Developing with a listing of backcountry snowboarding locations isn’t fairly as straightforward as our typical resort guides. Backcountry snowboarding is inherently about exploration, getting away from the crowds, and experiencing the mountains in a singular manner. It is type of like having fun with superb wine; everybody’s style in backcountry snowboarding is just a little totally different. Do you wish to push your self bodily and technically on excessive peaks? Are you a soulful powder skier who simply needs to take pleasure in boot-top pow on low-angle tree runs? Or are you an adrenaline-seeking freerider who’s not likely in it for the uphill, as a substitute searching for to attain faceshots on the steepest, baddest runs by no matter means vital?
The nice factor is that North American backcountry snowboarding has acquired all of it. From basic zones in Colorado and the East Coast to the legendary steeps of Alaska, to mid-winter powder snowboarding within the Tetons, all the way in which to extra adventurous locations like British Columbia or the North Cascades, there’s one thing for everybody.
Earlier than you head out into the backcountry, after all, ensure you’re aware of present snow and climate situations, have checked the native avalanche forecast, and are carrying correct security tools, together with an avalanche beacon, shovel, and probe. When you’re new to snowboarding within the backcountry, contemplate hiring a information (all of those areas are house to world-class guiding operations) to point out you the ropes. Professional tip: Whilst an skilled backcountry skier, it’s properly price hiring a information in a new-to-you zone—they’ll get you to the products the quickest.
Photograph: Ming T&interval; Poon/Factors North Heli
1. Girdwood, Alaska
Nestled proper within the coronary heart of Alaska’s legendary Chugach Vary, the little city of Girdwood is basecamp to a number of the best entry backcountry snowboarding on the continent. It’s a veritable melting pot of massive mountain snowboarding tradition. House to a number of heli-skiing operations, the legendary Alyeska Mountain Resort, and countless ski touring up the street at Turnagain Go, Girdwood is a superb place to attain powder turns year-round.
Girdwood is situated about an hour’s drive southeast of the Anchorage Worldwide Airport, proper on the shore of the Turnagain Arm. Snow situations within the Girdwood space are usually a little bit of a feast or famine expertise, due to the low-elevation mountains rising straight out of the ocean. Turnagain Go tends to carry wonderful snow deep into the spring and is definitely accessible straight from the freeway.
In fact, the principle attraction for many skiers coming to the Chugach is the heli snowboarding. Operators like Chugach Powder Guides and Silverton Mountain Guides provide all the pieces from multi-day packages to single-drop heli bumps to over 1,000,000 acres of skiable terrain. That features all the pieces from mellow glacier runs to check piece steeps. Girdwood presents fairly a little bit of mid-winter snowboarding, however the very best time of 12 months to go is late winter into the spring.
Associated: Finest Backcountry Touring Skis of 2025
Photograph: Will Wissman
2. Haines, Alaska
When you thought the Chugach was cool, Haines is that on steroids. The small fishing city, situated about 100 miles north of Juneau, lies proper in the course of Alaska’s coastal mountain ranges. Briefly, it’s stunningly stunning, with a number of the most rugged and snowiest mountains in North America piercing the sky in all instructions. Snow totals listed here are incessantly measured in toes, not inches. That being mentioned, the extraordinarily distant and rugged terrain means there’s not a complete lot of newbie backcountry ski touring right here.
House to legendary heli-skiing operations like SEABA and Alaska Heli Snowboarding, that is the place to expertise a number of the gnarliest huge mountain snowboarding on the earth—there’s a cause that that is the place movie firms like Teton Gravity Analysis, Matchstick, and others come to stack footage 12 months after 12 months. In the case of heli snowboarding right here, it’s type of a go huge or don’t go in any respect type of scene. You’ll be finest off dropping the money with some buddies to get a non-public information and plane for a number of days. The most effective time of 12 months to go is mid-March by way of April.
North of city, in direction of the Canadian border, Haines Go presents a lifetime of nice ski touring choices, from quick roadside missions to lengthy multi-day traverses. There’s additionally a great deal of helicopter and ski-plane entry touring to do in all instructions from city.
Associated: Bucket Checklist Journeys: The AK Heli Ski Journey
Photograph: Mattias Fredriksson
3. Rogers Go, British Columbia
British Columbia’s Rogers Go is legendary for a number of issues. A vacationer attraction for the reason that late 1800s, the world is house to a significant transportation hyperlink between central and western Canada due to the Trans-Canada freeway and the Canadian Pacific Railroad reducing by way of a number of the most impassable mountains in North America. Due to this important infrastructure, today, it’s fairly straightforward to go backcountry ski touring right here and reap the benefits of entry to a number of the finest ski terrain on the earth.
