by Chuck Boyd, Nordic/Backcountry Supervisor | Jan 21, 2026 | Division News, Program News
Well, as of the first week of January, the New Year kind of wreaked havoc with our snowpack leaving us firm to icy conditions, or no snow at all. But here in the east Mother Nature has a way of correcting herself. Currently, our western regions are receiving a good amount of lake effect snow, and this is setting us up nicely for the annual Nordic Fest. If you haven’t signed up yet, now is the time to head to Patroller School and register.
Our second event, a Backcountry Patroller School, February 28, 2026 – March 1, 2026, at Pike Glades in NH is still in the planning stages and registration should open soon. Again, Patroller School is the place to find out more information and to register. More information coming in the February issue of Trail Sweep.
Our OET staff is putting more emphasis on skate skiing this season. This is the fastest growing aspect of the sport, and who doesn’t want to look like Jessie Diggins! With trail running becoming so popular in the other seasons, runners have taken to skate skiing to enjoy the winter season and maintain their aerobic fitness. Others of us just do it for fun. To help us all learn the skating techniques, we have recruited PSIA L3 track and skate instructors to provide this training. Even alpine patrollers should take a break from constantly going downhill and try this style of Nordic skiing. It’s a great way to balance your fitness and prevent overuse injuries.
I’m getting ready to drive into lake effect snow. Hope to see many of you at our Nordic/Backcountry events, and if you notice a Subaru buried in a snowbank with a set of ski tracks heading into the woods, come and join us.
by Chuck Boyd, Nordic/Backcountry Supervisor | Dec 22, 2025 | Division News, Program News
As I woke up this morning the temperature was 9 degrees with 3 – 4 inches of snow in my yard. What a great way to start this ski season. This is the best start that we have had here in the east for several years, so let’s take advantage of it. I’ve been out skiing on two types of Nordic skis so far, for a total of four times. Waxing skis in the evening has become a ritual, with fellow patrollers coming over to chat and wax their skis.
Congratulations to all the new NSP BOD members. This is the first time that everyone I voted for was elected. Did you vote?
We are working on getting all the online course materials up on the Patroller School website. This is a huge undertaking for the staff to have all this material online five to six weeks before the start of each program. We hope to have most of this material open to the students by Christmas.
Nordic Fest is a go for the weekend of January 31 – February 1, 2026 at Highland Forest in Fabius, NY. This will be a fun time, and I look forward to seeing many of my fellow Nordic patrollers!
Pike Glades Backcountry patroller school is scheduled for the weekend of February 28 – March 1. Hope to see a lot of you skinners there.
Bolton Valley’s Nordic Senior/Master weekend is scheduled for March 21 – 22, 2026. Come out and help us get our Nordic senior and master candidates through their evaluations. Bolton Valley always has great snow conditions and is open already.
All of the above events can be found at Patrollerschool.org.
I’ll let you know next month how the December skiing was. See you out there!
by Larry Davis, Santiam Pass PNW Division | Nov 19, 2025 | Program News, Spotlight Articles
Reflections from Larry Davis Pacific Northwest Division, Nordic Master #22
Before boots hit the colorful fallen leaves on the ground at Pike Glades, AMN25 (Avalanche, Mountaineering, Nordic) instructor participants were already deep into the work. The Annual AMN Instructor Refresher was successfully hosted at Pike Glades, NH September 25-28, 2025, and provided 80+ instructors with the opportunity to hone their instructional skills together in this rugged outdoor center. Avalanche, Mountain Travel & Rescue, and Nordic instructors and instructor candidates worked together to elevate learning.
Flipped Learning Model
Patroller School’s online AMN curriculum laid the groundwork — four content areas, each building on last year’s AMN24, designed not just to inform but to prepare. This wasn’t fluff. The material was practical, mountain-professional grade, and built for the field. By the time participants arrived, they weren’t just reviewing — they were ready to coach and be coached. AMN’s flipped-classroom model isn’t just a clever phrase; it’s a shift in how we instruct and model effective outdoor instruction.
