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National Ski Patrol

LEVEL 1 AVALANCHE
Module 1: Avalanche Foundations
Module 2: Avalanche Safety & Rescue Skills
Module 3: Organized Avalanche Rescue

with emphases on pre-course preparation and backcountry travel

These course modules are designed for the motivated student willing to commit to significant pre-course study and preparation. The goal is to utilize the inherently limited in-person time only for those learning opportunities that are not available through published educational resources. Modules 2 and 3 also require backcountry ski equipment, with an accompanying fitness level and skiing skills for Module 2 to complete the highly demanding tours as featured in prior years of the course.

Please read all the pages on the course website carefully before registering for the course. If the website seems too complicated or otherwise difficult to follow, then you should take an avalanche course from a different provider.

You can read about the course in this article (on p. 25) published by the American Avalanche Association's The Avalanche Review.  (The course was also the subject of a presentation at the November 2011 first annual Eastern Snow and Avalanche Workshop.)  Note that the modular approach that this course pioneered back in 2010 has now been adopted for all NSP courses starting in the 2014-15 season.

Yet even with all the extensive pre-course preparation and field time, the full Level 1 course is still NOT a substitute for a Level 2 course. Instead, the goal of the full Level 1 course is to cover the typical Level 1 curriculum in a more thorough manner, both in the classroom and out in the field. By contrast, any Level 2 course would require students to develop a much more in-depth knowledge of snow science and to conduct their own snowpit analyses and stability tests.  At the Level 1 course, snow science is relatively deemphasized, and stability assessment is merely demonstrated by the instructors.

For additional training that complements an avalanche course, here is an example of an introductory-level NSP Mountain Travel and Rescue course.  And here is an example of an integrated Level 2 course for Avalanche and Mountain Travel/Rescue.

Module 2: Possible Course Tours

For the winter field sessions of Module 2, we meet for breakfast each morning at 6:30 at the AMC PNVC.
In prior years, we have started skinning up at 7:30 or shortly thereafter.

In 2015, although not a formally registered course, we toured for 5720' vertical and almost 10 miles, traveling through Oakes Gulf (Lakes hut entrance and Airplane Bowl), NE Snowfield, and AR Central:

For the 2013 course (pictures here), on Saturday we toured for 6400' vertical and ~15.5 miles, reaching a high point truly above treeline (as opposed to the various at-treeline ravines), within about 800' of the summit:

Then for Sunday in 2013, we toured for 3200' vertical and ~8 miles, followed by rescue practice at a small gladed hill off of Old Jackson Road:

For the 2012 course (pictures here), on Saturday we toured up to the base of Huntington Ravine, then skied back down the Fire Road, reapplied skins to head up to the base of Tuckerman Ravine, then skied back down the Little Headwall and Sherburne to arrive at PNVC around 4:00, where we practiced rescue until around 5:00:

Then for Sunday in 2012, we toured up to the base of Gulf of Slides #1/Main, skied down the GoS trail to cut across on the Graham connector, back up to the base of Tuckerman Ravine, then once again skied back down the Little Headwall and Sherburne to arrive at PNVC for more rescue practice:

Presidentials Maps

You can generate a custom topo map from this gpx file via many options, including:

• Overlay the file on the plain USGS quad at the CalTopo website.
• If you have a Garmin gps, then you can download free base maps from GPSFileDepot with Garmin's BaseCamp software.
• For a smartphone, a touchscreen can be difficult or even impossible to manipulate in Mount Washington's typical winter weather.  But with that caveat aside, the Backcountry Navigator Android app offer the excellent option of "USTopo: Imagery with Markup" for a basemap combined with the gpx file.  (For the iPhone, Gaia GPS is probably the best choice.)

Note that the gpx file's various routes/tracklogs and waypoints are not meant to be followed blindly.

But still, with that warning aside, including them should be helpful for the course.  

For a quick overview of slope angles, you can download a Google Earth kmz overlay file with yellow 15-25 degrees, orange 25-35, red 35-45, and magenta > 45.
(Set the transparency slider to ~50%.)
And you can download a spreadsheet for aspects and elevations of individual lines.
This slope angle tool is another potentially useful resource.
Annotated pictures can also be downloaded for Oakes Gulf and Great Gulf.

And although not necessary for the course, here is a quick summary of the available commercially produced maps and guides for the area:

Best Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast
Third edition, and as always would be more accurately titled “the most obvious and well-known backcountry skiing, for which you don’t really need a guidebook anyway” ...
... but now apparently includes some additional information on the Northern Presidentials, plus the historical aspects are very well done.
(The author is mainly a political writer, and his sister is even a [relatively] well-known political radio broadcaster.)

White Mountain Guide
Hiking trails only, but super-detailed descriptions, so a great resource for trip planning.

AMC White Mountains Trail Map: Presidential Range
Made from waterproof/rip-proof tyvek (unlike the instantly shreddable paper maps that come with the trail guide book).

