Backcountry Magazine

In its infancy and adolescence, splitboarding existed at the fringe. In the late 1980s and early ’90s, pioneers from Europe to Utah, sick of snowshoeing to their lines, asked the same question: “How do I efficiently snowboard in the backcountry?” Separately, they gravitated toward similar solutions, and a few invented passable prototypes that morphed into some of the first commercial splitboards. But it would take these innovators and their contem- poraries decades of experimenting and evangelizing to achieve widespread acceptance of a board that breaks in two. Now, a sport with murky origin stories and diverging opinions on who did what and when has become a stalwart niche heralded by professional riders and the everyperson alike.

Backcountry Magazine

Last winter, as the avalanche danger climbed to extreme and shut down Utah's Cottonwood canyons, I developed a powsurfing addiction. With bindingless boards strapped to our packs, my roommate and I climbed a ridgeline that-despite being in a popular zone-had no tracks in sight. Leap frogging, we surfed down 20- to 25-degree pitches, hooting like teenagers playing hooky on a snow day.

Outside

Save the paper-thin foam pads and highly compressible sleeping bags for the backcountry. Car camping is your chance to bring the comforts of home with you—like a warm, feature-packed, luxurious sleep setup.

Outside

Stooping in a lightweight, minimalist backpacking tent while camping out of your car isn’t much fun. Neither is getting blown over in a flimsy big-box store shelter. Fortunately, there are car camping tents designed for families who prioritize spaciousness, convenience, and storm-worthiness above all else. We tested 29 different tents and found seven options that had us lounging in comfort and style no matter what conditions rolled through the campground.

Backcountry Magazine

Ettore Personnettaz knows better than most the risks of playing in the mountains. He also knows how much they can give. In Italy's sleepy Aosta Valley, Splitboard Day brings community together through those magical moments shared in the mountains with the help, of course, of good food.

Backcountry Magazine

Elena Hight comes into view atop a pyramid of pillows in Revelstoke’s Montana Bowl. The mob of spectators below is buzzing. There’s no easy exit for the former halfpipe competitor and two-time Olympian, who needs to stomp this qualifying run to make finals day of the 2025 Natural Selection Tour.

Gaia GPS

Beyond the boundaries of ski resorts, untouched powder and the promise of adventure beckon skiers, snowboarders, snowmobilers, mountaineers, and hikers into the backcountry. However, traveling in the backcountry is not without risk—25-30 people die in avalanches each year in the United States alone.

Forbes

If you’re a skier or snowboarder with social media, chances are your feed is overflowing with Japan content. Mine certainly is. As evidenced by the nonstop digital deluge of nipple-deep powder turns and artsy vending machine shots, the world-renowned powder hub has never been more popular. Unfortunately, as more and more powderhounds descend upon the Land of the Rising Sun, scoring your dream trip is a little trickier these days. Fortunately, you’re in the right place to navigate the madness.

Outside

Korua Shapes cult-classic, medium-stiff Transition Finder hasn’t been updated since the German board-builder shaved down the taper to boost all-mountain freestyle and switch-riding capabilities in 2022. Thank heavens. Our test team sends its sincerest gratitude: we’re card-carrying members of the cult. I personally spent six weeks in Hokkaido testing the current version of the Transition Finder over the last two winters, and I can attest that it’s the perfect all-mountain board as is.

Whitelines Snowboarding

On March 14th and 15th, British Columbia’s Revelstoke became the rumbling epicenter of snowboarding. More specifically, Travis Rice’s Natural Selection Tour streamed two live days of off-the-Richter riding on the flanks of Revelstoke Mountain Resort. Like grinding tectonic plates forming mountains out of thin air, NST–and this NST event in particular, what many in attendance called the best one yet–raised and altered the landscape of backcountry freestyle riding and snowboarding in general.

SKI

There’s nothing worse than touching down in your dream destination only to find your beloved skis mangled by baggage handlers, or lugging wheel-less, 51-pound ski bags through customs while drenched in sweat, the shoulder strap cutting off circulation to your arm (such torture belongs in Dante’s fifth circle of hell).

Clearly, we’re still working through some travel-related trauma. To help you avoid these common speed bumps on your next ski trip, we’ve pulled together our favorite ski bags and ski boot bags, each one tested and approved by our storm-chasing testers.

Outside

Testing snowboards sounds like a blast—and it is. But the truth is that running a snowboard test is no simple task. To successfully pull off an objective, thorough test, you need heaps of snowboard gear from brands big and small and a diverse crew of diehard riders to test it. Last but not least, you need a radical resort with varied terrain that allows testers to truly put gear on the chopping block. This past spring, that resort was Kirkwood: a storied freeride hub just south of Lake Tahoe.

Outside

Before we extoll the many virtues of South Lake Tahoe’s Kirkwood Mountain Resort, a word of warning: If you require Gucci and Prada stores lining an Instagrammable main street, Kirkwood isn’t for you. If you must dine at Michelin-starred restaurants serving up prix fixe menus only decipherable by dictionary, Kirkwood isn’t for you. But if the most important aspect of a ski trip is the skiing itself—a novel concept!—and you appreciate a low-key, down-to-earth resort vibe that’s increasingly difficult to find in 2026, then yes, absolutely, put Kirkwood on your radar.

Outside

Ask most casual skiers or snowboarders about Kirkwood, and they might think you’re inquiring about Costco’s signature brand.  But if you ask a devout freerider—a fall-line fanatic who lives for the steep and spicy—Kirkwood is a household name, deservedly regarded as one of the best freeride resorts in the Lower 48. (Apologies in advance for all of the press, Kirkwood faithful.)

Backpacker

What the multitool is to a toolbox, Helly Hansen’s Verglas Infinity 2.0 is to your adventure wardrobe: If you don’t want several specialized shells hanging in your closet, this rain jacket is a solid one-shell-fits-all solution. Thanks to a tester-approved, midweight, impressively waterproof three-layer fabric and pit zips, the shell handles most activities and conditions, from ski-touring in a snowstorm to cooler summer backpacking trips.

Outside

Unless you’re a barefoot, bare-assed trail runner, there are barriers to entry for virtually any outdoor activity. (And there may be legal barriers to that first example. Outside is not liable for readers who skinnydip singletrack.) Standup paddleboarding is no different. But assuming you live close enough to a body of water, how does one afford—and collect—the ingredients for a successful maiden voyage? Enter Bote.

Huckberry

The US has some world-class ski mountains, and don’t get us wrong, we’ve had some of the best ski days riding in the Rockies and the Tetons. But it’s notoriously hit or miss, and the highs of the hits sometimes only just make up for the lows of the misses. The weather recipe has to be just right—the wrong amount of moisture, wind, or warmth, and the gumbo turns to garbage.

Gear Patrol

Have you ever tried to ski without goggles? Generally speaking, it’s a horrendous idea. Snowflakes bombard eyeballs like X-wings did the Death Star. Wind withers peepers into useless prunes. Skewer-sharp branches threaten at every turn. And blinding UV rays, reflecting off obliging snow, scorch retinas to a crisp that a steakhouse maître d’ might euphemistically describe as “well done.” 

Gear Junkie

So you’re dreaming about a trip to “Japow”? Yeah, you and every other ski bum. There are a million reasons to jet to Japan for a ski trip — fresh sushi, slurpable ramen, and relaxing onsens, just to name a few. But the main reason why the word “Japow” triggers a Pavlovian yearning in skiers is the snow — the deep, bottomless snow.