New to PNW requests skis to buy recommendations

I'm a new skier to the Pacific Northwest and the backcountry, and am looking for some advice on all mountain skis to buy to use with an all terrain setup. I'm 5'6", 150 lbs. and would consider myself an intermediate skier with only a moderately aggressive style. I've already been recommended by salespeople the K2 payback's, the BD Joule's and the karhu Jill's. I don't know much about the Jill's or Payback's, and I've heard one comment that the Joule's may be too stiff.

Can anyone offer practical or firsthand advice about specific skis I could consider for the style and level I've described? I appreciate your thoughts.

I am very happy with my 2010 Atomic rt86 176cm. Also come in 169cm

These skis are lightweight and very versatile. Highly rated by independent reviews, and also recommended by the good people of Marmot Mtn Works in Bellevue. Also I believe some of the hard-er core BC skiers here have them and are happy.

Moreover, they are on sale - you can probably get them for 350ish.

Bit too light for crud, imo. Very easy to maneuvre in trees and bushes and what not, float well in several inches of powder. Haven't skied them in waist deep (snowboard better suited for this) or groomed runs SuperG style. I imagine they would NOT be very stable at high speed. I don't really care, as I like turns.

Disclaimer: I didn't ski for over 10 yrs and just started again last year. Currently skiing with a DonJoy knee brace due to torn ACL, taking it easy.

Edit: Forgot to say one of the better warranties in the industry. From what I've heard and know, you aren't likely to need it, which is even better

If Armar can post at 3.03 am so can I plus I want to beat the herd and give you good advice before you are corrupted.

Firstly welcome to TAY.
From your post its obvious you are female so my first question is , are you single? Excuse my bluntness but TAY is basically a collection of frustrated bachelor ski geeks and the men outnumber the women 500 to 1. It's the question many of them will want to know and may determine the enthusiasm of their responses but they are too shy to ask. If you are also a tele skier this will also inflame them as TAYers have thing about tele-chicks! As they say in AK, the odds here are good but the goods are also odd!

In the regard beware RonJ , a charismatic and jedi-master of PNW skiing who has uncanny ability to collect female ski partners albeit entirely platonic. During the season, on any given  Sunday he can been seen heading of to one of his secret stashes with a line of women behind him like a Mormon polygamist. How he does this we are not sure. He's like our Charles Manson only nice and doesn't kill people.

On to skis. In all honesty you would be best asking your question on TGR. Although populated with adolescents it is the gold standard for advise on actual downhill ski performance. Unlike BD's credo, "It's all about the down" on TAY" its all about the up". They can talk for hours about skinning, boot performance while skinning, skins, ski crampons but are somewhat perfunctory about the actual downhill part.

Although there are some incredible skiers here and the level of knowledge about the up and across , and snow science and navigation is superb, most TAYers( and I include myself) are downhill hacks and the general level of actual downhill skiing is quite abysmal. There are of course exceptions. This is I think mainly due to their collective concentration on the up and adherence to archaic ideas about skis and equipment. The downhill part for a TAYer is something to get over with to get back to the up.

TAYers like skinny ( by my terms of reference anything under 95mm) and lightweight skis. They also like old skis that are past their prime. For instance Vogtski is inordinately proud of his 25 year old ski gear. When touring with him it is advisable to have a 21st century talisman with you ( like a smartphone, even if no service) so you can take it out and reassure yourself that you haven't fallen into a worm hole and transported back in time.

The typical TAYer will tell you to get a supertrab 5000 xr ( 15 grams, 75mm waist). The fact that these skis are only suitable for 2 months of the season( June and July), the average TAYer will flounder through the deep snow of winter and the slush of spring clinging( and usually in the backseat) to his narrow skis while perversely waiting for the snow conditions to catch up with his ski choice.
Don't listen to them. Fat ( greater than 90mm in a woman's case) is the way to go for most of the winter and spring and make sure you get tip rocker. It's not a fad despite what many TAYers think; it actually physics and who can argue with Newton?

As to bindings... go dynafit. I admit I was as dyna-atheist, then agnostic and now a fan but realize they have " issues" and a learning curve. Beware the dyna-devotee ( another TAY trait) who promotes dynafits with an almost religious fervor and are oblivious to their obvious problems. They can be fiddly and annoying in deep snow conditions but the pain is worth it for the lightweight and ski performance.

Good luck, have fun, take any avy or glacier course if you haven't done so and enjoy the PNW ski scene. Despite my warnings , this is a great website.

I "heart" Scotsman. Do you have a book published? You should.

Oh, and the skis. Don't discount Icelantic skis as an option. There is a current link to a great sale in the yardsale/for sale section. The skis are very light for the size and have multiple turn radius' to choose from. Also, different flex patterns. Stay away from BD with your skiing style. That was good advice you got, they would be too stiff. 

4 minutes on the interweb revealed this:

K2 Mt. Baker SL 167 $279 @ EVO.

Pros:
-Skis a variety of conditions well
-lightweight
-purty color
-Local company (I know production's in China, but it's named after a NW volcano)
-Local shop (that promotes backcountry skiing/boarding)
-almost fat enough to not be ridiculed by Scotsman

Cons:
-No tip rocker (but there's still time to put a 2X4 under the tips, and park your snowmobile trailer on 'em before the real snow flies)
-Not quite fat enough to evade ridicule by Scotsman. (but he'll still ski with you 'cause you're a girl)

In addition to Scottie's wise words about the value of girth and rocker

I'm a new skier to the Pacific Northwest and the backcountry

So ski the ski areas here lots. Even go on the days when snow is bad. Get used to skiing on the sometimes less than perfect snow from the lifts so that you can mostly enjoy the turns when you do earn them.

Avalanche education.... obviously goes with saying.