SEEING THE LIGHT
The Gospel According to Nils
circa 2001
Nils skis on heavy gear at resorts, but for touring he looks for the ideal compromise between mobility and turnability. Here are his picks.
-SKIS: No-wax Karhu Pavo (73/60/76, 4.9 lbs/pair). “For spring conditions, ski ‘em short (175 cm for a 6-foot skier).”
-BINDINGS: Rottefella Super Telemark, 3-pin binding (13 oz/pair).“Cable bindings are too restricting.”
-BOOTS: Karhu Nomads (4.25 lbs/pair, size 10.5). “This boot isn’t stiff enough to drive a wider ski.”
PACKING LIGHT
Another Nilsian Axiom: Halve your load and you’ll quadruple your skiing pleasure. Here’s some appropriate technology to consider.
-TENT: Warmlite 2Rtent (2.75 lbs). A bombproof 2-person tent.
-PACK: GoLite Gust Pack (1.25 lbs). A 4500-cubic-inch pack that handles 30-pound loads admirably.
-SLEEPING BAG: Feathered Friends Swallow (2.1 lbs). Be willing to sleep in your clothes and this 20-degree bag is warm enough for any springtime tour.
-HEADLAMP: Petzl Tikka (2.4 ounces with batteries). An LED lamp supplying all the light you need around camp.
-RAINCOAT: GoLite Newt Jacket (10 oz). Though fragile for general use, if saved for foul weather this waterproof/breathable jacket does the job.
-RAINPANTS: GoLite Newt (5 oz). If saved for foul weather, these waterproof/breathable pants will keep you dry.
-SLEEPING PAD: Therm-a-Rest ¾-length UltraLite Pad (14 oz). Use your pack to insulate your feet while sleeping.
-FOOD: If planned carefully, 1.5 lbs of dry food per day is plenty. Shed all excess packaging.
-LEFT OUT: Camp shoes, spare change of clothing, camp chair, insulated mug, coffee maker, book, towel, toiletries (except toothbrush and toothpaste).
© 2002
What are your go to pieces of equipment for keeping it light?
3 comments
Great rerun article, thanks for putting it up, made for a good morning read.
options are always good. Touring with Nils is always an mind/body experience. One of my favorite runs of my life are skiing down prospector B chute in deeper than knee deep untracked powder at Whitewater Ski Resort in a pair of NNNBC boots with one buckle/strap and a pair of old light downhill skis and my partner in AT gear falling in front of me as I hooted and shredded past. With that gear on you could actually run up the skin track. That being said if there was even the slightest bit of tracked up snow, or crappy conditions you were screwed. But I don’t want to ski that stuff anyway. Haha
What a narcissist I am. Enjoyed reading this old story. I do most of my skiing on AT gear these days. My boots (Scarpa Aliens), ATK pin-tech race bindings, and Hagan Y-Drive skis give so much more power and flotation for virtually the same weight as the Karhu Pavos I skied with Nils. Amazing! Where I lose out for spring corn tours is the no-wax base… of course no-wax option exist.