National Geographic Presidential Range & Map Adventures White Mountains Trail Map
Beautiful maps, and on waterproof/rip-proof material, but just too big & cumbersome overall for in-the-field use.
(Although then again could almost be used as an emergency bivy!)

Randolph Paths (RMC Guidebook with tyvek map) 
The definitive resource for the Northern Presidentials, which we’re *not* visiting during this course.
But if you ever do, you want this guidebook & map.

In Memoriam

Your course instructor Jonathan Shefftz never became a university professor like his father, Melvin Charles Shefftz, yet he nevertheless owes both his skiing and teaching skills to Professor Shefftz.

You can read about read about the late Professor Shefftz here:
http://www.wildsnow.com/5508/melvin-charles-shefftz-eulogy/

And here are some remembrances from former students of Professor Shefftz:

“[. . . ] a fellow former student and admirer of your father. I took two of his courses at Binghamton. I had been a Russian linguist in the military prior to going to school and this fascinated your father, which resulted in many spirited conversations after class. He remains the brightest memory from my academic career.”

“I started my Binghamton career intent on being a lawyer.  Then I took his European history survey. Your father filled the room with commanding intellect and passion and changed my life. I have been teaching history at a small private school in NYC for the past fifteen years. Prof. Shefftz is the reason I have been so happy doing what I have been doing.”

“Your dad was a fine professor and helped all of us get started as young historians in the formative years of the doctoral program. His History of History boded well for all of us. I have often thought of him in my long career here.”

“I was an avid student of Mel's from 1995 to 1998 and I think I must have taken about 5 courses from him.  I also bombarded him quite regularly in his office hours.  Mel's the reason why I found out about democratic socialism – with both of my parents Republican-leaning I certainly don't think I would have found out about this on my own.  And, finally, I was one of the students that Mel discouraged from going to law school.  I am so glad that he convinced me [...] to pursue a doctorate in British history.  This fall I am going to be teaching a survey lecture course in Modern Britain for the first time.  I can still remember that course fondly – it was Fall of 1995, my very first semester on campus.  He will surely be missed.”

“I first took a class with Mel in 1966 or 67, and went on to take several more. [...H]e was brilliant, and almost supernaturally learned. [...] Mel's lectures often were hilariously funny.  My recollection is that I spent half his classes furiously writing notes, and the other half gasping like an asthmatic at his jokes.  What I most admired about Mel though – what I really loved about him – was his unusual and often touching personality. Though passionate, Mel had no malice (well, perhaps I should say little malice) and while he had pride in his own talents, it was not the sort of pride that required him to denigrate others in order to feel better about himself. He also had a deep honesty: in the midst of a heated debate, if his opponent brought up some fact that counted against Mel's position, Mel would acknowledge that his opponent had a point, and then modify his argument to make it more nuanced, more subtle, to encompass both the essence of his own original position and the point his opponent had made.”

Module 3: Rescue Plan

Review these resources:

• Avalanche Rescue Fundamentals (2010 edition)
• Avalanche Rescue Quick Guide (2009 edition)
• "Active Avalanche Safety Plans: Recommended Generic Table of Contents," Avalanche.CA: The Journal of Canada's Avalanche Community, Volume 88 Spring 2009
• "Writing an Avalanche Safety Plan," Avalanche.CA: The Journal of Canada's Avalanche Community, Volume 91 Winter 2009-10
• Example of Traditional Three-Stage rescue plan (not keyed into ICS)
• Mountain Rescue Association: Avalanche Rescue Operations
• Medicine Bow Nordic Ski Patrol: Avalanche Rescue Plan
• U.S. Forest Service and Mount Washington Volunteer Ski Patrol: avy portion (older version, and unofficial excerpt)
• Rescue at Cherry Bowl

Now pretend that your entire ski area is tilted up more by about 10 degrees and also receives about 200" more snow than it actually does, along with significant wind loading. (Check this website to see if your ski area's steepness stats are included.)

Assume that the infrastructure, equipment, staff, training, plans, etc. already exist for explosives control work and open/closure decisions.
Your assignment is to develop a very simplified start of an outline for in-bounds rescue plan in case something goes wrong.
Remember, this could be a result of either a post-control avalanche on an officially open slope (don't worry about the lawsuit implications!) or skiers/riders "poaching" pre-control closed slopes (do worry about the hangfire to rescuers!).

Elements to include:

• A marked-up copy of the ski area trail map showing potential avalanche terrain, rescue gear caches, and continuously staffed patroller locations.
• What patrollers will be considered capable of responding to a rescue in avalanche terrain (e.g., what level of training)?
• What equipment will patrollers be required to have with them at all times?
• Who will make the decision on whether the slope is safe for rescuers?
• Very simplified diagram applying the organizational structure you learned in your FEMA ICS course.

Ideally all this should be contained in a single pdf file, to be emailed to Instructor of Record (by the deadline noted in the student checklist), who will then email the presentation to your fellow students.
Be prepared to provide a very brief oral presentation on the key points of your rescue plan to your fellow students during the Module 3 Rescue Session.

