Originally planning to participate in the Kanas backcountry skiing competition organized by SnowFly at the end of the month, and to extend the trip a few more days to ski around the nearby mountains. But the competition was canceled due to weather conditions, and since the flights were already booked, I decided to go on an independent trip instead.

The principle for this trip: ski if there’s snow, take photos if there’s none, focus on leisure, and safety first. I’m not a fitness enthusiast, and my gear isn’t complete, so I basically don’t plan to do uphill skiing. I’ll mainly stick to mountains accessible by car, and only consider climbing one or two times for those road-less peaks that look really tempting.

Considering the season, temperature, and the fact that I have zero avalanche gear, I’m not planning to challenge areas with avalanche risks. After a quick look at Google Earth, I noticed that most mountains there have dense forests on their northern slopes and bare ones on the southern sides. So, I definitely won’t ski in the slightly steeper southern valleys, but might consider the slightly steeper northern forested slopes.

Since access mainly relies on vehicles, I’m basically looking for skiable areas along the roads. I found a few spots on Google Earth — purely theoretical for now, as I haven’t been there in person — so I’d appreciate insights from experienced backcountry skiers.


Based on online info, we’ll depart from Burqin, pass by the Kanas Airport, then head to Jiadengyu, and from there we can choose to go to Hemu or Kanas Lake. If we go to Kanas Lake, going further west can also take us to Baihaba Village. So, I’m basically scouting spots along these main roads.
[attach]1438379[/attach]

The first spot is next to the mountain switchbacks south of the airport, on the southern slope, along a ridgeline, gentle slope. If it’s too flat to ski, we might consider skiing the gully bottom.
[attach]1438369[/attach]


The second spot is along the mountain switchbacks south of Jiadengyu, northern slope, forested area, gentle slope.
[attach]1438370[/attach]

The third spot is southeast of Hemu Village, seems like you could ski down from a small high point into the village, but it might be too gentle to actually ski.
[attach]1438371[/attach]

The fourth spot is at the mountain ridge road pass south of Hemu Village. Start skiing through a section of denser forest on a slightly steeper slope, cross a river (not sure if it will be high this season), pass a large flat area, then ski into the village.
[attach]1438376[/attach]

The fifth spot is on a mountain west of Kanas Lake, seems like some kind of viewpoint. Not sure if this straight road gets blocked by heavy snow in winter.
[attach]1438377[/attach]


The sixth spot is along the mountain switchbacks 12 km southwest of Baihaba, the only place with decent slope angle, though it’s a bit short.
[attach]1438378[/attach]


I wonder where the Kanas skiing competitions were held in previous years. If anyone knows, please share, preferably with coordinates. Thanks a lot！