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Beacon Guidebooks
Devoted to providing critical terrain and avalanche information to every backcountry skier and rider.
Our products are tools to be used in the ski tour planning process as well as out in the field to ensure balanced and informed decision-making.
Based in Gunnison, Colorado, founder and owner, Andy Sovick authors the Crested Butte book, but works in close collaboration with respected authors around the country to develop ground-sourced and highly curated products for other ski zones and states. Over the last eight years, these guidebooks have gone from being a local secret to being used by avalanche professionals, guiding companies and schools.
Founded in 2014
The ski atlas concept started with the desire to create a terrain-focused atlas centered around sharing safety information and essential beta. We started locally in our own backyard and developed the first ski atlases for Crested Butte and Silverton, Colorado.
The Light Tours of Colorado and Light Tours of Tahoe are our most popular titles, and the "Light Tours" concept continues to grow.
Our product line now includes backcountry ski maps for most regions as well as an Avalanche Search and Rescue Backcountry Field Guide and a kids' book series.
We have also partnered with onX Backcountry and Rakkup to bring you two different app versions of our content so that you can have it all.
What Drives Us?
At Beacon, it's our aim to stay dynamic in this space and to continue to curate and deliver high-quality information to our skiing community.
Happy Skiing!
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We stand by our values
Shared Knowledge & Wisdom
Quality Products from the USA & Canada
A Spirit of Adventure
Integrity & Trust
Mutual Respect & Kindness
The ATES Project
Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale
Advancing avalanche terrain mapping
Created by Parks Canada, ATES is a system that can be applied to any ski zone. This system assesses each zone to help skiers and riders plan their tour and avoid potentially hazardous areas. Our authors and guides analyze each zone and each run and rank them from 1 to 3 taking the history, the hazards, slope angle and ATES ranking indicators into consideration. Using this system in conjunction with the local avalanche forecast and good avalanche education can help you make better decisions when planning your tour.
It is an ongoing goal of Beacon Guidebooks to engage the backcountry ski community in education and awareness of the ATES system and to continually improve the accuracy and functionality of ATES mapping in the United States. We collaborate closely with avalanche professionals in Canada and the US to move this project forward each year and with each product.
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