Current Winter Wildlands Events

Winter Wildlands Alliance's Grassroots Advocacy Skills Conference

October 24-26, 2008
Location: Golden, Colorado

Please join us for the Fourth Grassroots Advocacy Conference! October 24-26, 2008 in Golden, Colorado Hone your advocacy skills Meet with agency officials Network with fellow quiet use activists For more information, call Steve Ryder, Grassroots Program Director at (208)386-9227 or email him at sryder@winterwildlands.org

Join WWA and Sun Valley Trekking for an Unforgettable Backcountry Adventure!

March 3-6, 2008
Location: Tornak Hut - Sun Valley, Idaho
Cost: $775 per person

Experience the pristine snowscapes and jaw dropping scenery of Idaho’s Smoky Mountains on this 4-day, 3 night guided hut skiing adventure! Intermediate and advanced skiers and snowboarders will love the abundant downhill runs and high touring terrain around Tornak Hut. Sited at 8,400´ in central Idaho, the terrain around Tornak is complex, allowing for turn-oriented skiers and riders to find the best aspect, elevation and angle for supurb downhill.

For more information on the Tornak Hut and Sun Valley Trekking, please visit their website at www.svtrek.com.

To join us on this spectacular skiing adventure, please contact Winter Wildlands at (208)336-4203 or Sun Valley Trekking at (208)788-1966.

All Proceeds will benefit Winter Wildlands Alliance.

WWA presents the Backcountry Film Festival Tour

The BC Film Festival is on tour at select locations throughout the West! See if you can catch it in a city near you.

For more information, contact Charlie Woodruff at (208) 344-8692 or cwoodruff@winterwildlands.org

Enjoy an evening of backcountry skiing films that will invigorate, inform and leave you dreaming about the bliss of winter adventures. Win prizes from outdoor industry sponsors, enjoy great people and support a worthy cause!

The festival showcases thought-provoking films from grassroots filmmakers that will inform you about backcountry and environmental issues as well as entertain you with exceptional skiing.

• Featuring: Weather We Change from Adventure Film Works, Sublimation Experiment from KGB Productions and Hybrid.Pedal from Could it Be Possible
• Also featuring these shorts: Cross Country with the Snakes, Skiing in the Shadow of Genghis Khan, Alsek, and Winter in the Woods

About the 2007 Backcountry Film Festival

Each year Winter Wildlands hosts an annual film festival that features grassroots backcountry films and shorts that embody our mission to promote and protect winter wildlands and a quality human-powered snowsports experience on public lands. The films chosen communicate issues that impact quiet winter recreation and the environment or tell an interesting story about fun in the snow without motors.

Funds from this annual event support WWA’s public lands and youth education programs as well as our national policy work to advocate for the responsible stewardship of our cherished winter wildlands.

The BC Film Festival premiered in November at the classic Egyptian Theatre in Boise, ID with almost 700 attendees. We are very excited to offer the festival program to our 28 Grassroots Member Groups and affiliated organizations around the country to help them raise awareness and money for their local efforts to protect the quiet backcountry. We currently have 12 Tour shows lined up and 5 more in the works.

About the Films

This year we have an exciting lineup of films that are about global warming, the backcountry skiing lifestyle, sustainability, a cross-country skiing touring band, the history of Telemarking in China, and the conservation efforts of Conservation Alliance grantees. (The film program may be unique at different venues based on time availability and other factors.)

The Backcountry Film Festival Tour is generously sponsored by: PromoShop Boise, Outdoor Research, Keen Footwear, Mountain Khakis, Clif Bar, Osprey Packs and Backcountry.com

For more information on the film program Click here.

SnowSchool at Bogus Basin Field Trips

Do you live in Southern Idaho? Are you interested in volunteering to lead SnowSchool field trips for elementary kids? WWA, Bogus Basin, the Boise Nordic Foundation and the Boise National Forest are collaborating to host SnowSchool field trips on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays through March. For more information on the program visit http://snowschool.squarespace.com/ or for the field trip schedule go to http://snowschool.squarespace.com/volunteer-schedule/.

Beacon Basin at Bogus Basin

Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area has opened a new safety feature called "Beacon Basin." It is an avalanche beacon system and training ground for backcountry skiers, snowmobilers and other outdoor winter recreationists. Volunteers will activate the beacon system and be available to answer questions on Sunday afternoons from 1pm-4pm during the winter months.

Beacon Basin is located within the Nordic Trail system at Bogus Basin, in the Stadium area (accessed from the Nordic Connector). A Nordic trail pass is required. Bogus Basin alpine or Nordic season passes provide access to the Nordic trail system or beacon owners can purchase a trail pass at the Frontier Point Lodge. Beacon Basin is accessed only on Nordic or backcountry skis or snowshoes. Foot traffic, snowmobiles or four-legged friends are not allowed on the Nordic trail systems.

BYOB-Bring Your Own Beacon to practice with and learn how to activate and read your avalanche beacons when seconds count. The sensors are buried under the snow and you test your ability to understand how to read your beacon and locate the hidden beacons.

Call ahead to the Nordic Center at 332-5390 for information. When you arrive at Bogus Basin, check in at the Frontier Point Nordic Center ticket/rental counter. This will ensure that the staff activates Beacon Basin for the guest to practice with their beacons.

Beacon Basin is made possible through community support and volunteer involvment. Backcountry Access donated the sensor set-up system to Bogus Basin through Sawtooth Mountain Guides, with financial support from REI. Volunteers operate the system and help answer questions.