And finally, for inspiration of sorts, the picture below is from Holiday Valley in Western New York:

Module 2: Tux Avy Bulletin Assignment

For this assignment, you can choose any day of the season in between Modules 1 and 2, but wait until the regular five-point scale Mount Washington avalanche bulletins have started up for the season (usually around late November or so).

But don't wait until the last minute (and remember the deadlines posted at the student checklist), since certain periods will provide better opportunities than others.

First, read these two articles:

1. The Importance of Micro-Scale Avalanche Forecasting in Mount Washington’s Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines, by Chris Joosen (which can be followed up by viewing a multimedia presentation)
2. Springtime Avalanches Don't Happen Here - Or Do They? A Nearly Deadly Avalanche in New Hampshire's Presidential Range, by Jonathan S. Shefftz and Evan Osler

Then, periodically monitor:

1. USFS Tuckerman Ravine Avalanche Advisory (preferably every day)
2. Mount Washington Observatory Higher Summits Forecast
3. Mount Washington Observatory Overnight Weather Data
4. AMC Backcountry Weather and Trail Conditions
5. Randolph Mountain Club Northern Presidential Snow Stake
6. "Time for Tuckerman" website forum for Recent Photos & Reports

Take a day of your choosing (can be during that day, or later on after-the-fact with hindsight), but try to avoid days when the decisionmaking is far too obvious (e.g., weather and/or avalanche conditions so poor that travel is infeasible, or a stretch of "Low" avalanche danger that allows relatively safe travel everywhere).

Write up a very brief summary of the avalanche forecast for Tuckerman Ravine that day, including the recent weather conditions and season-long snowpack characteristics that have led to that forecast.
Then create a simplified avalanche danger rose, showing the rating by aspect and elevation, using the data in this aspect summary spreadsheet if necessary.
Also identify the relevant avalanche "Problems" for which you can use this spreadsheet version of the new AIARE Avalanches and Observations Reference.
For each "Problem" separate out on a five-point scale the Probability (with "Likely" and "Unlikely" at opposite ends of the scale) and "Size" (with "Large" and "Small" at opposite ends of the scale).
And identify the Trend over the next 24 hours (either Increasing Danger, Same, or Decreasing Danger).

So far you have essentially reverse-engineered a typical regional avalanche forecast out of the Tuckerman Ravine micro-scale avalanche forecast.
But now you need to ski -- somewhere in the Presidentials other than Tuckerman (or Huntington) Ravine.

Pick some other Presidentials location at- and/or above-treeline . . . which actually has enough snow to ski!
 (If you're not familiar with the various options, just choose Gulf of Slides ski trail into Gulf of Slides.)

Prepare a touring plan (for the same day whose avalanche bulletin you've assessed), including a marked-up map showing your routes for both ascent (in green) and descent (in red), using an online mapping tool such as CalTopo or any of Presidentials-specific map resources and the previously referenced aspect summary spreadsheet.
Utilize the Decision-Making Framework and "STOP" series of questions as referenced in the assigned Volken backcountry skiing book.
Complete a section of either your own field book or these sample pages from the 2012 AIARE field book.
You can also use this slope angle estimation tool.
And try to obtain aerial imagery from different aspects and angles, especially from Google Earth.

This should be contained a single pdf file, to be emailed to the Instructor of Record (by the deadline noted in the student checklist), who will then email it to your fellow students.
On the evening of the first day of the Winter Field Sessions, you will present your touring plan to your fellow students (demonstrating your proposed route on the Presidentials diorama at PNVC), as if all of you were contemplating going on this tour (albeit with a smaller group size, and more familiarity among the group members), so the primary feedback will come from your fellow students.
Hence each student's completed assignment will constitute yet another assignment for all the other students. 

Some key issues to address in your touring plan:

• How does your route compare to Tuckerman Ravine in terms of aspect, pitch, elevation, and fetch areas?
• What are the major factors contributing to the ratings in the USFS avalanche bulletin, and how might these major factors differ from your chosen location?
• What recent conditions reports are available for your chosen location?
• What do you think the avalanche conditions will be for your chosen route?
• Who are you partners?
• How familiar are you with the terrain?
• If conditions turn out to be other than expected, do you have appealing and accessible alternatives?

Major caveat: if this assignment seems hard, that's because . . . it is!
We don't expect anyone to come up with a perfect assessment here -- after all, the difficulty of this assignment is precisely why even the professional USFS snow rangers limit themselves to only two glacial cirques (and even omit many prominent ski lines in one of them).

However, the process of completing this assignment will force you to assess many important factors, as well as keep you periodically in touch with Presidentials conditions . . . and also prompt you to think about the implications of skiing outside the specifically forecasted areas.

Moreover, Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines are the only backcountry skiing destinations with such micro-scale forecasting, so limiting our avalanche course to applying the Tuckerman Ravine forecast to only . . . Tuckerman Ravine would fall far short of the skills you should acquire from a L1 avalanche course.