The whole point of bringing everyone out for three days was simple: elevate the skills and align the content. We’re running under a new mission too: “Rescue Ready Resource Smart.” It sounds like a bumper sticker, but it has deeper meaning. There were no PowerPoints® or long classroom lectures during field work. If you’re going to teach you need to be out there doing it, coaching activity, and not just standing and talking.
AMN’s flipped-classroom model wasn’t just a talking point— it was the backbone of AMN25. Patroller School’s Moodle LMS delivered four tightly focused modules ahead of the event, each building on last year’s AMN24 foundation. The content was practical, mountain-grade, and designed to stick. For many, it wasn’t just a refresher — it was a reset and level up. New accessibility features like text-to-speech made the material more inclusive to learning styles, and the Patroller School content remains available as a resource long after the tents are packed. In the field, CalTopo on mobile devices replaced the GPS standalone units, with offline downloaded layers giving patrollers the edge in planning and navigation. It’s a quiet shift, but a meaningful one — evolving to standard technology used by rescuers, without tech for the sake of technology.
Meet up in Pike Glades
Eastern Division instructors and others from as far as Oregon and Idaho came together to learn from each other, align, and elevate our instruction in Pike Glades. This is an excellent environment for a backcountry patroller school, with camping space, just the right number of rustic amenities, and expansive woods, trails, and hills perfect for practicing backcountry skills. Pike Glades is an area established for backcountry travel by the Granite Backcountry Alliance, with ongoing development of trails and amenities. GBA members were part of the weekend, both as volunteers and local experts helping patrollers understand the significance of the location and filling in local area knowledge. https://granitebackcountryalliance.org/
Instruction Technology – Prep for the Wilderness
The entire weekend was run on the philosophy that coaching replaces teaching. How’d we pull that off?
Instructors did the “classroom” homework before they even packed up the gear for travel. All the foundational knowledge was delivered online through the PatrollerSchool.org on the Moodle LMS. We’re serious about making this accessible too. We even rolled out Text-to-Speech (Natura Reader) as a new service in the Moodle courses this year, so everyone gets a fair shot at the material no matter what their learning style.
This pre-event preparation in Patroller School online meant that when you showed up at Pike Glades you weren’t wasting daylight. Every hour was dedicated to hands-on evolutions built around a tight cycle: “Content Delivery interspersed with Student Activities, monitored for effectiveness then repeated.” It’s about making a mistake, seeing it, fixing it, and owning the skill.
The Heart of the Lesson
The stations were focused on practical competence, standardization, and a couple of essential new tricks:
- Instructor Development lessons from Patroller School and coaching on the mountain helped participants to lean into the 6-Pack concepts of the Heart of the Lesson. Use the Heart of the Lesson and the Experiential Learning Cycle to guide the student’s growth collaboratively through active learning and coaching. The ID concepts permeated the other stations.
- Mountain Travel & Rescue (MTR): The focus was on low angle rescue systems. We’re standardizing these rope rescue systems education across the Eastern Division and simplifying the components so rescuers can get it right when it counts. The systems this year featured:
- minimizing gear hauling requirements, e.g. munter hitches over descender devices, improvised webbing harnesses consistently tied,
- anchors created with basket hitches, allowing sewn slings or pre-tied webbing to be used,
- adding safety by using two inline prussic hitches for secure load capture,
- rigging for simplified Up/Down directional changes during early system rigging, and
- safety factor calculations for use in the field.
- Nordic/Backcountry: “You have to know where you are in these woods.” The Nordic station put the hands-on into navigation with mobile phone technology and SAR Topo app navigation. Following the trend for rescuers to use their mobile devices for navigation, we drilled skills with SAR Topo on mobile phones which is becoming a standard for rescue groups. The AMN leaders demonstrated, coached, and prepared each participant for a custom solo-route to find waypoints through the rugged New England woods. We brought it full circle after the electronic route-finding to plot our waypoints on paper maps and create a bearing and distance record of the adventure. Participants found their way, overcoming low cell signal by utilizing offline maps and pre-selected data layers. A sunny Sunday hike sealed the Nordic knowledge as participants collaborated to set and follow a route to the top of Iron Mountain, complete with snacks and a group photo opportunity.
