Equipment List
For Winter Climbing, Ski Mountaineering, and Backcountry Skiing
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This equipment list is for winter climbing, ski mountaineering, and backcountry skiing one-day and overnight trips. Please contact us if you have any questions about items on this list.

For One-Day Trips:

• Ski hat that covers the ears
• Brim Cap for sun protection (late winter and spring)
• Headlamp—check batteries!
• Goggles
• Sunglasses (UV/IR protective w/side blinders)
• Sun Screen
• Sunscreen Lip Balm
• Polypro undershirt layers (thin or thick, depending on weather)
• Light pile sweater, wool shirt or vest
• Jacket--pile or soft-shell (i.e. Marmot Photon, Sharp Point or Super Hero)
• 1 Shell Jacket (waterproof w/hood; can be very light if above layer is a softshell)
• 1 puffy insulated jacket, recommend with hood (Marmot Parbat or Needle)
• 2 prs insulated gloves (in case one pair gets soaked) or mittens.
• Thin liner gloves (wool, fleece or poly-pro)
• Wrist watch (w/alarm)
• Leatherman or pocket knife
• Poly-pro long john bottoms (thin or thick, depending on weather)
• Pants (wool or soft-shell (i.e. Schoeller® or similar fabric ))
• 1 Shell Pant (waterproof, windproof and breathable)
• Wool Socks (bring an extra pair or two for overnights)
• Gaiters—should have an under-boot strap to hold them down; internal gaiters are only acceptable for backcountry skiing.
• Nalgene Water Bottles (1 quart size, 2 half-quart size) Camelbacks NOT recommended due to freezing problems and other issues
• Backpack (>3,000 cubic in. (45 liters), straps for skis/snowboard and ice axe).
• Camera (optional)
• Skis/Snowboard or snowshoes, depending on activity. Skis should be tele or randonee or equipped with alpine touring plugs; Snowboarders should have either split boards, snowshoes, or short touring skis. No skis are needed for the two-day ice climbing program in Dubois.
• Ski Poles (best if they collapse, but not essential)—good to have for snowshoers too.
• Mountaineering boots—double boots recommended
• Crampons (Exum can supply them; bring yours if you have them)
• Ice axe or ice tools, depending on activity (Exum can supply them; bring yours if you have them)
• Ski Boots for ski outings (slightly large is good for warmer toes and comfort while mountaineering, can be either telemark boots, alpine touring boots, or regular alpine boots (not recommended))
• Snowboard boots for snowboard outings (Either soft or hard boots are acceptable, but hard boots recommended. Whatever boots you chose, make sure they work with your crampons.)
• Climbing Skins
• Ski Crampons (recommended, not mandatory)
• Avalanche Transceivers (Exum will supply if you need one)
• Shovel (Exum will supply if you need one)

For OVERNIGHT trips, add the following:

• Large (5,000 cubic inches or so) backpack
• Sleeping Bag (-15° to 15°depending on weather and season—can be rented from Exum for $15/night)
• Sleeping Pad (recommend Ridge-rest or lightweight Thermarest)
• Down Booties (optional)
• Lexan Spoon and Fork
• Large eating bowl
• Mug
• Water purification tablets or system
• Toilet Paper
• Lighter
• Personal medications and other items

Exum can supply the following:

• Tents
• Stoves and Fuel
• Cook Pots and other Cooking Gear
• First Aid Supplies
• Repair Kit
• Ice Axes (bring yours if you own one)
• Crampons (bring yours if you own them)
• Avalanche Transceivers (Bring yours if you have one)
• Shovel (Bring yours if you have one)
• Ropes and Climbing Equipment
• Helmets (bring yours if you like it)
• Harnesses (bring yours if you like it)
• Other climbing gear (bring yours if you like)

Discussion for Spring Ski Mountaineering

Year to year, the snowpack in the Tetons varies greatly. Some spring seasons are cursed with continuing snowfall, which muttles the mountain slopes with gloppy snow that never gets a chance to solidify. It is a treat if we can catch the snow right after it falls and ski powder, but it is not long before the snow surface gets very bumpy, dangerous wet snow avalanches come down, the climbing is arduous, and the skiing is difficult. However, during most spring seasons (thankfully), the storms cease and clear cold nights combine with warm sunny days to densify the snowpack and make it perfect for steep skiing...carvable, smooth, and easy to ski.

Participants in spring ski mountaineering should come to Jackson Hole prepared for both scenarios. At issue is the ability of the skier or snowboarder to climb up the mountain without punching too deeply into the snow surface, a frustrating experience we call "postholing." For skiers, the problem is solved easily by bringing a releasable-heel binding and climbing skins that fit your skis. Releasable-heel bindings take three forms. Firstly, there are free-heel bindings (also known as telemark bindings), which require special skills to operate effectively on steep terrain. Skiers who use this method should already be experts on this gear before participating in this course. Secondly, there is alpine touring or randonee gear, which includes a binding that allows one to release the heel for climbing and lock the heel back down for downhill skiing. Alpine touring (or AT) is the recommended mode for these courses. The third method employs alpine touring plugs, which are adapters that clip onto your boot and click into your regular alpine ski bindings during the ascent so that your heel can rise for walking. These work quite well, but the overall weight of the system is almost prohibitive in arduous mountain travel. To use this equipment, we recommend at least two seasons of experience on them and excellent physical conditioning.

For snowboarders, the issue of postholing is a little trickier. Here is the best rule of thumb. Bring two snowboards to Jackson Hole and decide which one to use based on current conditions. If possible, bring a split board and skins so that if the snowpack is very soft, you will be able to climb without postholing. However, some people say that split boards impede performance on steep terrain. However, if the approaches have soft snow, then the descent probably will have soft snow as well, and any shortcomings in function will be nullified. In addition to a split board, bring your favorite high-performance free-riding board so that if the snow is firm, you will have a board that you can trust when the edges are scraping on 50-degree firm. In this latter case, if the slopes are firm, then the approaches will be too and there will not be a postholing problem. You will be able to simply walk on the surface with your boots. We also recommend carrying a light pair of snowshoes (Verts are recommended) on your pack just in case the snow softens too much in the afternoon. Collapsible ski poles are also useful for pushing across flat terrain. The preferred product over snowshoes for climbing soft snow is a set of short skis, lightweight alpine touring bindings, and skins. These are often sold as a package at good snowboard and mountaineering shops.

Regarding the issue of soft boots versus hard, the most important factor is that your boot must be able to take crampons. Hard boots with square-edged soles are ideal because they climb steep snow much better with or without crampons. Soft boots without crampons are practically worthless for climbing steep snow. Participants who come without crampons for their soft boots will not be able to take part in most of the ascents and descents. One other disadvantage to soft boots is that if you ever had to take your board off in mid-descent, you will unlikely be able to kick a step into the slope with boots that have no grip. Also, soft boots are not designed for the sweating that accompanies extended climbing. After one day of climbing in soft snowboard boots, they are often soaked with sweat and very difficult to dry, especially since there are no boot dryers at base camp! A boot with an outer shell and inner boot works much better because you can take the inner boot out at night and bring it into your sleeping bag with you. In the morning, it is dry and warm. Boots that work well are any randonee or alpine touring boots with a square toe. Dynafit, Scarpa, and Garmont all are good, especially with the Thermoflex liner. Fit is the most important consideration.

That said, at least two of our snowboard guides use soft boots and crampons during their surf mountaineering exploits. They suggest the standard soft boot in a stiffer model with strap-on crampons made by RED (a Burton company) or Clicker step-ins with the Clicker Crampon. Switching from soft boots to hard boots for the first time during this course is not recommended.