Other Avy Course Options

The Northeast offers numerous options for avalanche courses.

One resource is the list of all providers teaching courses on Mt. Washington.

At the opposite geographical extreme, the National Ski Patrol ("NSP") offers many courses in many different parts of the Northeast. Most of the one-day Module 1 classroom "Avalanche Foundations" courses are held in the Mid-Atlantic states, far from real avalanche terrain . . . but close to where most people really live.  Module 1 can then be combined with a weekend Module 2, held at Smugglers' Notch (usually 1st weekend in Feb), Mt Washington (usually 2nd weekend in March), and Whiteface (usually 3rd weekend in March, but only in even-numbered years).

The Northeast also has many course providers whose instructors have met the standards for the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education ("AIARE"):

• Acadia Mountain Guides
• Chauvin Guides International
• Eastern Mountain Sports
• International Mountain Climbing School
• Kingdom Adventures Mountain Guides
• Northeast Mountaineering
• Petra Cliffs
• Synnott Mountain Guides

You can also directly contact individual AIARE qualified instructors at this link.

Differences between a three-day Level 1 course from NSP vs AIARE? In general, all Level 1 courses from both organizations strive to meet the American Avalanche Association ("AAA") guidelines. More specifically, both of the instructors for the course at this website have taken our formal avalanche training from a mix of NSP and AIARE providers, and have also gone through the instructor training for both NSP and AIARE. Based on this extensive basis for comparison, our definitive conclusion is that . . . it depends. That is, the differences within the courses of each organization are probably larger than the differences across the two organizations.

Note also that the AAA "strongly recommends" an awareness-level course before taking a Level 1 course. That reflects in part what we are trying to accomplish with this course: ensure that students arrive at the first day of the course with some avalanche awareness, instead of being totally new to the topic.

The approach taken to this issue by the prominent mountain guide Marc Chauvin has been to offer a mix throughout the year of the standard three-day L1 format and a two-day awareness-level course with a curriculum of his own design, drawing on his extensive educational background that includes being one of the key founders of AIARE, serving as an instructor/examiner for (and even President of) the American Mountain Guide Association ("AMGA"), and completing the Canadian Avalanche Association ("CAA") Professional Level 1 and 2 courses.
(Avalanche education in Canada follows separate recreational and professional tracks: the CAA Pro Level 1 course is almost equivalent to a U.S. Level 3 course, and the Pro Level 2 course is far beyond any formal training offered in the U.S. outside of primarily science-based university coursework.  AAA is now working to implement such a split.)

Other certified mountain guides in the Northeast also offer awareness-level avalanche training:

• Alpine Logic
• Mahoney Alpine Adventures
• Mooney Mountain Guides

The full list of AMGA ski mountaineering guides is here.

Finally, if you don't see a published course date that fits your schedule, just contact a course provider or individual instructor for availability, then see if you can round up some other interested people (even just two more) to form a cost-effective course.
Furthermore, with a privately scheduled course, you can ensure that everyone is on ski touring gear, and thereby ensure that your field sessions are not compromised by having to wait up for slowshoers.
And you could even volunteer to complete some of the homework assignments at this website, thereby increasing the field:classroom ratio of the in-person time with your instructor.

Additional Educational Resources

Want even more reading (and also viewing)?

You can read summary articles of the annual Eastern Snow & Avalanche Workshop ("ESAW"), typically held on the first Saturday in November, near Mount Washington.
You can also download Jonathan's 2014 airbag presentation (or revised 2020 version) and even listen to the audio.
(Jonathan also presented at the 2012 ESAW, but no need to review that presentation, since the topic was ... this avalanche course!)

An avy-related blog [no longer updated though] is intended as a companion to this course, often highlighting recent incidents. 

Also, some supplemental articles (culled from various files in my collection) are available in a Google Docs folder.

For the scientifically inclined, try The Avalanche Handbook (by David McClung and Peter Schaerer), which is far beyond the level of this course.  Similarly beyond the scope of this course, but perhaps of interest to the technically oriented, the American Avalanche Association's Snow, Weather, and Avalanches: Observational Guidelines for Avalanche Programs in the United States is available in digital format.

Also for the technically oriented, if you want to learn even more about mountain weather, then this aptly named book is tightly focused on exactly that topic.

Definitely subscribe to (and browse the archives of) The Avalanche Review, the publication of the American Avalanche Association, which also maintains an on-line library.

Two very helpful little supplemental books are by the late Edward R. Lachapelle, mainly pictures:

• Field Guide to Snow Crystals
• Secrets of the Snow: Visual Clues to Avalanche and Ski Conditions

Reading up on past avalanche incidents is a good way to avoid getting into an avalanche in the future, and on-line summaries are available for both the U.S. and Canada. 

Raw avalanche footage, once highly sought after for educational purposes, has now vastly proliferated. Also, the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center (out of Bozeman) hosts some educational videos.

On-line tutorials are available, but tend to be relatively basic (although might be helpful for showing your family what you're studying so hard?), like this one from Avalanche.org.  Also helpful is this on-line glossary.

