5 Ortovox tips for ski touring with a clear conscience

Get your gear on, get set, go! But please be considerate. Five tips for memorable days on responsible and eco-friendly ski tours: 1. Together with nature Preserving and protecting what we love: Our passions – freeriding, ski touring, experiencing nature – are irrefutably linked with the preservation of our mountains. Reflect upon the way you “consume” nature just as consciously as you reflect upon your everyday actions. 2. Mindful planning during a COVID winter In these times of restrictions on travel and contact, and for the sake of the environment: pay more attention to your immediate surroundings. One thing to look out for in particular: there are hot spots that are creaking under the weight of overcrowding. The solution: going on acyclic tours, seeking out new goals – or sometimes even deciding against a tour. 3. Leaving tracks As tourers, we all leave tracks behind in nature – we determine what they look like. The aim of every ski tourer should be to keep them as unobtrusive as possible. Don’t leave waste behind in the mountains, respect conservation zones, and avoid feeding-areas and young trees. 4. Community in action – even with social distancing Ski touring is a shared, social experience. With friends, your journey will be more sustainable, you’ll be safer in an emergency and your experience will be all the more rewarding. But please bear in mind the current regulations on how many households can get together. Community also means supporting local residents by taking a break in a hut (once this is possible again) or an inn in the valley after your tour. 5. Be safe out there Be prepared! All winter sports enthusiasts should regularly refresh their knowledge of avalanche and snow basics and the use of emergency equipment. Practical courses are the first choice, but the Safety Academy Lab Snow from Ortovox also offers a digital multimedia platform so that you can refresh your knowledge from home. About the ORTOVOX Safety Academy: Whether for ski tours or for freeriding: When you’re on unsecured terrain, you have to be able to estimate the risk of an avalanche. Careful planning, appropriate behavior on the mountain and the experience required to recognize potential hazard areas are the basics needed to ensure safety on a tour. Since 2008, Ortovox has spread this knowledge by offering safety and avalanche transceiver training for beginners and advanced mountaineers in cooperation with mountaineering schools. This offer is part of the Safety Academy. It is a comprehensive safety training course and the world’s largest training initiative for alpine safety – in summer and winter, digitally and on paper. WEB: www.ortovox.com