Time for new Alpental BC rules?

Good to see solutions, instead of spray

One thing that could help with the problem would be if the ski area offered some kind of lift-served BC guide service. I know that I have been asked a few times whether such a thing exists. Each time I have just forwarded them on to the shack at the top of Chair 2, where they probably just got discouraged or turned down because there werent any patrollers on hand to take them out there. There is interest in this, and I know there are instructors at Alpental that would kill to take their clients into the BC on any given day (like me). This would be a great way to introduce people to the backcountry in a less demanding way than a full-on BC guided tour, which many are not interested in because it requires spending a lot of money, tele or AT gear, and hauling their fat asses uphill. Maybe a local guide service (or even just the patrol) would be willing to partner with SLC on such a program.

I offer this up because in the current system your everyday alpine skier or snowboarder has to climb over quite a few obstacles to get the experience and knowledge we take for granted. For most people, that land beyond the ropes is a mystery and avalanches are something they see on the news from time to time. They see untracked and they want it, and bad stuff always happens to somebody else. If we can replace a few of those guys with somebody who has a clue, and specifically someone who is turned on to BC skiing and spreading their knowledge around, that is helping to solve the problem. All we need is one person in that powder crazed group of would-be poachers to say "Guys, I dont think it is safe".

Can anyone speak to the alpental backcountry pass? I thought you had to have one in order to enter the alpy backcountry. And in order to get one, you had to have a beacon, shovel, probe, and buddy.

Obviously there is no enforcement. But I'm curious if that is the official policy.

The only time I went to shack at the top of 2, they said I needed a buddy to get the pass, which makes sense. Unfortunately, I rarely ski with a buddy inbounds....since most of my buddies eschew inbounds skiing. I guess I should post on the "partners wanted for lift assisted backcountry skiing" thread.

It is basically a release form. Probe/beacon/shovel are recommended but not required. I think it says a partner is required but I'm not sure. I was alone when I walked in to get mine, and I've seen others show up without gear to get theirs. Basically, having the pass means you've been warned and you are on your own, releasing the ski area from liability if bad things happen. If you haven't gotten one, you are not allowed out the gates, however I've never seen nor heard of anyone having their pass checked.

The rules say you need to have one to ski outside the gates.

When I got mine, they asked if I had shovel/probe/transceiver, but didn't ask me to prove it.

They asked a number of potentially "incriminating" questions about terrain, ie. "how familiar are you with the terrain out there?" - while insisting that they just wanted to see if I knew where the major cliff bands and other hazards were.

In the time I've had a BC pass (about 7 years) I've been asked if I had one maybe 4 times, only once did the patroller actually ask me to get it out of my wallet.

At PPass a few weeks ago I heard this (from a patroller) to a skier on his own without any gear:

"You have a backcountry pass, right?" - patroller.

"Uh, um, yeh?"- skier.

"Ok, cool". - patroller.

Enforcement is not strong! :