On-line discussions are hosted in a dedicated avy forum at TGR (and tend to have a higher signal:noise ratio than the more general-interest forums).

Course Format, Syllabus, Dates

Course dates and venues are as follows during the 2017-18 season for the three separate Modules:

1. October or November TBD, Northfield Mountain MA (driving directions)
2. TBD (possibly two midweek days, depending on schedules for Module 1 graduates), Mount Washington NH based out of the AMC Pinkham Notch Visitor Center (PNVC) & Joe Dodge Lodge
3. TBD (single weekend day, but probably not for current season), Northfield Mountain MA (if natural snow available) or Berkshire East MA

Module 1 can be taken by itself, either as a de facto refresher, or to meet the prerequisites for a different instructor's NSP Module 2, or to prepare for field sessions with a non-NSP avalanche instructor or mountain guide.
(Note that Module 3 is of interest only for patrollers planning to take NSP Level 2 or needing training in organized group rescue -- otherwise, Modules 1 + 2 = a complete Level 1 avalanche course, meeting the prerequisite for a Level 2 course from AIARE or some other non-NSP provider.)

Details

Module 1 ("Avalanche Foundations"), as outlined in the downloadable syllabus, starts with classroom activities and outdoor rescue practice, then concludes (for those student continuing to Module 2) with preparation for Module 2 (both to cover gear issues, and to take a fitness-assessment hike).
In addition to your winter gear, bring a lunch, as on-site food is unavailable and you will not have time to travel off-site for food.

Module 2 ("Avalanche Safety & Rescue Skills") starts at 6:30 the first morning with breakfast at the AMC's PNVC. (All students are very strongly encouraged to drive up the prior evening and stay in Joe Dodge Lodge.)
After some initial discussions, we head out for a full-day tour (as summarized here), including snowpit demonstrations by the instructors and also student rescue practice.
We return in time to put away gear and prepare for the following day.
We reconvene for dinner at 6:00 in the AMC's PNVC to debrief the day's tour.
After dinner, students present their Presidentials tour plans in the PNVC diorama room, then students present their Western tour plans in a Joe Dodge lounge.

All students are required (as detailed on the Student Checklist) to reserve a bunk at the AMC's Joe Dodge Lodge Saturday night.
Course activities start up again at the following morning at 6:30 breakfast followed by another full tour, with the ultimate goal to have all students on the road heading home by 5:00 in the afternoon.

Module 3 ("Organized Avalanche Rescue") will be held on a single weekend day at a ski area in Western Massachusetts, probably Northfield (if natural snow is available) or Berkshire East.

Finally, note that dogs are prohibited from all course modules.  Also, attendance at the course is restricted to enrolled students. Friends, family, etc., are certainly welcome to join in the many recreational opportunities available to the public at Northfield Mountain and at Pinkham Notch, but they should not plan on listening in, observing, tagging along, etc. during course activities.

Student Checklist

If the below items are not received in their entirety on time, you will receive one warning email.
If the situation is not corrected immediately to the satisfaction of the instructors, your registration will be cancelled (with no refund) and you will not be allowed to attend the course.

Actions to be completed by at least two weeks before the Module 1 Fall Session:

1. Complete required reading and send in completed review quiz.  (Complete this first -- otherwise, any order is fine for these assignments.)
2. Complete mountain weather course and send in certificate.
3. View A Dozen More Turns and send in essay.
4. Complete route-finding exercises and send in screen captures.
5. Prepare your full winter day pack (including avalanche gear gear if already acquired), dressed for whatever weather conditions are forecast for the day. In addition, students planning on Module 2 should bring on-snow travel gear for inspection.

Actions to be completed by at least one month before the Module 2 Winter Sessions:

1. Complete Tux avy bulletin assignment.
2. Complete western avy bulletin assignment.
3. Email a picture of at least one beacon practice session.
4. If not an NSP patroller, send proof of first-aid and CPR course.  (Try to get this out of the way before ski season.)
5. As may be individually noted at the Fall Session, send description and/or pictures of any necessary gear acquired since then.
6. Reserve AMC lodging [details pending]. Include dinner for both nights if arriving in time Friday evening (buffet from 6:00 to 8:00) -- if unsure, then reserve just lodging + breakfast for the first night and buy dinner a la carte if you arrive in time on Friday. If you have alternative nearby lodging for Friday night, then reserve dinner/lodging/breakfast for only Saturday night (required!) and plan to pay for breakfast Saturday morning (since we'll start off the day's agenda over breakfast together at 6:30 in the visitor center, with all our gear ready to go).

Actions to be completed by at least one week before the Module 3 Rescue Session:

1. Complete this self-paced incident command course and email your FEMA Certificate of Achievement pdf file.
2. Complete ski area avalanche rescue plan assignment.

