wrote:

Thanks for the input. This is something I have always wondered about,
as it seems there is a lot of out of bounds at most ski resrts. What
legal power do the resort have outside of the pistes? Most of them are
on national forest land, which persumably means that anyone is allowed
to enter this area. What rights do they have outside or inside their
area?


CLIP
This passage and your earlier talk of cell-phones, etc, makes wonder if
you have off-piste and backcountry skiing confused.

Off piste, loosely speaking, is inbounds terrain they don't groom.
Heavenly has lots of off-piste, including some lovely tree runs between
pistes right off the Cal side top (remember to visit the Bono Memorial
Tree.) Off piste is patrolled and avalanche controlled just like the
piste is, including rescue by the patrol. If it's not patrolled and
avalanche controlled, or they just don't want you skiing there, it will
be marked closed. No special prep required for off-piste.

Just go do it.

Backcountry has requirements, and by definition is never patrolled and
avalanche controlled. Buddies, beacons, shovels, probe, snacks, water,
etc; plus skiing and avalanche skills and experience are all required. A
cell phone may or may not help you live if you screw up. Some resorts
let you access backcountry; some don't. It's not as simple as whether
it's forest service land or not.

Don't just go do it. Prep.