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News / Sports / Outdoors

Mountain etiquette for Seattle-area skiers and snowboarders

By Gregory Scruggs, The Seattle Times
Published: January 26, 2025, 6:02am

Washington winter is in full swing with a healthy snowpack. Skiers and snowboarders are flocking to the Cascades, eager to erase the memories of last year’s dismal season. But full parking lots and busy trails are a reminder that lift-serviced skiing and snowboarding is not a solitary pursuit — you’re part of a community whether you like it or not. So what are some of the essential etiquette, not to mention the rules and responsibilities, that come with a day on the slopes?

Getting there

Good ski etiquette starts before you leave the house. If you’re driving to the mountains — which, despite a few valiant efforts, is still how the vast majority of us get from the lowlands to the high country — make sure your vehicle is winter-ready. If you spin out heading up a mountain pass and block the road for everyone, that’s about the worst faux pas you can make.

What’s gripping the road is arguably the most important component in winter driving. Tires labeled M+S (mud and snow) or all season with a mountain/snowflake symbol are considered approved traction tires by WSDOT. Although studded tires are permitted on Washington roads from Nov. 1 to March 31, most of the route from Western Washington up to ski areas is on snow and ice-free pavement, so some argue the damage studded tires cause to asphalt makes them ill-suited to our region.

In the absence of extra burly tires, putting on tire chains gives you sufficient traction to meet state requirements. Chains go on whichever axel is doing the work. Front tires for front-wheel drive and rear tires for rear-wheel drive. Even if you have all-wheel drive and snow tires, still carry chains in winter in case they are required for all vehicles (it’s happened to me).

Practice putting on chains at home before you venture into the snow. There can’t be many worse starts to a ski day than lying on the side of the highway, cold and wet, trying to figure out tire chains for the first time as trucks whiz by.

Jackknifed semitrucks, too many spinouts and avalanche control work are all liable to shut down mountain highways — so don’t leave empty-handed in case you find yourself stuck for hours, or even overnight in a worst-case scenario. Pack an emergency kit with blankets, snacks, water, first-aid kit, flashlight and batteries. And don’t forget the ice scraper and snow brush.

Even if you’re behind the wheel of a Tesla Cybertruck with studded tires, still take it easy, especially when there’s snow and ice on the road. Overtaking your fellow skiers and riders on two-lane roads like Highway 410 to Crystal or stretches of Highway 2 to Stevens Pass will maybe get you a couple of spots ahead in the chairlift line, but mostly makes you look like a jerk risking road safety for marginal gain.

New on the etiquette front: Make sure your parking plan is squared away. All three local ski areas now require parking permits or reservations on peak days. Summit’s permit system does not require checks upon arrival, but the reservation systems at Crystal and Stevens do. (Some Stevens lots remain first come, first served.) Fumbling for your proof of reservation, or worse not having one at all, delays the arrival process for everyone.

If there isn’t a parking lot attendant waving you into a spot, then voluntarily park tightly. Ski area lots aren’t as sardinelike as downtown parking garages, but leaving most of a car width between you and your neighbor potentially means one fewer spot for a fellow skier or rider that day.

Heading up

Uphill etiquette begins at the entrance to the lift line. If you finish your run before a buddy, don’t ski halfway into the roped lineup area, then pull over and wait. Just wait outside the line and head in together.

Nothing’s worse than standing in a long lift line and watching a lone skier ride up with empty seats. On busy days, there is often a ski area employee matchmaking groups to ensure that each chair loads full. But if no one is available, the duty falls on you. Don’t be a passive-aggressive Northwesterner and pretend like there’s no one else in the line. If you are a group of two next to another pair lined up for a chair that seats four, make eye contact and verbally confirm: “Hey, are you two? Mind if we join you?”

The polite approach, by the way, is not actually a question. “No” is not an acceptable answer. No one gets their own private chairlift ride just because they want to. And always alternate who goes next as several lines funnel into one.

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Once you’re on the lift, whether or not to put the chairlift safety bar down isn’t a democratic vote, although culturally, safety bar usage trends lower in the West versus the East and Europe. But if even just one person wants the bar down, then it comes down. “There’s no veto allowed on the bar down,” says Jordan Elliott, president of the Pacific Northwest Ski Areas Association.

The best way to indicate your preference is to say “bar down” before lowering so everyone on the chairlift is aware. Pincering your unsuspecting seatmate’s arm in the safety bar is a bad look. Ditto for saying “bar up” at the end of the ride.

Of course, not every Washington chairlift has a safety bar. If you’re riding Seventh Heaven at Stevens Pass or Edelweiss at Alpental — both Spokane-made Riblets — or Chair 6 at Crystal, then hang on extra tight.

Going down

The actual fun part, skiing and riding down, is where on-hill etiquette dovetails not just with safety but also legal responsibility. For over 60 years, the National Ski Areas Association has published a 10-point Responsibility Code, which ski resorts usually post everywhere from trail maps to lift tickets to signs on chairlift towers. See nsaa.org/safety for the full list.

The gist is to ski and ride in control, know how to use your equipment and the lifts, make sure your gear is secured to your feet, and above all, says Elliott, “maintain situational awareness.” Skiers below you have the right of way, but it’s also your responsibility to watch for uphill traffic when starting from a dead stop. “You should always have your head on a swivel,” he said. “That’s especially true in the Pacific Northwest given the amount of tree skiing — people may be reentering a marked trail from the trees more often here.”

When you see “slow” signs at ski areas where trails merge or while approaching the bottoms of chairlifts, they aren’t a suggestion. Ski patrol can yank your ticket, or even your season pass, if you’re riding too fast and out of control. The consequences can be deadly: In 2010 a 23-year-old snowboarder collided with a 5-year-old skier, killing both, at a Wyoming ski area. The tragedy sparked a campaign, Ride Another Day, encouraging safe skiing and riding.

Like a fender bender, you can’t just hit and run on the slopes. “It’s Washington state law that if you do collide with somebody else, you need to exchange contact information,” said Elliott. “You need to let the resort know it happened, and it’s a misdemeanor.”

The Pacific Northwest Ski Areas Association published its own regional supplement, the Mountain Safety Guide, in December 2023 at safety.pnsaa.org. It covers additional topics like terrain parks, avalanche awareness and deep snow safety. The latter is a distinctly Northwest concern, as our ski areas are home to some of the heftiest snowfall totals on the planet. That may make us the envy of skiers and snowboarders worldwide, but deep snow can kill. The biggest risk is tree wells, an area of unconsolidated snow around the base of a tree that unsuspecting skiers and riders can fall into and suffocate to death.

Ways to play it safe in deep snow? Don’t wear pole straps — if you get pulled under, they’ll be one more obstacle weighing your arms down. Skiing with a buddy helps, but in deep snow, you can lose each other even just a short distance away. Attach a whistle to your jacket zipper so you can be heard from a longer distance and call for help more easily.

Of course, everyone takes a tumble now and then but don’t pick a run totally above your ability. It’s fine to challenge yourself but overexaggerating your skill level is a recipe for disaster. Take a lesson or sign up for a clinic if you want to take your skiing and riding to the next level and tackle the steepest runs and off-piste terrain.

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