Registration & Fees

To register:

1. Review all the material on the course website to confirm that this course format is appropriate for your learning style, time commitment, ski gear, fitness, and skiing ability.
2. Download and complete the registration form (fillable Word file).
3. Download and complete the release form (static pdf file).
4. Email pdf versions of both forms to the email address on the registration form.
5. Mail two separate checks (not PayPal) for the first two fees (as noted below) to the address on registration form.
6. And finally, register here (free of charge, although nonpatrollers will need to create an account) for the purposes of the NSP database.

The Module 1 Fall Session is open to however many students register and then satisfactorily complete all the assignments by at least two weeks in advance.
Students who wait until closer to the Fall Session to complete the assignments might still be admitted, but only at the discretion of the Instructor of Record.

The Module 2 Winter Field Sessions have a maximum of five students.

The course fees comprise three different components, payable separately:

1. Include a check payable to "NSP- Eastern Division": either $7.50 for National Ski Patrol members or $15 for others.
2. Include a separate check payable to Jonathan Shefftz to cover instructor costs: Module 1 = $85, Module 2 = $225, Module 3 = $50.

Also budget for paying on your own for cost of the required reading.

Finally, if all of the above information seems too complicated and difficult to follow, then you should take an avalanche safety course from a different provider.

Biographies: Course Instructors

Despite the volunteer status of the two lead instructors (since they earn their livings off the snow), they bring many professional credentials to their teaching, as well as many years of ski touring experience.
And in addition to their NSP instruction in avalanche safety (as Level 2 certified instructors) and also mountain travel/rescue courses, both are instructors for the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education (“AIARE”), and both are members of the American Avalanche Association.

Jonathan Shefftz patrols for Northfield Mountain and the Thunderbolt Ski Patrol. He is a PSIA-certified ski instructor for both alpine and nordic, U.S. Ski Association alpine race coach, organizer of a ski mountaineering race series (with personal wins at seven different venues), member of the Board of Trustees for the American Avalanche Association, winner of the NSP Eastern Division Outstanding Nordic Patroller and National Silver Merit Star (for National Outstanding Nordic Patroller runner-up), and organizer (as well as three-time presenter) for the Eastern Snow and Avalanche Workshop. His avalanche training includes Level 1 from the National Ski Patrol and both Level 2 and 3 from Chauvin Guides International. In addition to the Northeast, his ski touring and ski mountaineering has mainly been in the Sierra and especially the Pacific Northwest (having skied from the summits of eleven volcanic peaks above 10,000 feet, including Rainier as the highest and Glacier Peak as the least accessible). He has published extensively on the assessment (both quantitative and qualitative) of avalanche incidents and also written comprehensive reviews of avalanche beacons and other ski gear, most recently at the Beacon Reviews website.

Mark Renson is a National Ski Patrol Alpine Senior Patroller and member of the Waterville Valley and Mount Washington ski patrols. His U.S. avalanche training includes Level 1 from Jackson Hole Mountain Guides, Level 2 from Chauvin Guides International, Level 3 from the American Avalanche Institute, the National Avalanche School, and the 12-day AMGA Ski Guide Course. He also has a Canadian Avalanche Skills Training (“AST”) Level 2 Certificate via the Ski Mountaineering Leadership Course from SME. He has taught for numerous commercial providers in NH, VT, and CO.  In addition to the Northeast, his ski touring and ski mountaineering has mainly been in British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies.

Module 2: Rescue Practice

Practice your avalanche rescue skills in between the Module 1 Fall Session and Module 2 Winter Field Sessions.
Ideally you should also practice at least one "three-dimensional" burial with a beacon buried about a meter below the surface.  This is both to provide some more challenging beacon searching in the final search phase, as well as to practice strategic shoveling.
Read this article:
The ABC's (and D) of Digging
... and also watch this educational video (although it doesn't actually become educational until around the 0:48 mark):

Even if you lack another beacon to use as a target:

1. read the user’s manual;
2. practice putting on the harness with whatever clothing layers you would typically wear for a winter backcountry tour;
3. load up your pack with probe, shovel, and all your other gear and clothing for a winter backcountry tour; and,
4. practice unzipped clothing layers to reveal the beacon harness, removing the beacon from its harness, turning it from Transmit to Search, then finally removing your probe and shovel from your pack and assembling them.

Module 2: First Aid

If you are not an NSP patroller and certified Outdoor Emergency Care ("OEC") Technician, then you must have at least the typical two-day introductory first-aid and CPR course.

Better yet, take a Wilderness First Aid course, and even better, an Advanced Wilderness First Aid course.
Providers include:

SOLO

NOLS

Wilderness Safety Council

Wilderness Medical Associates

The course will not discuss emergency care issues in any depth, but a basic understanding of these concerns is necessary to fully appreciate certain rescue aspects.
Also, anyone heading into the backcountry to ski (or to do pretty much anything else) should have some basic first-aid and CPR training.  (Here is an example of why.)
Plus seeking out specialized avalanche safety training is just kind of backwards if you haven't already received basic first-aid training.
 (Your credentials don't necessarily need to be current -- although a periodic refresher is a good idea in general -- but you should feel reasonably comfortable with CPR, bleeding control, and splinting.)

