This past weekend was Backcountry Magazine’s Basecamp event at Smugglers Notch Resort here in Vermont. This was our first time at the event and it was a blast! We were there representing the Catamount Trail Association and the recently announced Vermont Backcountry Alliance. The Backcountry Basecamp is an event that focuses on education and awareness. There are free equipment demos and a small yurt complex with all kinds of different backcountry equipment on display. This is a great place for both seasoned backcountry skiers and backcountry newbies to get together to share and learn.
The Outdoor Gear Exchange was on hand all day with free demo equipment. Their employees were available to help set you up with skis, boots and skins so that anyone could try out skiing uphill, then turning around and skiing down. Smuggs was kind enough to close off a run for us so that everyone could safely skin up without having to worry about too much downhill traffic. This was definitely the place to be if you have ever wanted to see what backcountry skiing was all about.
Overall it was a great weekend. Saturday was definitely the day to be there as the weather this year was much more conducive to being outside, and Saturday was also the day they raffled off all of the big prizes. Everything you saw inside the Backcountry Magazine Yurt was raffled off that evening at the after party – over $20,000 in gear! This was definitely a sweet event and we will be back next year. You should consider coming too!
