Winter Survival Course
SURVIVAL - The state of wanting to live or continuing to exist, especially after a dangerous event!
This is a 2 part blog about my day teaching on a Winter Survival Course for Destination Winter - Coaching and Guiding.
The first part of the blog was spent indoors, showing and explaining just what I carry in my rucksack for a day off-piste skiing and ski touring.
The second part we go through some uses of a first aid foil blanket, practical use of a survival shelter and finally building an emergency snow shelter up in the mountains.
Ute and I had been speaking to Jacob about offering something different during the Winter in St.Anton am Arlberg, Austria. The Arlberg is renowned as an off-piste destination with plenty of lift access powder snow and plenty of options to go and earn your turns skiing powder or beautiful corn in the Spring. However, there are places out in the back country that still have no mobile phone or internet signal, yes no internet access!! However, you do not need to escape too far beyond the borders of the controlled ski area to find yourselves in a situation, where something that you carry in your rucksack and a little bit of knowledge could prevent a serious or a life threatening incident!
So with our in-depth knowledge and experience of being out in the snow during Winter, not only here in our home mountains of the Arlberg, Austria but also out in Chile and Argentina and the Indian Himalayas, Destination Winter - Coaching and Guiding ran our first Winter Survival Course, with the support of Arc’teryx St.Anton.
We met up at Plitriquitron Lodging in St.Anton am Arlberg. Their new communal area was a great place to start the day!
The day was going to be spent firstly going through what we carry in our rucksack for a day in the mountains, be that on skis, snowboard or even snowshoes. We would then head outside for a bit of practice and understanding specific equipment we carry with us. Afterwards we would head up to St.Christoph am Arlberg to build a survival snow shelter.
What I carry in my Rucksack for a day skiing:
It is always interesting to hear about what people take in their rucksack for a days skiing or snowboarding, be it off-piste or cruising the pistes around the resort. You get a general idea of the time they have spent in the snow or if they have done any winter courses beforehand and sometimes someone comes up with a specific piece of equipment that could really have some serious uses or benefits!
I tend to go for a light and fast approach rather than trying to overcomplicate things and ending up weighing yourself down, with this nearing causing an incident! Remember, we are looking to comfortably get through an incident, we are not looking at taking more equipment to make it a luxury overnighter!!
Avalanche Equipment
A shovel, probe and avalanche beacon are the basics that should be carried or worn when skiing off-piste. When I used to teach in the Zuers Ski School, anyone who was the minimum of a Landesskilehrer had to carry a rucksack with avalanche equipment as we could be called anytime to head to an incident. Even when I piste ski I have my avalanche equipment with me, just incase I am asked to help out in a rescue!
Destination Winter, coaching and guiding also runs various avalanche courses throughout the winter, just follow the link to find out more about the avalanche courses available.
The rest of equipment I carry is as follows:
First Aid Blanket
This is a lifesaver and has many uses. I have made a separate chapter about the First Aid Blanket which you will find in part 2 of this blog.
Ski Strap
Again it has many functions, not just for binding skis, it can be used to hold a skin to a ski that is not sticking or even a make shift tourniquet to stem major bleeding which can be learnt on an outdoor first aid course.
Multi Functional Work Tool
It says what it does on the tin! Be it screwdriver to tighten up binding screws or changing the size of the binding to fit the boot, to pliers, a knife and a few other tools that could come in handy.
Small First Aid Kit
A small first aid is basically all I have ever needed when out skiing in the Arlberg, if I was ski touring in the Himalayas then my first aid kit would have more pieces or content that would be needed in an a medical emergency far away from help or rescue.
Survival Shelter 2 Person
This is a piece of equipment that could really save your life! It is a small shelter made of an ultra light siliconised nylon. It is supremely lightweight and packs down smaller than my fist. It keeps you warm and relatively sheltered within an internal micro climate. They are an essential item of safety equipment for the mountains and it is something that you can just stuff at the bottom of your rucksack and you will never notice it, unless that day arrives. I had used one on a ski tour of Hochkar. We skinned up from Hinterrendl and when we got to the entrance of the gully the cloud had come in and visibility had dropped drastically. The wind was strong so we were hoping that it would blow through. So instead of crouching down trying to keep the wind from ripping the heat away from us, we got out the survival shelter and waited keeping nice and warm for about 30 minutes. Unfortunately the clouds were set for the rest of the day so we skied down, taking it nice and easy until we got below the cloud line!