And consider trying to get this requirement out of the way before ski season starts!

Module 2: Gear Requirements

The official NSP prerequisite for the course is, "Ability to travel through steep, ungroomed, snow-covered terrain, under adverse weather conditions." To accomplish this safely and efficiently (both up and down), especially for the demanding tours in prior course years, and for two days in a row, requires modern ski touring gear.

Specifically, you need a setup based around the "Tech" binding interface:  whether the original Dynafit (many many models, also rebranded by Fischer, Look/Rossignol, Movement), or its competition from Atomic/Salomon (Backland Tour/Light/MTN), ATK (RT, Raider 12 & 14), Fritschi (Vipec), G3 (Onyx/Ruby, Ion 10/12/LT12), Kreuzspitze (GT), Marker (Kingpin 10/13), Plum (WEPA, Guide, Yak), Trab (TR2), or various race-oriented models from ATK (also rebranded as Fischer, Hagan, La Sportiva, Movement), Dynafit, Kreuzspitze, Pierre Gignoux, Plum, and Trab.

For skis, many different choices are reasonable for Mt Washington's variable conditions, but the ideal is a waist width from somewhere around the low to mid 80s up to the low 90s, and with some sort of rockered or early-rise tip geometry.
For more details, check out the very helpful product comparison charts at Skimo.co (by far the most comprehensive ski touring retailer, and hence the reason for the discontinuation of this course website's previously maintained spreadsheet for boot and binding choices).

Either bring all of the necessary equipment in the gear checklist to the Module 1 Fall Session if you are already all set, or at least be prepared to discuss what gear you intend to buy (and then email confirmation and pictures of your final gear setup by the deadline listed on the student checklist).

For students who do not yet own modern rescue gear (three-antenna beacon, dedicated sectional probe at least 230cm long, metal-blade shovel), the instructors will provide demo gear at the Module 1 Fall Session to help with your purchase selection.

Even if you do not yet have all of this gear, bring to the Module 1 Fall Session at least a day pack and winter clothing, so that you can practice unzipping your outer layers to access a beacon, then opening your pack to access, remove, and assemble a probe and shovel, all while wearing gloves in potentially bitterly cold weather. (Every second counts in avalanche rescue, and even small delays in accessing, removing, and/or assembling rescue gear can be deadly!) You will also go on an hour-long hike with this pack in the late afternoon to assess your physical ability to travel through mountainous terrain. And the hike will occur under any weather conditions, with the sole exception of dangerously high winds.

Some highlights and additional comments on the previously referenced gear checklist:

• "Sharps" - ski crampons, boot crampons, ski pole self-arrest grip (or ice axe) - will probably be needed if we are able to ski (and safely return from!) the Chandler Ridge snowfield.  However, we will have an alternative route for those not so equipped.  Therefore, if you already have such gear (and are skilled in its use!), plan to bring it with you (with the final decision made the morning of the tour).  But if you do not already have such gear, then no need to acquire it only for the course.
• A helmet is required to be worn at all times when in potential avalanche terrain.
• A clinometer is required, whether a stand-alone "slope meter" (possibly available for purchase at the Fall Session) or built into a magnetic compass.
• Maps available for the Presidentials are summarized here.
• Notetaking is encouraged in the field, for which you must have some sort of waterproof note pad, preferably one designed for avalanche safety (e.g., AIARE field book).

Module 2: Western Avy Bulletin Assignment

In advance of the Winter Field Sessions, select a two-day period and a western avalanche forecast center from either the western U.S. or Canada.

The two-day period can be historical (from archived bulletins) or as it actually plays out in real time.
The avalanche center can be for a region you have been to previously, plan to visit in the future, hope to visit in your dreams, or just totally random. (If you have no preference, then Utah has an interesting mix of weather and snow conditions, with an outstandingly clear presentation.)
The more knowledge though you have of the terrain details, the better ... and for reasons that should be obvious given much of the course's focus!

Pretend you are going on two backcountry (or “sidecountry”) daytrips, i.e., back-to-back, staying overnight in town. (Alternatively you can plan an overnight hut or yurt trip, but this will add some complications.)
Prepare a written and oral presentation that addresses the following questions:

1. What are your goals (generally speaking) for these two daytrips?
2. What are your safety concerns (once again, generally speaking)?
3. In a typical season at this time of year, what are some general characterizations of the region’s snowpack?
4. What has the snowpack been like so far this season for the region? Include snowfall amounts, snowpack levels, data from recent weather events, notable avalanche cycles and incidents.
5. For the first day of the two-day period you selected, before you read the avalanche bulletin for that morning, what are you expectations?
6. Now read the avalanche bulletin: how did the forecast match up with your expectations?
7. What are your specific travel plans and associated concerns for backcountry (or “sidecountry”) skiing that day? Who are your partners? How familiar are all of you with the terrain? Do you have appealing and accessible alternatives?
8. Repeat the preceding steps for the following day.