- Avalanche : The practice focused on Avy transceiver search techniques and treating victims post-avalanche rescue-patient care for hypothermia. Skilled leaders coached participants to quickly and efficiently locate Avy victims in multi-burial scenarios while using common transceiver models and varied search techniques. The highest skill was the introduction of the Hypo Wrap technique. It’s a smart, simple backcountry method for keeping a hypothermic or an injured patient warm until additional resources and ground transport arrive. Don’t leave home without knowing it. Participants practiced with standard rescue equipment and improvised systems from whatever was available in their rescue packs.
Why We Show Up
The true value of AMN far outshines the checkbox for continuing education credits; participants experiencing community. You had patrollers and candidates from all over the Eastern Division and even some West Coasters camped out sharing a potluck on Saturday night and hashing out the details with program leaders. This event is where we build our leadership core. instructor candidates got essential mentoring and networking time, and many took home new instruction to share in their home area. The up level of consistency and professionalism you teach on your mountain this winter starts right here.
by Trail Sweep Staff | Oct 23, 2025 | Division News, Program News
If you were not there, you missed it! The AMN 25 instructor continuing education refresher was a huge success! It’s going to be hard to find a location that will beat Pike Glades in New Hampshire. The weather was perfect, and we had the largest attendance ever for this event. This year we had many people who only did the online portion of the refresher. This is going to become a yearly requirement, with you only needing to attend an in person refresher once every three years.
AVALANCHE – Rob West, Supervisor
The leaves are changing, and the air is getting crisper. Winter will soon be upon us again. We had a great AMN refresher at Pike Glades in New Hampshire the last weekend of September. The avalanche station ran two beacon rotations, focusing on long-range searching and close-range bracketing. We also ran a station refreshing everyone on how to build hypothermic wraps for an injured partner in the back country with what they had in their packs. Thank you to all the instructors who came and helped out, and all the instructors who attended to continue their education and bring new knowledge to the students.
MOUNTAIN TRAVEL & RESCUE – Joni Porter, Supervisor
This portion of the refresher covered ‘How to Teach Low Angle Rescue’ utilizing a down-up-capture using a carabiner, pulley, and release, known as ‘DUC-CPR’ for short. This method has been chosen as the standard of training for the Eastern Division. Participants got lots of hands-on practice on Saturday, followed by an optional LAR Enhancement Seminar on Sunday.
The online lesson prepared the participants for the fieldwork by introducing the following objectives:
1. Why are we referring to foundational LAR as DUC-CPR?
2. The details of the process of Down-Up-Capture (DUC) using carabiners, pulleys, and release (CPR).
3. Show that there is room in DUC-CPR to create variations to fit specific needs.
Doing the online work in advance allowed AMN participants to dive directly into “doing” upon arrival at the field stations.
NORDIC/BACKCOUNTRY – Chuck Boyd, Supervisor
The field station involved navigation and built on the online pre-course work. Participants were given a set of coordinates which they had to add to their CalTopo app and plot a course. Then they went and located the plotted locations, which all returned to the start. Once back at the station HQ the students were given paper maps, and had to plot the same coordinates on the map. Patrollers learned a lot.
by Chuck Boyd, Nordic/Backcountry Supervisor | Sep 13, 2025 | Division News, Program News
I hope everyone had a great summer and accomplished their goals. Now it’s time to go to the AMN Instructor Continuing Education Event, September 26-28. This year’s event will be held at Pike Glades, NH as we move these events around the division.
Instructors, instructor candidates, and interested patrollers wishing to get involved with Nordic, MTR, or Avalanche are always welcome at this event. This year’s registration will close on 9/22, allowing all attending to have time to complete the online material before they arrive.
