On the Cover: Above Donner Lake near her home in Truckee, California, Amie Engerbretson finds some light during a major storm cycle. "We started in the dark, hoping to score some shots with first light, but the clouds didn't cooperate," says photographer Ming Poon. "Amie and our crew were patient and reaped the rewards." [Photo] Ming Poon

THE PERSPECTIVES ISSUE

THE WHITE WHALE
Vancouver Island is famous for giant trees,
logging protests, tidy Victorian gardens, Tofino's sweeping beaches and quaint seaside towns. Andrew Findlay knows the island offers more than meets the eye, including the rarely visited Comox Range. After years of staring at the glaciated peaks blocked by private logging claims and thick, trailless forests, Findlay gathered a few friends, borrowed a key to a locked gate and went searching for his personal white whale.

IT'S GETTING HOT IN HERE
Megan Michelson left her home in Tahoe City, California, last summer as the Dixie fire made air quality worse than that of Beijing on a bad day. While she was gone, the Caldor fire swept in from the south, displacing tens of thousands of people. After one of the worst fire seasons on record in the western U.S.—and one that hit particularly close to home—Michelson explored what it means for our climate, our winters, our snowpack and our skiing.

ISLANDS OF SAFETY
From the Appalachian Mountain Club's first buildings in New Hampshire's White Mountains to the yurts that now pepper ranges from Alaska to the Rockies, huts in the U.S. have opened the mountains to the masses. Unlike any other in the world, that galaxy of stone and wood huts, yurts and a few rogue dwellings gives us the chance to leave our daily lives behind and go skiing. This is the history of huts in the U.S.

EDITOR'S NOTE

SPECTACLE

LETTERS

BIFF AMERICA

DEPTH

DEPOSITION

PERSPECTIVE
Josh Dirksen uncovers a mythical line in the Oregon Cascades.

STRAIGHT LINES
Tyler Cohen questions his border collie's ability to operate a beacon, Leilani Bruntz explores her home range's history, and international man of mystery Kordell Black reveals how he's traveled on a budget for the better part of a decade.

BLOWN IN

DOWNWARD MOMENTUM
Christina Lustenberger has built her career on never sitting still for too long. So while the rest of the world was perfecting sourdough recipes during lockdown, the guide and former Olympic ski racer better known as Lusti took the opportunity to complete five first descents, all within a few hours of home.

WISDOM: BROOKE EDWARDS
Brooke Edwards is more than just a ski guide. She's a travel agent, costume designer and life coach all rolled into one.

MOUNTAIN SKILLS: TALKING RISK
How to communicate hazards by using a shared vocabulary, thinking in percentages and defining margins with partners.

GEARBOX: PACKS AND WATCHES
Travel far with these six packs and know how far you've traveled with these five watches.

BLOWN OUT

OPEN MOUNTAIN
Jackie Paaso has spent her career carving out a place for herself and other women on big mountain skiing's biggest stage, the Freeride World Tour. Her retirement from competition doesn't mean her mission is over.
Jackie Paaso has spent her career carving out a place for herself and other women on big mountain skiing's biggest stage, the Freeride World Tour. Her retirement from competition doesn't mean her mission is over.

For over two and a half decades, Backcountry's kept a close pulse on skis, boots, bindings, splitboards and more.