In your write-up include the relevant avalanche bulletins.
If the avalanche bulletin does not already do so, create a simplified avalanche danger rose, showing the rating by aspect and elevation.
Also identify the relevant avalanche "Problems" for which you can use this spreadsheet version of the new AIARE Avalanches and Observations Reference.
For each "Problem" separate out on a five-point scale the Probability (with "Likely" and "Unlikely" at opposite ends of the scale) and "Size" (with "Large" and "Small" at opposite ends of the scale).
And identify the Trend over the next 24 hours (either Increasing Danger, Same, or Decreasing Danger).

Prepare a touring plan, including a marked-up map showing your routes for both ascent (in green) and descent (in red), using an online mapping tool such as CalTopo, or USGS quad pdf files can be downloaded for free (and modified with the free TerraGo Toolbar).
Utilize the Decision-Making Framework and "STOP" series of questions as referenced in the assigned Volken backcountry skiing book.
Complete a section of either your own field book or these sample pages from the 2012 AIARE field book.
You can also use this slope angle estimation tool.
And try to obtain aerial imagery from different aspects and angles, especially from Google Earth.

This must all be contained a single pdf file, to be emailed to the Instructor of Record (by the deadline noted in the student checklist), who will then email it to your fellow students.
On the evening of the first day of the Module 2 Winter Field Sessions, you will present your touring plan to your fellow students as if you were all contemplating this tour (albeit with a smaller group size, and more familiarity among the group members), so the primary feedback will come from your fellow students.
Hence each student's completed assignment will constitute yet another assignment for all the other students. 

Module 1: Winter Pack & Gear

Bring your full winter day pack to the Module 1 Fall Session.
Students continuing on for Module 2 should bring as complete a pack as possible in preparation for the Module 2 Winter Field Sessions.
But all students must bring at least winter gloves and some sort of pack, so as to practice unzipping layers to access the beacon, manipulating the beacon with bulky winter gloves, and extricating from a pack then assembling probe and shovel.
 All students also need to be prepared for outdoor beacon practice in whatever weather is forecast for the day.

Toward the end of the afternoon, students for only Module 1 will be released for the day, while Module 2 students will take their winter packs and avalanche rescue gear (but not on-snow backcountry travel gear), and wearing hiking boots or trail runners (but not ordinary sneakers or running shoes), we will then hike a little over 800 vertical to the summit of Northfield Mountain and back to assess fitness levels and overall outdoor travel competence for the Winter Field Sessions.
This hike will take place in whatever weather conditions we have that day, even full-on cold driving rain. Only dangerously high winds will cancel.

Upon the return from the hike, the instructors will present a gear show-and-tell, then inspect student gear, both packs and on-snow travel setups. Any deficiencies will be noted and will have to be corrected to the satisfaction of the instructors by the deadline noted in the student checklist.

Module 1: On-Line Assignments

All students need to complete these by the deadlines noted in the student checklist:

1. Complete the two weather course on the topics of Snowpack and Its Assessment and Avalanche Weather Forecasting. On the initial registration form, enter AvyCourse@gmail.com under “Supervisor/Instructor E-mail” for automatic notification of your completion.
2. Watch the documentary A Dozen More Turns -- search on the film title to either watch on-line or to purchase a DVD (for only a few dollars). Write an essay (and submit in the format of a pdf file) in which you identify at least three human/psychological factors that you think contributed to the incident, and in which you describe how you once succumbed to such a factor (in any context -- whether route selection in potential avalanche terrain or buying an item at the supermarket). Be prepared to deliver a very brief oral presentation on one of these factors.
3. Complete all 11 exercises at this route-founding tutorial, and take screen captures of all the successfully completed routes.
4. View these BCA-sponsored rescue videos on beacon searching, probing, and shoveling.

Module 1: Pre-Course Reading and Review Quiz

The following required texts are available from numerous sources in addition to the hypertext links:

• Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain, by Bruce Tremper – Skip the snow pack evaluation tests in Chapter 6 (which are more appropriate for a Level 2 course).
• Backcountry Skiing: Skills for Ski Touring and Ski Mountaineering, by Martin Volken, Scott Schell, and Margaret Wheeler – Although only one chapter deals exclusively with avalanche safety, the other chapters in this highly comprehensive book will help prepare you for backcountry travel during our field sessions.  But skip the more technical mountaineering portions, which include: climbing gear sections of Chapter 1, glacier travel sections of Chapter 5, all of Chapter 6, and crevasse rescue sections of Chapter 10.
• AIARE Field Book (often mistakenly prefaced with "BCA") – Very little text to read, so listed here mainly to purchase it and become familiar with its layout.

Based on this reading, download the review quiz here, complete it in Word (or some other compatible application), and send in a pdf file generated from your completed quiz by the deadline noted at the student checklist. The quiz will not be graded (especially since some of the questions are designed more to elicit thinking rather than any particular well-defined answer), but it will be reviewed for completeness.