The Nordic/Backcountry station will focus on navigation, using CalTopo, and plotting a waypoint on a paper map. The MTR station will focus on low angle rescue as we try to standardize our systems throughout all NSP programs. The Avalanche station will do transceiver searches and exam prep for L2 avalanche and Nordic Master transceiver tests.
Plus, this year they will introduce the Hypo Wrap, a backcountry technique to help keep your hypothermia or injured patient warm until more help arrives and transportation is complete. With the online material ahead of time we can now adjust our schedule and spend more time outside doing hands-on training. This should make things a bit more exciting and fun!
We will announce the upcoming season’s events for Nordic/Backcountry on patrollerschool.org. When you sign up and access AMN you’ll find a video presentation of our program updates. AMN events will be posted on the division website calendar when the events are finalized. As a heads up, one of the events will be at Pike Glade, NH in February.
Did you know that Jesse Diggins came to Vermont and held training camps at Stratton? It’s fantastic to see Olympic Nordic skiers come east to help train our future Olympians.
See you all soon at the AMN. The winter outlook for the east coast shows lots of snow and cold temps for us.
by Chuck Boyd, Nordic/Backcountry Supervisor | Jul 4, 2025 | Program News
What is a Nordic Master? As the name suggests, it is a master of all Nordic skills. These include Nordic Senior, MTR 1 & 2, Avalanche 1 & 2, instructor in one or more NSP disciplines, holding or having held an NSP administrative position, and demonstrating proficiency in XC and Nordic downhill skiing, as well as toboggan handling skills. Once these prerequisites are met, candidates must pass three final evaluations and an oral review board to earn this coveted certification.
Currently, there are 22 Nordic Masters across the country. One is a division director, two are on the national board of directors, another is the national Nordic/Backcountry program director, and three are division Nordic/Backcountry program supervisors. All the Nordic Masters have worked tirelessly to master their skills and provide leadership and education to help make NSP the best it can be.
This level of achievement does not happen overnight. I’m NM 005 and have been a patroller for 31 years. With determination, you might be able to achieve this goal in 10-15 years of service, but being a Nordic Master is about being the best that you can be. We now have a couple of patrollers starting the final evaluation process and several others who have almost completed all the prerequisites.
Planning for this season is already underway, with the AMN scheduled for the weekend of September 26-28, 2025, at Pike Glades, NH. This is an instructor education event, but all patrollers are welcome, especially if you are considering becoming an instructor in any of the three disciplines.
We plan on running our three Nordic Senior/Nordic Master events similar to last season. First will be Nordic Fest at Highland Forest, NY, January 9-11, 2026. Second will be a Nordic/Backcountry event at Pike Glades, NH, February 27, 28, and March 1, 2026. The third and final event will be the Nordic Senior/Nordic Master event at Bolton Valley, VT, on the weekend of March 20-22, 2026. These events will be posted on the division calendar as well as Patroller School once the final details are worked out.
Hope you all have a great summer and look forward to seeing as many of you as possible on skis this winter.
by Chuck Boyd, Nordic/Backcountry Supervisor | Jun 5, 2025 | Program News
We wrapped up another ski season with our Nordic Senior and Nordic Master (NM) training clinic at Bolton Valley, VT. The patrol and management were gracious hosts and worked with us to help make this event such a success. Bolton Valley provides traditional Nordic track and skate skiing and backcountry skiing for all skier levels and is an excellent choice for advanced-level evaluations.
For the Nordic Senior clinic, four patrollers expanded their knowledge and tested their skills. Saturday started with a ski tour in spring conditions, working on several uphill techniques, especially at a few challenging water bars. At the cabin, we opened the patrol’s rescue cache, and the Bolton patrollers demonstrated how they use their backcountry litter. Some new ideas were adapted as we practiced loading a patient.
After lunch, we headed out to do rope rescue work. Jeff Sergeant led the group, demonstrating the raising and lowering systems we are trying to standardize throughout all division programs requiring rope rescue skills.