Deep within the coronary heart of Canada’s Glacier Nationwide Park, and whereas Rogers Go correct is technically inside the Selkirk Vary, there’s backcountry snowboarding in all of the adjoining ranges, together with the Monashees, Purcells, and Bugaboos, to call a number of. Simply east of the go lies Kicking Horse Ski Space, with lots of of acres of world-class sidecountry and snowmobile-access terrain. On the west facet, there’s Revelstoke Mountain Resort, with related entry prospects. The ski touring terrain round Rogers Go correct options all the pieces from glaciated peaks, to steep technical couloirs, bouncy pillow strains, and 3000-foot powder tree runs. One other factor to think about is flying out to one of many many distant mountain huts and spending per week ski touring in your personal personal vary. Belief us, there will probably be no one else on the market. The most effective time of 12 months for snowboarding within the Rogers Go space is mid-winter into early spring. Base out of Golden or Revelstoke for the best entry.
A unusual factor about snowboarding right here is that Parks Canada regulates day by day backcountry entry to many in style snowboarding zones on Rogers Go. The steep terrain causes many avalanche paths cross the freeway and prepare tracks, that means the Canadian navy does day by day avalanche management utilizing artillery. Meaning you possibly can’t simply present up and count on to ski wherever any day. Be taught extra in regards to the Winter Allow System guidelines and examine present Parks Canada forecast and closures right here.
Associated: The ten Greatest Ski Resorts in North America
Photograph: Fredrik Marmsater
4. Japanese Sierra, California
California’s Japanese Sierra Vary is the spring snowboarding capital of the world. With Mammoth Mountain constantly offering one of many longest ski resort seasons within the nation, it’s no surprise that the excessive peaks of the Sierra maintain wonderful snow high quality deep into the summer time.
Snowboarding within the Sierra actually showcases a number of the hallmarks of the California way of life—it may be each tremendous laid-back and intensely intense on the similar time. Due to 4×4 entry roads that wind 1000’s of toes up into nearly each drainage within the vary, it’s doable to method actually huge ski strains with out a lot strolling. Time it proper, and you’ll bootpack up and ski down a 3000-foot couloir out of your automotive with out having to stroll greater than a mile to get there. Whereas it’s doable to ski many of those zones in chilly winter snow, it’s finest to attend till late spring and reap the benefits of the neverending corn cycle. Base out of Mammoth or Bishop for the best entry.
In fact, for these keen to stroll just a little additional, countless journey awaits. The Sierra is a superb place to deliver a tent and spend a number of nights sleeping up excessive to tick off a number of targets in a single journey. There’s an excellent cause that 4 of the 50 Traditional Ski Descents of North America are on this vary.
Photograph: Austin Lashley
5. San Juan Mountains, Colorado
Southwestern Colorado and the San Juan mountains have lengthy beckoned backcountry skiers. With views of the adjoining Utah desert, these are a number of the highest, steepest, and most distant peaks in Colorado and have an enormous number of ski targets. With a really dense focus of 14,000-foot peaks, there’s world-class ski touring proper from the small historic mining cities of Silverton and Ouray, wonderful sidecountry snowboarding off the again of Telluride Ski Resort, and a complete community of newly developed full-service mountain huts on and round Pink Mountain Go.
The hut-based entry is probably probably the most exceptional side of the San Juan snowboarding expertise, akin to what you’d discover within the Italian, Austrian, or French Alps. Screw snow tenting, ski tour as much as a heat and comfortable hut, and let the resident hut crew deal with you with scrumptious meals, drinks, and even backcountry scorching tubs and saunas.
Sadly, not like many different in style backcountry snowboarding areas in North America, the San Juans constantly harbor one of the crucial unstable snowpacks on the earth, that means they’re particularly avalanche susceptible and harmful, particularly in mid-winter. It is a significantly good place to seek the advice of with a neighborhood information service just like the San Juan Mountain Guides or San Juan Expeditions on present situations in the event you go to.
6. Rocky Mountain Nationwide Park, Colorado
Whereas the San Juans get a lot of the glory for being rugged and adventurous, the Entrance Vary of Colorado is house to a number of the finest powder snowboarding and ski mountaineering within the West. A brief drive into the mountains from Boulder, Colorado, the small city of Estes Park acts as a jumping-off level for ski excursions into Rocky Mountain Nationwide Park.
Right here, you’ll discover an enormous number of very approachable terrain, together with quick powder laps in sub-alpine bushes, 2000-foot couloirs within the alpine, and all the pieces in between. There’s even an deserted ski space, Hidden Valley, that options plenty of low-angle ski terrain. It makes for a superb place to study to backcountry ski or for skilled skiers to take advantage of powder runs when the avalanche hazard is elevated. It’s house to wonderful information providers just like the Colorado Mountain Faculty.
