Am I good enough for cat skiing? How groups get sorted
If you can link turns in soft snow, there's a group for you here. We sort guests into three cats by pace, from a coaching group at 8 to 10 runs a day to a fast group at 12 to 14. If you can't link turns in soft snow yet, take two powder lessons at a resort first and join our first-week group next season.
Cat Three, the first-week group
Coaching pace, wide glades · 8 to 10 runs a day
Aino Rautio leads, with a second guide
Cat Two, the steady group
Steady · 10 to 12 runs a day
Dev Tarrant leads, with a second guide
Cat One, the fast group
Fast · 12 to 14 runs a day
Ren Marchant leads, with a second guide
The three groups and their pace
Each cat carries one group and two guides. Pace means how many runs the group skis in a day and how long it stops between them.
- Cat Three, Whisky, the first-week group: Aino Rautio leads at a coaching pace on wide glades, 8 to 10 runs a day, up to 8 guests.
- Cat Two, Juniper, the steady group: Dev Tarrant leads at a steady pace, 10 to 12 runs a day, up to 10 guests.
- Cat One, Birch, the fast group: Ren Marchant leads at a fast pace, 12 to 14 runs a day, up to 10 guests.
The terrain follows the pace. Cat Three skis blue square runs, Cat One skis black diamond runs, and Cat Two skis both. On one morning's list, for example, Cat Three skied Juniper Trees (blue square), Lantern Glades (blue square) and Creekbed (blue square).
Pick the line that sounds like you
On our home page, four short lines describe how people ski powder. One stops and resets and gets down fine. One links it top to bottom. One goes fast and loose and wants more. The last can't link turns in soft snow yet.
Pick the one that sounds like you, and the board shows your cat, your guide, your runs and the weeks that suit you. Be honest with it. The guides check your pick on the first morning anyway, and moving costs nothing.
The confirmation run on day one
Your first morning starts with the 07:30 briefing and transceiver practice. Then the guides watch every guest ski one pitch. That is the confirmation run, and it checks the seat you picked against the way you ski on the day, in the snow we have.
Moving cats costs nothing
If the confirmation run shows you belong in a faster or a slower cat, the guides move you, at no cost. You lose no day and pay no fee.
Soft snow skis differently from a groomed run, and the first morning is when that shows. A move is how the week gets better for you and for the group you join.
Snowboarders and the two traverses
Boards are welcome in every cat and get sorted by the same four lines. Boards ride the fall-line glades. We lend telescopic poles for the two traverses.
Tell us you ride when you book, and the guides plan the day around it.
If you can't link turns in soft snow yet
Then this winter is the wrong one to book, and we would rather tell you now. Take two powder lessons at a resort first. Then come to Cat Three, the first-week group, next season.
Aino Rautio coaches that group at 8 to 10 runs a day, and early and spring weeks suit a first week best. Call the lodge and we'll talk it through.
Which weeks suit each group
Weeks start on Saturday. The open weeks page marks every week of the winter as Open, A few seats or Full, and names the groups it suits. We confirm your exact seats when we reply.
- Cat Three suits early season and spring.
- Cat Two suits any week.
- Cat One suits deep season.
Cat One weeks suit the heli add-on best, at $1,400 a flying day in deep season.