Instructor Eligibility and Progression - Seattle Branch
Our snowshoeing instructors are volunteers and ex-students who love to give back to the community.
Each of the 2 courses - the Basic Snowshoeing and Intermediate Snowshoeing courses needs multiple instructors in varied roles.
- Roles and Eligibility
- Progression from Basic to Intermediate Course Instructor
- Instructor requirements by course type and field trip location
Snowshoeing Instructor Roles
1. Course Lead
The Course Facilitator is responsible for the end-to-end planning, logistical oversight, and execution of the course. This role requires a knowledgeable individual with years of instructional experience; ideally, they are also a qualified snowshoe leader. The Facilitator manages all operational details for lectures (whether online or in-person), field trips, and graduation. In addition to serving as a lecture speaker, they act as the central point of contact, handling all communication before, during, and after the course.
These are the course leads for courses in 2025 - 2026.
- Rachel Rubin - Basic Snowshoeing Course
- KD Dase - Intermediate Snowshoeing Course
- Patrick Podenski & David Cotter - Winter Camping Course
- Tad Englund - Igloo Camping Course
2. Day lead for field trips (only for basic and intermediate snowshoeing courses)
In this facilitator role, the person takes the plans of the course lead and helps to manage, organize, and execute the field trip for the respective course. They do not necessarily instruct at the field trip but help ensure all the students and instructor are set up for success.
Eligiblity
- You are a Snowshoeing course graduate (Basic or Intermediate)
- You enjoy managing, organizing, planning, and communicating
3. Instructor
You are a confident, experienced snowshoer eager to mentor beginners. During field trips, you will teach fundamental skills including equipment usage, conditioning, and route selection. You will share your knowledge and experience on using proper equipment and gear, improving conditioning, what to rent v/s buy, where to go, winter travel, avalanche awareness, safety, and choosing an outing, etc.
Eligiblity
- You enjoy teaching and sharing your knowledge
- You know a good deal about snowpacks or have an AIARE 1 certification
- You have 2+ years of experience as an assistant instructor or instructor
OR - You have 1 year of experience as an assistant instructor and have participated in the instructor review session.
- You are a Snowshoeing course graduate (Basic or Intermediate)
4. ASSISTANT Instructor
You are a recent snowshoeing course graduate and/or have a fair amount of experience snowshoeing and would love to help students build on the skills taught by the instructor. You are welcome to share your knowledge and experience on selecting and using proper equipment and gear, improving conditioning, what to rent v/s buy, winter travel, avalanche awareness etc.
This is also a great way to refresh your skills and build on your experience.
Eligiblity
- You enjoy teaching and sharing your knowledge
- You are a recent snowshoeing graduate
OR - You are a current scramble student
- OR
- You have lots of experience in showshoeing and will get equivalency
- You are a Snowshoeing course graduate (Basic or Intermediate)
Progression from Assistant instructor to instructor
You can progress from an assistant instructor to an instructor role for both courses.
- Join field trips as an assistant instructor.
- Attend the instructor review session before the start of the course.
- Have a few years of snowshoeing experience and have been snowshoeing multiple times per season.
Instructor requirements by course type and field trip location
BASIC SNOWSHOEING
The field trips for the basic snowshoeing course takes place at either Grace Lakes or Snoqualmie (varies). The number of instructors required depends on the trip's location.
Course location: Grace Lakes
- Day lead: 1 per field trip
- Student Groups: 3 to 4
- Group size: 2 to 8 (Max), including students and instructors
- Instructor: 1 per group
- Assistant Instructor(s): Min. 1 per group.
Course locations: Snoqualmie
- Day lead: 1 per field trip
- Student Groups: 2
- Group size: 6 to 12 (Max), including students and instructors
- Instructor: 1 per group
- Assistant Instructor(s): 2 to 4 per group
Intermediate SNOWSHOEING
The field trips for the intermediate snowshoeing course takes place at either Source Lake and/or Skyline Lake.
Course location: Grace Lakes or source lake
- Day lead: 1 per field trip
- Student Groups: 3 to 4
- Instructor: 1 per group
- Assistant Instructor(s): Min. 1 per group.
- Group size: 2 to 6 (Max), including students and instructors
winter camping
The field trips for the winter camping course takes place at Baker backcountry.
Course location: Baker backcountry
- Day lead: 1 per field trip
- Student Groups: 3 to 4
- Instructor: 1 per group
- Assistant Instructor(s): Min. 1 per group.
- Group size: 2 to 6 (Max), including students and instructors
igloo camping
The field trips for the igloo camping course takes place at Deadhorse Creek, located at Paradise inside Mount Rainier National Park.
Course location: Paradise
- Day lead: 1 per field trip
- Student Groups: 1 to 2
- Instructor: 1 per group
- Assistant Instructor(s): Min. 1 per group.
- Group size: 4 to 8 (Max), including students and instructors