Ski Touring Transitions: Skins -> Planks

This step-by-step guide covers the ski touring transition from travelling uphill on skins to being fully set up for the descent on skis. Efficient transitions reduce risk, save time, and keep your crew moving — especially when space is tight and conditions are less than friendly.

Step-by-Step

1. Look Ahead

During the final minutes of your ascent, start looking for the best place to transition back to planks. The steeper or more technical the descent, the less space you’re likely to have — so assume your options will be limited.

2. Find The Safest Place To Stop

As options may be limited, you may find yourself taking additional risk here than the transition you made to skins (See article Ski Touring Transitions: Planks -> Skins). That said, still think about finding a spot that avoids avalanche danger, offers some protection from the elements and where if possible it’s safe to move around.

3. Plan Ahead

The tighter the space the more important it is to be clear about your process. The consequence of dropping kit at the top of a couloir or on a ridge line is in a different league from the typical transition at the base of an ascent.

4. Be Methodical

Know what order you are going to make the transition and where your kit is being stowed.

5. Secure Your Kit

Once you’re safely positioned, stay clipped in on your skis. Stash your poles by planting them handle-first uphill, then dig a small pit in the snow. Set your pack back-panel-down into it, with the opening facing you for fast, controlled access. At this stage, every piece of gear matters—slow it down, stay deliberate, and make sure nothing can slide away.

6. Layer Up

You’ll cool down fast once you stop. Even if you feel hot from the climb, make warmth the priority. Replace any layers you’ve shed, close pit zips, and ensure your transceiver sits between your outermost base layer and your shell.

7. Remove Skins

Remove your planks and stow your skins using whatever system works for you — folding, rolling, cheat sheets or not. What matters is that you can do it quickly, without exposing glue to snow or wind, and get them securely into your pack or jacket. Switch your bindings to downhill mode.

8. Stow Planks

What you do with your planks once you have removed each skin will depend on space. Ideally you’ll be able to place them securely vertically in the snow but you might well find that the only practical option is to lay them in the snow. Do whatever you can to make them as secure as possible, not solely relying on the ski brake to stop them careering away from you.

9. Downhill Mode

Lock your boots into ski mode. Swap your hat for your helmet, change from contact gloves to riding gloves, zip up your pack, and do a final check that all kit is stowed before putting your pack back on.

10. Click-In

Getting back into your bindings is often the trickiest part. Limited space, steep terrain and deep snow don’t make it easy. Take your time, position your planks as securely and flat as possible, and click into your downhill ski first.

11. Check And Drop

Before dropping in, check in with your crew. Reassess conditions, agree on risk, confirm your drop order, and make sure everyone is ready. Once that’s done, it’s time to ride.

Pick a good spot that is away from any avalanche danger, offers some protection from the elements and where it’s safe to move around.

Key Transition Gear

• Contact gloves
• Backpack with ski carry options
• Skins

Keeping this kit easy to access will make every transition faster, warmer, and far less stressful.

The complication of snow, weather and time pressure can make transitions feel more tricky.

A gust of wind could see those cheat sheets blowing all over the mountain.....

Additional Transition Tips

• When looking for a transition spot -ideally find an area where you’re able to place the length of your planks flat in the snow, even if that means treading or flattening a suitable area to create a platform. The transition can be done in a smaller space but the more space you have the easier this will be. 
• Once you’ve dialled a process, stick to it. A bit of OCD during transitions is no bad thing.
• Another option for stowing planks, is to slide them tail-first into the snow — this can also create a stable platform for clicking into downhill mode.
• Make stowing skins in their bag super easy — turn the bag inside out, put you hand inside the bag like a sock puppet, grab hold of your skins with the puppets mouth and then pull the bag back over the skins. Much less faff than trying to put them back in through the mouth of the bag.

Other transitions can be found in our Transitions Hub.

We’ll see you up there.