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Photograph: Brian Mohr
7. Mount Washington, New Hampshire
Consider it or not, there’s some fairly good backcountry snowboarding on the East Coast. New Hampshire’s highest peak, Mount Washington, is definitely house to 2 of the 50 Classics, Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines. Surrounded by a handful of smaller ski resorts like Cannon, Bretton Woods, Attitash, and Wildcat, the White Mountains of New Hampshire characteristic quick access to high-alpine technical ski strains.
East-facing Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines reap the benefits of the comically sturdy winds that blow snow off the summit of Mount Washington and deposit it (usually 45-50 toes deep) within the catcher’s mitts which might be the 2 glacial-carved cirques. The terrain is characterised by giant, icy cliffs cut up by a number of chutes and couloirs. It may not be as huge as out west, however it certain is steep.
Snowboarding the Whites requires extra persistence than many different in style backcountry ski zones—situations are merely fairly dangerous many of the 12 months. However when issues get good within the spring and early summer time, it’s go time. Base out of North Conway, New Hampshire, for the very best entry.
Photograph: Jason Hummel
8. PNW Volcanoes – Washington, Oregon, and California
The Pacific Northwest and its loamy old-growth forests is perhaps thought of extra of a mountain bike vacation spot for most individuals, however don’t skip out on the volcano snowboarding. With 13 named volcanoes reaching from northern California to the Canadian border, there’s a lifetime of high-alpine ski mountaineering to be carried out right here.
On the south finish of the Cascade Vary, California’s Mt. Lassen and Mt. Shasta provide a number of the best entry to ski touring terrain—and no glaciers to fret about. Bump as much as Oregon, and there’s Mt. Bachelor, the Three Sisters, and Mt. Hood, house to the well-known Timberline Lodge. Cross the border into Washington, and also you’re Mt. Adams, Mt. Saint Helens, the behemoth 14,400-foot Mt. Rainier, and the superbly aesthetic Mt. Baker.
Every peak presents its personal distinctive challenges, however most require excessive ranges of health and familiarity with technical glacier snowboarding and crevasse rescue. However the payoff–standing on the summit and 1000’s of vertical toes of steady corn snowboarding under—is properly definitely worth the effort.
Yearly, the season appears to vary just a little, however usually the very best time to ski any of those peaks is mid to late Could—generally even later.
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Photograph: JD Hascup
9. Snoqualmie Go and the North Cascades, Washington
Snowboarding within the PNW isn’t nearly ticking off volcano summits. Mid-winter, and even usually into the spring, there’s wonderful snowboarding available on the lower-elevation peaks round Snoqualmie Go and additional into the North Cascades across the Mt. Baker Ski Space.
A lot of this snowboarding could be accessed with the assistance of a chairlift on the Alpental or Mt. Baker ski areas and options basic Washington terrain: steep tree runs, chutes, cliffs, and pillow strains. Whereas the terrain isn’t all that huge in comparison with the excessive peaks, Alpental’s sidecountry or Mt. Baker’s Shuksan Arm are nice locations to ski a bunch of shorter laps on a powder day.
Sadly, due to the decrease elevation of many of those zones, the snow high quality can change straight away. It’s essential to regulate freezing ranges when planning a day to ski one in every of these zones—a number of levels of temperature distinction can imply the distinction between an unforgettable 30-inch powder day and three inches of rain. Both manner, deliver your fattest skis and your Gore-Tex.
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Photograph: Jay Goodrich
10. Jackson Gap, Wyoming
Final however not least, there’s the legendary terrain of Jackson Gap, Wyoming. With two main ski areas and their beneficiant open-gate backcountry entry insurance policies, 310,000-acre Grand Teton Nationwide Park, and thousands and thousands of acres of ski touring terrain accessible from the various roads within the space (together with Teton Go and Hoback Canyon), that is one in every of North America’s finest ranges to discover on skis.
Each Jackson Gap and Grand Targhee characteristic enormous swaths of backcountry terrain accessible from the highest of the resorts. Most of this terrain could be accessed with out ski touring gear, because it all funnels again to the bottom, however deliver your skins and touring bindings in the event you’re not sure of the place you’re headed. In fact, a lot of this terrain is steep and intensely avalanche susceptible, so take heed to what the JHMR tram operator has to say: “When you don’t know, don’t go.” In different phrases, ensure you’re totally ready to enter the backcountry earlier than you permit the gates.
Simply north of the JHMR boundary lies Grand Teton Nationwide Park, house to dozens of skiable excessive alpine summits, technical couloirs, and 1000’s of vertical toes of completely spaced bushes. Native information providers like Exum and Jackson Gap Mountain Guides are completely satisfied to point out you round. The deep snowpack and various terrain make this a superb place to take an avalanche course.
The Tetons are an ideal place to come back in each the mid-winter for powder snowboarding down low, and mid-to-late spring for prime alpine targets. Base out of Jackson Gap, Wyoming or Driggs, Idaho for the very best entry.
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