Skiing with my 88-year-old dad, Jerry, today! My dad is my hero because he shows me you’re never too old to live the life you dream of. He is committed to continuing to improve his skiing. I hope I’ll be skiing when I’m his age, too.
The ski season is only half-way over and there’s no better time to get into backcountry skiing than now. March and April are two of my favorite months for backcountry skiing!Getting gear for backcountry skiing may seem like a big, upfront investment, but once you realize you don’t have to pay for lift tickets or wait in lift lines, the investment begins to pay off. One of the mistakes I made early on in my career was not investing in lightweight gear. If you’re going to be a committed uphill and/or backcountry skier, go with lighter equipment and adjust your skiing style and speeds accordingly (you can still charge on lightweight gear, trust me). It’s a beautiful lifelong sport.Make sure you educate yourself on the dangers of avalanche terrain. The three most essential pieces of gear are beacon, shovel, probe and the knowledge of how to use them. Don’t ever leave resort boundaries without them.I’ve teamed up with @backcountry to share some of my favorite pieces of gear with you. Check out the link below or in my profile to see a video with @badgal_brooklyn where we talk gear essentials for backcountry skiing.Head to my stories to find swipe up links to my favorites.Use code CAROLINE15 for 15% off your first purchase (exclusions apply). This month, Backcountry will be donating up to $7k from purchases with my code to their partner, @nature_org to support their recovery efforts in Australia. https://www.backcountry.com/explore/what-to-pack-for-a-day-skiing-the-backcountry
This March, it's time to rise up together by taking on a challenge to #CrushIt4Climate with @protectourwinters. Next month is stacked for me and I often feel like I'm burning the candle on both ends. So what feels right to me is a daily activity to celebrate this one planet that we need to save. Link in bio to donate to POW and get started. Your donations will be matched dollar-for-dollar.Activism and adventure must be inextricable if we are to dig deep enough to elect climate champions on November 6 who will do the hard work with us for the future of the planet. I'm hoping that a few of my daily activities will be epic mountain adventures if everything lines up.Realistically though, some days it might just be :30 minutes of yoga in the hotel or even a 3-minute sprint between gates to catch my flight to D.C. to testify in front of a Congressional climate panel. But even that airport dash with bags swinging wildly behind will fill me with more motivation to dig deeper as an activist.
I’d rather be skiing. But the urgent threat of climate change is so important, I’m swapping out ski boots and outerwear for a suit and sneakers to head to D.C. to speak to Congress. I’ve been asked testify on H.R. 5435, the American Public Lands and Waters Climate Solution Act, a bill to reduce emissions from public lands and waters to zero by 2040. You may not realize that our public lands are responsible for 25% of our country's climate emissions. The bill will put a one year pause on new leasing to allow the Department of the Interior to develop a comprehensive emission reduction strategy. I've spent the last month training for this, and tomorrow, Wednesday February 26, is go time. The hearing starts at 10 am EST. Head to the link below or in my profile to tune in for the livestream. https://naturalresources.house.gov/Huge thanks to @outdooralliance for recommending me as a witness and for all their support. Preparing my speech, written testimony and practicing for the Q&A was no small feat.
Day 56. @elanskis @lekiusa @patagonia_snow
