The Best Gear for Silverton Mountain

Silverton Mountain is one of the best places in the world to put ski and snowboard gear to the test. Much of the ski area is in the alpine, meaning your outerwear needs to be perfect to keep you in your element. The snow is usually deep and the terrain is always steep, meaning you finally have a reason to buy some fatties and put them to use every day of your trip here. A beacon, shovel, and probe are required to ski or ride every day we are open, and our guides train with their gear regularly, quickly finding critical flaws that may be unknown to those who leave their gear in their pack for most of the season.

With all of this testing going on, we think the following gear for Silverton Mountain is what you need to have the best time anytime you head to the ski area.

Skis & Snowboards

First off, the best things to strap to your feet are K2 Fat Skis or a Venture Snowboard. In particular, you’ll most likely see the K2 Pinnacle 118, the K2 Powabunga, and the classic K2 Pon2oon skis attached to our guides’ feet. Those who have skied here know that fat boards make everything better, from the somewhat deep days to the all-time deepest day of your life.

The guides who prefer one plank instead of two will most like be shredding the Venture Storm (recognize that graphic?) or the Venture Zelix. These are the toughest boards on the market and made in the town of Silverton, Colorado. Our staff couldn’t be more proud to ride such amazing snowboards, and since splitboards are not necessary to ride at Silverton Mountain, grab a locally made fat board and shred with the best.

For our 15th anniversary season, you’ll see our two-plank staff riding on Marker Bindings. These bindings are renown throughout the industry for setting standards and driving the industry forward. The Royal Family series feature wider platforms and adjustable anti-friction devices in the toe, allowing rubber-soled ski boots to fit without compromising the release when needed. You do not need touring bindings to ski or ride at Silverton Mountain, so don’t compromise quality for the descent and get the best bindings around to really optimize your turns.

Outerwear, Optics, & Gear

The weather at Silverton Mountain is something fierce. From sub-zero temperatures during pre-dawn avalanche control routes to hot and sunny Springtime corn fiestas, our guides rely on The North Face day in and day out to keep them comfortable on the mountain. Using a mix of the Summit Series and the Steep Series (and always with Gore-Tex), our guides are always comfortable on the mountain at any time.

As for sunglasses, goggles, and helmets, our guides and staff have sworn by Smith Optics for years. You might have noticed that our guides almost never hike on the mountain wearing goggles, and some never wear goggles at all. That’s because Smith sunglasses are just so good. For those that do wear goggles and brain-buckets on the descent, the compatibility of Smith goggles and helmets is second to none.

The beacon, shovel, and probe you choose matters a lot. No one wants to be in a dangerous situation with unreliable gear. That’s why the Silverton Mountain staff relies on Backcountry Access (BCA) for the lightest, strongest, and fastest avalanche safety equipment. In particular, the Tracker 3 and the Float Pack system were added to the mix during the ’15-’16 season, much to the approval of the guides and patrol who train with this equipment throughout the entire season and beyond.

Don’t just take our word for it, all of these products are available for demo during your time at Silverton Mountain. Make your reservation, get the right gear for Silverton Mountain, and have the best trip of your life.