The main event started in the evening. Jeff Sargent was about to be evaluated for his Nordic Master overnight SAR exercise. This is one of the three final NM evaluations required once you meet the prerequisites and is considered by many to be the most demanding. Our suite became the ICS command center with Greg France as the Incident Command (IC), training Mike Lapierre and Brian Doyle to take over in the future. Jeff started to prepare the ICS 200 paperwork. Mike Balk, our patient and lost person, headed off to a location only known to the rescue support team. Once in place, a set of GPS coordinates was called in as the last seen point of the missing skier. Jeff downloaded the coordinates into his phone. All systems were double-checked before Jeff headed out the door.
A cold front was approaching with strong winds picking up to 25-35 mph and gusting to 45, snow flurries, and temperatures dropping to single digits. It was going to be a cold night for the participants. We discussed our backup rescue plan for the rescuers, hoping for the best. The overnight SAR exercise requires the participant to navigate to the missing person, treat their injuries (at least two), build a shelter, spend the night, prepare a hot meal, and evacuate in the morning.
We tracked Jeff’s movements and studied his search patterns. He called in at regular intervals, reporting his progress. Making it to the first set of coordinates, he was surprised no one was there. A second last seen point was called in. Jeff added this to his phone, and after another 20-30 minutes of searching, the subject was located. He called this in along with his first set of vitals and treated the subject’s injuries.
Once the patient was stabilized, Jeff called back in for assistance with the evacuation. IC notified Jeff that the rest of the team was involved in another callout and that no help was available. He would have to spend the night with the subject. He replied that he was starting to build a shelter. Two hours later, once we knew Jeff was settled in with Mike, we went out to observe his situation without them knowing (evaluation and safety factor).
For Mike, part of the NM IT training is to be the patient for several of these events. As an IT, I have suffered dearly for it. Jeff was a strong candidate for this scenario, and he did very well. After making breakfast, they were both evacuated and returned to the IC smiling.
Except for the sun coming out and the temps going up to 20, the weather on Sunday was still like the night before. We spent the morning building improvised toboggans and had the students demonstrate their rope skills. We finished the day debriefing, and all headed off in different directions.
We will be back at Bolton next year, so check the division’s website calendar for the dates and registration information.
by Chuck Boyd, Nordic/Backcountry Supervisor | Apr 15, 2025 | Division News, Program News
Our Backcountry Skiing/Riding and Toboggan Enhancement Course focuses on skiing/riding, skinning, and toboggan handling. It furthers the skills introduced and mastered at lift-served ski areas. It gives members a chance to adapt these skills to the backcountry, where the snow is deeper and variable, requiring different strategies, tactics, and additional stamina. This is the first all-backcountry program offered by the Eastern Division.
Pike Glades turned out to be an amazing location. The property is utilized by the Upper Valley Stewardship Center, a non-profit whose staff works hard to maintain and upkeep access, skin tracks, and signage.
This terrain is a collection of northeast-facing glades accessible by ski touring, splitboarding, or snowshoeing. The peak summits are above the tree line at 2200’ and the base is at 700’. No matter your skiing ability, you will be thrilled by the skiing at this location.
This was our first Nordic/Backcountry event at this location, and it was so well-received that we already scheduled next year’s backcountry event and are looking to schedule the 2025 AMN instructor refresher at the same location.
Our weekend started at the Community Center for the Oliverian School, with a meet and greet, plus breakfast and trip planning. While the group was getting organized, equipment and supplies were being shuttled to the Warrior’s Cabin, which is located mid-mountain at the end of a service road. During the winter of 2025, it was plowed by a construction contractor renovating the cabin. The Warrior’s Cabin is heated by propane and was used to store potable water, solar-powered battery packs for recharging radios and cell phones, and for drying gear. Saturday dinner and Sunday breakfast were prepared inside the cabin.
