office.
When buying new boots its imperative you visit a reputable ski boot fitter to ensure the right boot is purchased for your foot and lower leg shape. Not every boot will fit or suit every person and a good bootfitter will be able to select the right boot to suit your foot shape and type of skiing you do. You should always get a moulded insole or “footbed” made to go inside your ski boots. These will help stabilise any unwanted movement and can also correct or help with alignment problems, high or low insteps and other foot related issues.
If you do have skis with ski touring bindings and or ski touring boots you can use these on our performance courses.
You can rent downhill boots and suitable skis in the shops in all of the resorts we visit. If you own your own skis then we do usually recommend you bring them with you but if you are unsure if they are suitable then you can give us a call to check.
Custom footbeds - Essential kit - to provide additional comfort and ski control.
Technical Socks - Investing in good quality ski socks will improve fit, warmth and feel when skiing for long periods.
Useful to have 2 pairs on powder days in case of head plants!
Good quality sunglasses - UV factor category 4 recommended
1-1.5 Litre water bottle/nalgene bottle - or water drinking system like Camelbak (can freeze in cold weather)
The guide will carry comprehensive set for emergencies
carry spare batteries as well
The “Safety Trilogy”
Remember it is not enough just to carry this equipment; make sure you know how to use it. If you have never used this sort of equipment before consider joining one of our Winter Mountain Skills courses.
Most resorts have ski shops that hire ski equipment.
Prices do change by resort/country, but here’s an approximate guide to hire costs:
Our guides also generally have additional sets of safety equipment (transceiver/shovel/probe) which they hire out to clients for €60 for 6 days hire. This must be booked in advance.
The Val d'Annivièrs is a typical Walliser Valley with five idyllic and picturesque villages; St. Luc, Chandolin, Zinal, Grimentz and Vercorin which are all ski areas in their own right. They stretch between 1200m – 3000m. With skiing on all aspects of the compass the valley is reknowned for its variety of snow and the scope of its freeride domain.
We rate Zinal and the Val d'Anniviers as one of the best areas for off-piste and backcountry skiing in the Alps.
For our weeks in Zinal we stay in the newly renovated Chalet Edelweiss.
Our good friends Eric and Penny Kendall have created a fantastic chalet in the village of Mottec just 2 minutes from Zinal.
Find out more about the Auberge at www.skizinal.com
The area has a large network of lifts servicing about 200kms of pistes up to an altitude of almost 3000m. The whole area is characterised by stunning, high alpine terrain, deep valleys and charming villages. There are 4 main ski domains: Zinal, Grimentz, St Luc-Chandolin and Vercorin, all of which are well-connected by local buses. The area also has the advantages of being relatively unknown (and therefore not so busy) and easily accessible from Geneva, Zurich or Sion airports.
You want to arrange to arrive in Zinal by late afternoon on day 1.
At the end of the week the course finishes after breakfast on day 5. We recommend that you arrange your return/onward flight for mid to late afternoon to give yourself plenty of time to get to the airport without having to rush!
The most convenient airports are Geneva or Zurich airport from where you can take the train to Sierre (Geneva 2 hrs, Zurich 2.5 hrs). At Sierre catch the yellow Post Bus to Zinal, you may need to change in Vissoie. Ask the driver fro Mottec (as it’s a request stop) and the bus stops right outside the Auberge Edelweiss. This is the large balconied house fronting the road. Train and bus timetables can be found at www.sbb.ch/en Alternatively you can hire a car at the airport, driving time to the Auberge is approximately 2 hrs from Geneva and 2.5 hrs from Zurich.
250 York Road, London
SW11 3SJ, United Kingdom
info@mountaintracks.co.uk
Tel: +44 (0)20 8123 2978
Fax: +44 (0)20 7905 0921