A survival shelter is quite common in the UK with hikers and mountaineers and is slowly getting carried by experienced mountain guides and off-piste ski guides in the Alps. There have been incidents in the Alps recently where skiers have frozen to death and after a thorough review of the situation from the rescue teams, it was said that if they had used and deployed a survival shelter they would most likely have survived the Winter storm. Yes the night would not have been ultra comfortable but it would have saved lives and that is what is so so important to realise! A piece of equipment that is so light and packs down extremely small can be the difference between life or death!!
I tend to ski mainly with Ute so I carry a 2 person survival shelter and we can fit 3 people inside at a push, however, if I was skiing with more people then I would go to a maximum of a 4-6 person survival shelter.
Warm hat
As I wear a helmet and goggles skiing, I take a warm hat or beanie in my rucksack.
Sunglasses
I always have my shades with me, as I ski with goggles it is nice to have the glasses incase I boot or skin up the mountain.
Arc’teryx Cerium Down Vest
This is such a nice piece of kit and what I would say, is my luxury item. It packs down to nothing and the warmth to weight and size ratio is incredible. The temperature can drop suddenly and of course there is nothing like a down jacket to boost the moral when you are cold. Of course there are other popular brands available, just make sure it packs small.
Emergency Chocolate Bar
A classic! However, think about getting a chocolate bar that you are not overly keen on. For instance, throughout my time in the military we had mars bars in the rations. I would only now eat one of these bars in a situation when I really needed it, I do not want to have a chocolate bar that I happy to snack on when I am feeling peckish and then forget to put one back into my rucksack!!
Water Bottle
Mostly throughout the Winter I would have a ½ litre of fluids with me, it is only when it gets to Spring and the temperature gets hot that I take a ¾ litre of fluids with me.
Small Candle
A tiny candle can also be helpful. This would definitely be in my rucksack if I am ski touring in remote areas. You will be surprised just how much heat a candle will emit in a snow survival shelter or snow hole.
Small Repair Kit
Consisting of:
A few Cable / Zip ties
Thin paracord
Rubber band
Bic Lighter with Duct Tape
Small piece of ski wax
Wire cable
If I was ski touring in the Indian Himalayas my repair kit would consist of more items due to the remoteness of the environment.
Duct Tape
This can be a solution to all sorts of problems and though I do not take a roll of tape, I have duct tape around certain pieces of my equipment such as: ski poles and lighter. Remember we are trying to be light so avoid carrying a huge roll of duct tape with you!
Finally, when ski touring, I would also have my skins in my rucksack.
Destination Winter - Coaching and Guiding will be offering more Winter Survival Courses throughout the 2026 Winter season. Of course we will be running more Avalanche Safety Courses and Ski Touring clinics as well. If you would like to be kept up to date with our courses then you can follow us at Instagram, Facebook or join our newsletter, we will certainly not bombard you with spam!
Finally, thanks for Jacob and Connie of Piltriquitron Lodging for the support, the coffee and tea was welcomed by all throughout the morning.
This is the end of part 1 of the Winter Survival Course and I hope you found it interesting enough to read the other blogs!
Steve Brooks
At the age of 16 Steve joined the British Army and served 12 years as a professional soldier during which he served with the specialist Mountain and Arctic troops. With this experience he was sent down to the Bavarian Alps to teach soldiers how to live and survive during Winter in the Alps. After a successful career in the military, Steve continued his love of adrenaline sports, working as a ski instructor, river guide and exploring remote parts of the world! Off-Piste skiing in both Chile and Argentina and ski touring up high in the Indian Hmalayas. His kayaking adventures have seen him run some of the most challenging whitewater on the planet, including "first descents" on 3 different continents, this culminated in being awarded Canoe and Kayak magazines Adventurer of the year in 2013.
Steve's love for adventure is infectious and his drive and passion has made his expeditions and adventures hugely successful.
