On-Piste Ski touring
many ski resorts offer advertised on-piste ski tours. If the ascent takes place on the secured piste area, the avalanche emergency equipment (see ski tours in open ski areas) is not absolutely necessary. Often, however, parts of the ascent lead to the summit near or just next to the prepared slope area. In this case you are in the open skiing area. The ski tour is not a pure piste ski tour and the standard avalanche emergency equipment (consisting of an avalanche transceiver (LVS), a shovel and a probe) must be carried without exception! For ski tours in the late afternoon or evening as a fitness ski tour, a headlamp with at least 300 lumen and sufficient battery life is recommended. Otherwise, as darkness falls, bumps or icy passages downhill are difficult to spot. A small first-aid kit should always be in your backpack, just like a bivouac bag (1 set per max. three participants). It serves primarily as rescue material after an accident to protect injured people from cooling down. It can also be helpful when transporting injured people away. Nowadays cell phones are considered a fixed part of the safety equipment to enable a quick rescue. Ideally, you should have an emergency app installed on your smartphone so that all rescuers receive the information at the same time.
Ski touring in open terrain
As soon as you leave the secured slopes and move in the open terrain, you have to carry the standard avalanche emergency equipment. It consists of an avalanche transceiver (LVS), avalanche probe and avalanche shovel. If you look at the chance of survival of people in a total burial, it shows that the probability of survival drops drastically after about 15 minutes. The short time window for rescue can only be sufficient with avalanche transceiver, shovel and probe! If only one piece of equipment is missing, the time required increases massively and minimizes the chances of rescue dramatically! In addition to the safety hardware, a small first aid kit (1 set per max. 3 persons) and a bivouac sack (1 bivouac sack per 3 persons) must be in the backpack. It serves primarily as rescue material after an accident to protect injured people from cooling down. It can also be used to transport injured people away. Cell phones have long been part of the standard safety equipment to be able to quickly initiate a rescue. Ideally, one should have a smartphone with an emergency app, so that all rescuers receive the information simultaneously. High-quality adhesive tape or better cable ties have a small packing size, but can be extremely helpful if, for example, climbing skins no longer stick and have to be fixed.