2-day avalanche and high mountain tour course in Alpstein

For a high-altitude mountaineering course, you don’t need crevassed glaciers or peaks over 4000 meters, but plenty of open terrain, transitions, and rugged mountains. You’ll find all of this around the Säntis. In this course, the federally certified IVBV mountain guide Bruno Bösch will teach you how to behave and move on glaciers, first aid techniques for crevasse rescue including rope and knot skills – plus everything needed for a well-planned high-altitude tour.

During the guided ski and splitboard tour, you’ll apply what you’ve learned in a realistic setting. At the end of the course, you’ll receive the SWISS MOUNTAIN TRAINING Winter 2 certificate from the Swiss Mountain Guides Association. The prerequisite for SMT Winter 2 is having completed SMT Winter 1.

Practical information:

• The route choice will be adapted based on snow and weather conditions
• Tour takes place with a minimum of 4 participants
• No prior SMT training is required to join this course

Day 1: Refresher

• Planning tours according to the current avalanche situation
• Ski tour from the starting point to the Zwinglipass hut
• Various training modules during the tour

Day 2: Training tour Altmann 2435 m

• Ski tour aiming for the Altmann summit (the ascent route will be adapted to the weather and snow conditions)
• Descent to Wildhaus
• Various training modules during the tour

• Proper tour start with necessary checks
• Awareness of natural hazards
• Continuous assessment of avalanche conditions
• Tactical descents
• Equipment and knot knowledge
• Route setting with strategies for ascent
• Roping up (ascending and descending on rope)
• Anchoring techniques
• First aid (emergency sled and crevasse rescue)

• secure skiing/snowboarding on black runs
• fitness for about 4-8 hours and 1300 metres of ascent and descent
• experience with ski touring
• short, steep sections during ascent and descent
• mastery of switchback technique