Enjoy the back country with powder snow skiing

Want to get off the groomed tracks and try a style of skiing that's a little more free? Perhaps powder snow skiing is for you.

Want to get off the groomed tracks and try a style of skiing that's a little more free? Perhaps powder snow skiing is for you. This style of skiing is ever more popular, as it takes you into beautiful back country terrains, away from the mobs of other skiers.

First thing's first: you're going to need special skis if you want to get out into the deep powder. There are a variety of styles that work in deep powder, but they all have one thing in common: they're wider than most other downhill skis. This is because when you're on powder, you need the greater surface area to keep you higher up on the snow so you don't sink in and get stuck.

The greater the surface area, the better the skis are going to be for deep snow. You can use overland touring skis for powder snow skiing, or extra wide powder skis, or all-mountain side-supercut skis to do the job. Of course, while these skis are great for deep powder, they won't be very effective on a traditional groomed run, so be sure you know what you're doing before you pick out your skis.

You won't find deep powder at just any resort. You have to go to places with a very high base of snow, probably in an alpine region. So do some research and find out which resorts are known for deep powder before you set out looking. You're also going to want to familiarize yourself with the local back country restrictions. While many resorts allow you to go outside the bounds of the groomed areas, while you're out there, there are certain areas that are totally out of bounds because of risk of death, and there are codes of conduct to follow.

Also be aware that snow takes on may forms and consistencies, meaning that some deep snow is better than other snow for powder snow skiing. For instance, you're not going to have a great time if you're on wet, dense snow. The drier, finer and lighter the better, in fact. This is another reason that alpine regions have the best powder snow skiing. They're at higher altitudes so the snow stays colder for longer, making it more fluffy and dry.

If you're going to be going into a back country region to do powder snow skiing, never go alone. Many people die every year because they go at it alone. And under no circumstances should you go into the back country without the guidance of a local expert and the proper equipment to be located in an emergency. The temptation will be there to set out on your own, but it is of the utmost importance to travel with a local guide the first few times you hit the back country.