Our ski tour started up the Joan Wolter Trail towards the summit and a cabin called “The Shire.” Along the way, we demonstrated and practiced uphill travel techniques and transitions. The weather was beautiful as we arrived at the Shire to have a snack, admire the breathtaking views, and transition for our downhill ski through the glades back to the Warrior’s Cabin.
Our sleeping accommodation was winter camping. All attendees were experienced in outdoor winter overnighting. Tents were set up behind the Warrior’s Cabin, where there was an outstanding view of Mount Moosilauke.
On our second skin up, four patrollers each carried sections of a Cascade rescue sled with handles. Once back at the Shire, we assembled the toboggan, assigned a patient, and took turns managing the loaded toboggan through the glades. It was quite challenging for most of us as we all learned and tried new skills.
Dinner was back at the cabin, where Linda had prepared a hearty meal of meat and vegetarian Irish stews. This was topped off with a homemade wacky cake for dessert. Once finished, the evening navigation exercises began. Using CalTopo on their phones, the participants entered several waypoints that they needed to locate outside along the trail. The last waypoint held a hidden surprise.
Sunday morning was low-angle rescue (LAR) with both raising and lowering a loaded SKED. Dead Fred, a local patrol mannequin, volunteered to be our patient. Knots and anchors were practiced and built. The SKED was first lowered using a munter/mule knot with prusik backups. This was then converted into a 3:1 raising system with double prusiks. By the end, Fred didn’t look any worse for wear.
The highlight of the weekend was to have the DHART helicopter land in a landing zone we created. The group got a lot out of the pilot’s explanation regarding landing in a possible snow LZ. The tour of the bird was great, and both the students and instructors were extremely happy to learn how the medical crew took a patient hand-off.
Huge thanks to all the instructors, staff of the UVSC, DHART, the local community, and all the participants who helped make this such a great event. As mentioned above, we are already making plans at this location for next year. Stay tuned.
Our final event was held at Bolton Valley, VT, which included Nordic Senior training, exam, and Nordic Master training.
by Chuck Boyd, Nordic/Backcountry Supervisor | Feb 18, 2025 | Division News, Program News
Nordic Fest was a blast! It started snowing on Friday night and we woke up to several inches of new snow blanketing the area. Highland Forest was our gracious host providing the Pines Cabins for the weekend. Saturday started with half the group taking skate ski lessons with PSIA L3 Instructor Candice Raines, who did a superb job teaching. Her husband, Thayer, worked with those who required more basic skate ski instruction. Highland Forest provided rental skis for those who needed them.
The other half of the group took classic ski lessons with division staff members Phil Galka and Mike Lapierre. The highlight of the classic lessons was doing the ‘Dead Bug’ to get up after a fall. Lunch was back at the Pines Cabins as we prepared for the afternoon sessions.
Three stations were set up for the afternoon. One was shelters and fire starting, the second was improvised toboggans, and the third was low-angle rescue (LAR). The LAR station drew the most comments as we tried to standardize the system across Nordic/Backcountry, MTR, Certified, and Nordic Master programs.
Once the day was done, the group shared a huge meal and dessert working them off practicing a nighttime navigation exercise. The following day some of the group again took a PSIA L3 classic skiing lesson with Candice and Thayer. The rest of us went on a ski tour and candidates’ patroller skills were evaluated.
Besides great skiing, Jennifer Jones of Highland Forest Nordic passed her Senior Nordic OET. Sten Winborg of High Point Nordic became a Nordic patroller passing all the required skills. A big shout out for their great efforts and to all who attended!
But wait, if you missed this one there’s more coming. Our next event is at Pike Glades in New Hampshire. Registration and details are available on wwwpatrollerschool.org. This event is more backcountry-oriented and requires climbing skins on skis or split boards. I look forward to seeing you.
On the weekend of March 21-23, 2025 we are planning our final Nordic/Backcountry event. The activities include a Nordic Senior evaluation and possible Nordic Master training. We are still looking for a venue; any patrol interested in hosting this event please contact me asap. The only requirement is plenty of snow.
