Educating Local Youth Through Alpenglow’s Teen AIARE 1

Is your teen interested in getting into the backcountry? As a parent, it can be worrisome to think about sending your child out beyond the boundaries of the resort. As many of us are parents ourselves, at Alpenglow Expeditions we understand completely. Therefore, we strive to create winter learning environments that not only equip our clients with the knowledge and skills necessary to be safe and efficient in the backcountry, but do so in a way that they can reflect on these learning experiences positively and are thus encouraged to continue to grow their skillset. 

Our Teen AIARE 1 creates such an environment so that the younger members of our Tahoe community have the opportunity to learn avalanche safety alongside their peers and create positive memories around this experience. This comprehensive backcountry course requires little more than basic ski/snowboard touring experience–if your child has fewer than 5 days in the backcountry, our one-day Backcountry 1.0 course is the natural prerequisite for an AIARE 1. 

Furthermore, we recognize that kids generally have busy, dynamic schedules, and so all Teen AIARE courses run on our hybrid format. The online learning format has been intentionally designed by the American Institute of Avalanche Research and Education to achieve the same learning outcomes without the need to spend extended periods of time in a formal classroom setting. Students will be responsible for completing the online portion of the course and passing the Final Exam prior to their two days in the field with our AIARE instructors. 

In the course, students can expect to develop a solid foundation for how to plan and execute backcountry trips, assess and mitigate risk, understand basic decision making in the field, and perform avalanche rescues. After completing the course, students will be able to craft a plan for backcountry excursions in avalanche terrain, demonstrate the ability to assess avalanche terrain and perform companion rescues, and utilize the AIARE framework to make terrain choices. 

For information on any of our other courses or backcountry guiding, check out our website. For any questions call our office at 877-873-5376 or send us an email info@alpenglowexpeditions.com. We hope to ski & ride with you soon and look forward to educating our community this winter.