Towards the end of the ski season I got the Garmin eTrex Vista Cx GPS unit which I’ve mentioned before and been using to produce some track files for viewing in Google Earth. The real reason I bought this was for navigation, I’d had an older GPS a few years back prior to the removal of selective availability when it really just didn’t work accurately enough. Yet again I was dubious, this time about GPS for navigation, my problem is that I believe nothing can be a substitute for being able to read a map and navigate in the mountains with map and compass regardless of the weather conditions. However, map and compass aren’t always quick to use and a couple of off-piste trips skiing alone when the visibility was appalling made me think a GPS might be useful particularly if I saved some common local waypoints onto it.

I opted for the Garmin eTrex Vista Cx as it was a mid-range mapping unit with a barometric altimeter and electronic compass included. Most GPS can tell you altitude but they’re not renowned for their accuracy so you really need a barometric altimeter if you want some accuracy. I’ve also got the SwissTopo maps for the device for the whole of Switzerland which are in the proprietary Garmin format for use with the MapSource product.

The software has been a nightmare, when I first tried to initialise the maps the Garmin server wasn’t working and I couldn’t unlock them. You need two different keys as well, one to get the maps installed onto your PC and another to unlock them to get them onto the device. Later when I moved computer the registration failed, as I’d already installed on my old desktop and laptop, so I had to call a premium rate line to get it re-enabled, this is common practice in the software industry now, for example Microsoft do it, but Microsoft are pretty slick so while the principle is irritating at least the practice isn’t. The Garmin principle and practice was irritating though.

Read on for the field test and tips for integration with Google Earth……….

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I have updated the review I posted for the Garmon Endorpin freeride/ski-touring boot after a season of use. The review can be found here:

http://snowslider.net/reviews/garmont-endorphin

Now the season is pretty much over and the skis have been hung up and replaced with hiking gear I thought I’d take a few minutes for a quick round-up of some kit I’d been using recently that’s not made it to the main section yet.

First up is the SnowQ (http://www.snowq.com/snowq.html) which is a ski sling. I’ve got to say I was slightly dubious about this, I’d assumed that ski slings were amongst the items that skiers living too far from slopes to actually ski spent their weekends buying from the local store as a substitute activity. It turns out this is a useful little item to have in your pocket, so much that we’ve both wanted to use it at the same time. Where it’s proved useful is for those times you find yourself walking back along the road to the car or village, I’ve never had a problem just slinging the skis over my shoulder before but after suffering some back and neck problems I’ve grown to prefer using the sling, it lets me walk more upright and doesn’t strain my neck quite so much.

SnowQ mention that it can be used to help carrying skis (or boards) in the “backcountry”, I’m not so sure about this point. Personally, when I’m skiing off-piste or touring I’ve got a rucksack with ski racks on it, I need the rucksack to carry at least shovel and probes and more typically climbing skins, crampons and assorted climbing gear so I think just using a ski sling suggests traveling a bit too light for safety. But, I’ve not actually tried the sling along with a rucksack, if that works then it’s ideal particularly late season where you keep taking the skis on and off at the end of some tours.

In all though we’ve both been impressed with the SnowQ and I must pick another up sometime ! I still think buying gadgets is a substitute for skiing of course and that people staggering around with the skis across their arms look awkward, uncomfortable and like they’ve never seen a pair of skis before but the SnowQ has convinced me that ski slings are useful.

click on photograph for larger version

Yes, sad but true, it’s season close here in the Val d’Anniviers, all the valley stations close today for the season. There’s been fairly reasonable conditions over the last few weeks, a late winter fling producing a good late season base and up to ten days ago there was still some good powder in some higher couloirs. A couple of days ago I skied the Chamois from Zinal to Grimentz with Sonya and it was very good at the top although we needed to take our skis off a couple of times. Inevitably the conditions lately have been better in the morning of course and avalanche risk has risen rapidly during the day.

Today I’ve been skiing on some new skis as well, a pair of Stöckli Stormrider PIT lights. I’ve been perfectly happy with my Stormrider XL’s which have Fritschi Diamir Freeride Plus bindings along with some Garmont Endorphin Mg boots, this is a freerando set-up and performs well but weighs in around 10kg. My guess is that the average downhill set-up comes in around 12-15 kg. 10 kg is OK to be carrying on my feet but on longer tours I’d like something lighter.

The first thing to look at was the bindings, my Fritschi Diamir Freeride Plus bindings weigh in at 2040g. There’s some lighter versions like the Fritschi Explore at 1680g but if you want a light binding you have to look at the Dynafit range. I’ve opted for the Dynafit TLT Speed which is the latest version of the classic Dynafit binding weighing an amazing 670g per pair. The unit pivots purely at the toe piece which has the effect of slightly reducing the work of lifting the foot on ascents.

Using Dynafit bindings requires a special boot and my Garmont Endorphin Mg boots won’t work with this binding. As the Endorphins weigh 4050g I wanted to look for something a little lighter, one option was the three-clip Garmont Megalite at 2960g per pair. I decided the Megalite lacked the support I was looking for and that the Garmont Megaride was a better option weighing 3300g. The fit I get from the Endorphin is so good that I didn’t seriously consider anything other than a Garmont boot. This boot is compatible with my Fritschi Diamir Freeride Plus bindings so I have another option there.

Likewise for skis I didn’t really hesitate either, we have a lot of kit from Stöckli, a couple of pairs of boots, three pairs of Stöckli skis, a couple of Stöckli bikes and assorted accessories. The customer service is exceptional and I’d need a really good reason to go anywhere else. As the PIT light is at the end of life it’s discounted by 30% currently so it’s well worth a look.

In total this reduced the weight of my set-up by over 3kg which is very noticeable. Skiing around today I was pretty pleased with the whole set-up, it’s dramatically better on piste than I expected and a quick test climb seems to confirm it’s all I expected. Hopefully I should get out and do a fuller tour soon and have a better idea how the performance is.