AIARE Avalanche Rescue Course Planning

We meet from 8am – 5pm

We will meet at 8:00am the morning of our field sessions. Your instructor will provide detailed directions for the meeting point via email. Course venue may change at any time due to weather, conditions, or road closures.

You are responsible for all transportation

Transportation is not provided. You may need snow tires or chains to get to our course location.

If you are renting a car, please be aware that most car rental agencies do not permit you to use chains with their vehicles. However, you can try to rent a car from Turo and select “all-wheel drive, ski rack, and snow tires/chains” to find a vehicle that is winter ready. Make vehicle reservations well in advance to secure an appropriate vehicle.

Parking

Like transportation, you are responsible for any parking fees at trailheads. Many ski areas now charge a parking fee per vehicle if you do not have a season pass. Check the venue for your course to verify parking fees or requirements. Your instructor will provide details about the meeting location and any required parking permits in advance.

Winter Travel Advisories

Mountain road and mountain pass conditions can change dramatically over the course of a day. Please check the WSDOT website for conditions reports. Participants are responsible to ensure their vehicle meets WSDOT travel standards which could include required snow tires, chains, and/or AWD or 4WD. We strongly encourage carpooling.

We’re excited to offer an optional pre-course online curriculum to complement your AIARE Avalanche Rescue course. You will be sent these online learning materials upon registration for your course.

Prior to your course, we recommend becoming familiar with your local avalanche forecast center. In Washington, we are fortunate to have the North West Avalanche Center. If you are unsure of your local avalanche center, Avalanche.org can help you find the nearest avalanche center.

Interactive Online Educational Resources

• Alpine Ascents Avalanche Education Site (access provided to registered students)
• Know Before You Go
• Rescue at Cherry Bowl
• Snow Fall – The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek
• Avalanche Education Tutorial

Many items are available to rent through Alpine Ascents’ Gear Department. If you plan to rent from us, you can pick up gear during business hours (9am-4:30pm) on Thursday or Friday before your course.

Food

Students need to bring their own lunches for the full day. Plan to bring about 1,000 calories of food.

Here’s a sample lunch pack:

• Cold pizza, fresh sandwich, or burrito
• Bagel with meat & cheese
• Piece of fresh fruit
• Trail mix
• A bakery cookie
• Small bag of chips or similar salty snack
• Cold drink mix for your water

Courses like these require a much higher energy expenditure on a daily basis than what you may expect. Eating well and frequently not only sustains energy levels but also keeps positive morale and attitude. By nature, mountains have periods of inclement weather and it is important that caloric intake be high and regular to help avoid hypothermia and other cold weather or altitude-related problems.

After your course is finished AIARE will send portal instructions for accessing your certificate. If you have not received that email within 30 days of course completion, please email [email protected]. AIARE course certificates are useful for future program eligibility, like for joining other outfitters’ backcountry trips or the AIARE 2.