Approach Skis to the Climb for a non-skier

Whats a good setup for Long distance over mountainous terrain skis for the approach for a non-skier.

Snowshoes? I would suggest learning to ski and getting some mileage in before using skis to approach and/or return from climbs.

learn to ski. If you've never touched skis in your life then you're probably better off with snowshoes, but skis are much more efficient if you are going both uphill and downhill.

So in general what is everyone on, Has everyone switched to AT gear for backcountry jaunts to an objective?

It all depends how gnarly the terrain is. If it is a relatively mellow approach your best bet would be nordic skis.

This was a set up I liked when living in AK, had plenty of non-ski friends use this in the Alaska range as well as climbs around Anchorage:

Silvretta Bindings 500+
Metal Edged Nordic Ski (like the BC Positrack in the 75-125 range)

rossignol.com/US/US/nordic-…

Silvretta Bindings clip onto mountaineering boots like a crampon. I don't know if they are produced anymore, but you can find them on eBay. I liked the thinner skis (Positrack 90s). I never climbed anything huge with them and never used skins. I had a friend with 125s that used BD climbing skins with his.

They are so much faster than snowshoes, and if you go Silveretta you can avoid changing/ carrying a different pair of boots. I'm sure by now there are probably other companies making a similar binding. From everything I see online it seems like people are just climbing in their AT setups now.

I used a pair of old, borrowed skis with Silvretta bindings for my Denali trip with absolutely no knowledge or skill of skiing. I had gotten familiar with using the system over a few days here and there in the months before my trip, but other than that, hadn't skied a day in my life. Granted, I ditched the skis at 11K foot camp and bootpacked it from there on up, but it made for travel on the lower glacier a breeze, and am now convinced that skis (or in my case, a split board) are vastly superior for over-snow travel in the backcountry vs snowshoes.

The nice thing about the Silvretta bindings are that you can use them with your regular mountaineering boots, but the down side is that they are hard to find (not in production anymore) and a little heavier than say a Dyna fit setup.

I know that if it's mostly a flat approach xc would be the best but for more hilly, rocky, mountainous terrain it would be different, a good combination of busting crud and flotation but also being able to travel the distance.

The most expensive, steepest learning curve, but best long-run outcome is to get a dedicated AT setup with tech bindings and lightweight modern boots (which are more than capable of steep snow climbing and moderate ice / mixed climbing). In this scenario you're climbing in the ski boots (with the top strap / buckle undone and the stiffener tongues removed if you have them - this is also the way you skin as well).

Silvretta approach skis with your existing climbing boots is a solution that I think is falling by the wayside as modern AT boots have advanced to the point of being capable for legit climbing.

Some flavor of nordic ski is really good but only if you are pretty sure you're not going to have to cope with deep / soft snow or extended uphills and downhills.

Well of course if money was no object, I'd grab a pair of these arc'teryx procline boot and some sort of AT setup, I've put together a couple sets of Tele 3 pin binding and skis and might just try them since I'm not in a location that has any or much snow during the winter, so buying some crazy expensive setup that would barely get used, doesn't seem overly logical.

Mountain Approach Skis are great for shorter approaches:
mtnapproach.com/index.php

Snowshoes while slow may be a better choice unless you're willing to learn to ski tour. Use of skins, swithbacks on steep terrain, efficient climbing with a pack are just some of the things to consider. Spend time in the boots before a long trip to build blister resistance. On Mt. Logan a few years ago I met two climbers from the UK who had each summited Everest twice. Had never been on ski before but thought it would be trivial given their experience. Ha!. They never made it past camp 3.

Gitrinec wrote:Well of course if money was no object, I'd grab a pair of these arc'teryx procline boot and some sort of AT setup, I've put together a couple sets of Tele 3 pin binding and skis and might just try them since I'm not in a location that has any or much snow during the winter, so buying some crazy expensive setup that would barely get used, doesn't seem overly logical.

None of these parameters were stated in your original post, so don't get too sassy when the suggestions posted in response to your vague question don't meet you liking. The best way to handle this problem can be very dependent on a lot of factors, so providing more information would be very helpful.

I think that all of the methods mentioned (snowshoes, silvretta, AT, splitboard) have merit, and they might all be appropriate in the right circumstances. Without knowing your circumstances, it's hard to know which to suggest. Some random food for thought:

-How long is a "long distance" approach? 2 miles? 10 miles 50 miles?
-What is the terrain? All snow? Above or below treeline? How hilly? How much climb? On or off trail?
-Do you plan on skiing down? Are snow conditions good enough for skiing down?
-Do you prefer to snowboard rather than ski?
-Do you need to do the climb in climbing boots or are ski boots ok?

I have used 3 of the 4 methods (snowshoes, Silvrettas, splitboard) and still see all of them having a place. Learning to ski and going AT is also really appealing, but the learning curve is tough for me to swallow as a snowboard-capable climbing-focused person.

Here is an elevation profile image, this is Gannett peak, the distance back from the trailhead is about 17-18 miles though there is a possiblity of having to slog another 14-15 miles up hill to the trailhead during this time of the year. I've actually got a pair of Madshus Epoch skis with Voile Hardwire bindings though I'm not sure how they'd perform in that terrain. I also have some ASNES USGI surplus skis which are waxable with some Voile Cable bindings as well.

Gannet Peak elevation profile

Beta

It depends a lot on the snow conditions as well. If the snow is faceted and/or rotten but deep on steeper slopes, the only way could be the snowshoes. Couple years ago we attempted to approach an ice climb on skis (couple miles from the car), but the last couple hundred feet to the climb we couldn't get much traction on skis and could not move much in deep snow off skis, so after battling for an hour and making no progress, we retreated. Came back the next day with snowshoes and it took us 5 min to get up the same slope!

This might be an option between snowshoes and skis:
altaiskis.com

In my extremely limited, newbie like experience, I'd say get something that has scales on the bottom so you don't have to put on and take of skins (unless it's steep) and a binding that you can switch from tour to ski and vice versa without taking your boot out completely. Those are my two biggest gripes as a climber who tries to ski.

A pulk makes sense, It was mentioned for this location to actually take snowshoes and skis, but of course that adds weight, but I guess having it all in a pulk would help.

This is probably a dumb question, but why not use ski boots on an AT setup and keep your climbing boots in your pack where you change out at the base of the climb? I know it is extra weight but Silvretta bindings are getting harder to find and ski boots aren't great to climb in.

Actually that is my plan, I'm not skiing in mountaineering boots for sure, I'll have my actual mountaineering boots in my pack.