ADK Winter Mountaineering School
Registration is Open!
If a section is full, applicants will be added to the waitlist.
If you do not get accepted this year, waitlisters will be given priority for 2026.
Programs start on Thursday, January 30th, 2025
While browsing the programs below, make sure to also check out the relevant gear lists in our Student Center
Prerequisites: None
Day-Hike Course (4-Days)
This course is designed to transition three-season hikers into Winter Mountaineers, capable of planning and executing their own day-trips into the high peaks of the northeast in full winter conditions. On your first day you’ll learn ice ax, crampon, and self-arrest techniques in a controlled setting. The clothing selection, layering, and moisture management methods we teach will allow you to stay safe and comfortable in extremes of cold, wind, and precipitation. You’ll solidify these skills during a “shake-down” hike, and then put them to use when your team plans and executes a 4,000+ foot Adirondack High Peak climb. Other lecture and workshop topics include trip planning, navigation, emergency shelters, nutrition and meal planning, risk management, avalanche awareness, and more.
2025 Cost: $525, includes meals and lodging at the ADK’s Adirondak Loj
Backpacking Course (4-Days)
Prerequisites: None
This course is designed to transition three-season campers into Winter Mountaineers, capable of planning and executing their own backpacking trips into the high peaks of the northeast in full winter conditions. On your first day you will learn ice ax, crampon, and self-arrest skills in a controlled setting, followed by dinner, evening workshops, and a night at the ADK’s front-country Adirondak Loj. The next morning you and your team will depart for a two-night backpacking trip into a remote area of the High Peaks Wilderness. On this trip you’ll learn the basics of winter camping, cooking, and temperature management in extremes of cold, wind, and precipitation. You and your team will then plan and execute an Adirondack High Peak climb before returning to the ADK Loj. Lecture and workshop topics include trip planning, navigation, nutrition and meal planning, risk management, avalanche awareness, and more.
2025 Cost: $475, includes meals and lodging at the ADK’s Adirondak Loj pre/post trip.
Day-Hike and Backpacking “Combo” (7-Days)
Prerequisites: None
This week-long course is a combination of our two introductory programs allowing you to build a full set of winter skills in one intensive, week-long adventure. This is our flagship introductory course and is a superb value. Like all our introductory programs, you’ll first learn ice ax, crampon, and self-arrest skills in a controlled environment before putting them to use in the backcountry. Shake-down hikes and day-trips up 4,000-ft. peaks let students consolidate their skills from the comfort of the Adirondak Loj before heading deep into the High Peaks Wilderness on a three-night backpacking trip. While in the backcountry you’ll learn all the winter camping skills of our Backpacking course and make two more attempts on Adirondack High Peaks before returning to the Adirondak Loj.
2025 Cost: $575, includes meals and lodging at the ADK’s Adirondak Loj
Advanced Day-Hike Course (4-Days)
Prerequisites: Day-Hike, Backpacking, or “Combo”
Take your winter skills to the next level! Refine your ice ax, crampon, and self-arrest techniques, and then hike into the ADK’s remote Johns Brook Lodge in the heart of the Great Range. Here you and your team will plan and execute ambitious attempts of Adirondack High Peaks. You’ll learn what it takes to summit multiple peaks in a single day, and if conditions allow, attempt a non-technical slide climb. Lecture and workshop topics include advanced trip planning, leadership, risk management and decision making, navigation, nutrition and meal planning, avalanche awareness, and more.
2025 Cost: $525, includes meals and lodging at the ADK’s Johns Brook Lodge.
Advanced Backpacking (6-Days)
Prerequisites: Backpacking or “Combo”,
& Prior Instructor Endorsement
This program is only offered once every few years. Do you dream of bigger mountains that require a multi-day trek? Here you learn the skills that can take you to that next level of mountaineering. Trip planning, breaking and moving camp, teamwork group dynamics, and flexibility based on weather are a few things this course will cover beyond refreshing your previous WMS skills. The real bonus will be getting to go deeper into the High Peaks region to tackle multiple more remote peaks.