Written in the Snows: Across Time on Skis in the Pacific Northwest

by Lowell Skoog

2022 National Outdoor Book Award Winner in History
2022 International Ski History Association Skade Award Winner In Written in the Snows , renowned local skiing historian Lowell Skoog presents a definitive and visually rich history of the past century of Northwest ski culture, from stirring and colorful stories of wilderness exploration to the evolution of gear and technique. He traces the development of skiing in Washington from the late 1800s to the present, covering the beginnings of ski resorts and competitions, the importance of wild places in the Olympic and Cascade mountains (including Oregon's Mount Hood), and the friluftsliv , or open-air living spirit, of backcountry skiing.

Skoog addresses how skiing has been shaped by larger social trends, including immigration, the Great Depression, war, economic growth, conservation, and the media. In turn, Northwest skiers have affected their region in ways that transcend the sport, producing local legends like Milnor Roberts, Olga Bolstad, Hans Otto Giese, Bill Maxwell, and more. While weaving his own impressions and experiences into the larger history, Skoog shows that skiing is far more than mere sport or recreation.

336 pages, Paperback

Published September 20, 2021

Reviews

[Adriana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is for a *very* niche group of people and I think I'm a couple ticks outside that group.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

The strength of this book and the reason to read it for me was the historical review of the development of skiing from a few people interested in snowshoeing as the primary means of winter travel and recreation to "extreme" skiers interested in skiing the steepest slopes in the most remote areas. The part that railroads, road building, and eventual development of ski lifts and ski resorts played was really interesting The many historical photographs really bring the text to life. For me, the detailed descriptions of individual achievements got a bit tedious. Perhaps my biggest disappointment was in the lack of maps that depict in similar the detail the geographic locations of the various routes and competitions. The map that is provided is almost worthless as few of the locations mentioned in the text are to be found. All in all, I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in winter sports, mountaineering, or PNW history.

[Guillaume · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read of the history of skiing in the Pacific Northwest. It should be noted though that this book is VERY thorough! The author left NO stones unturned! Names, events, places, you name it, if it happened on skis in the PNW, it's in this book! So while that aspect can get a bit tedious, it's nice that someone took the time and effort to document what is a small aspect of local life. I'd say it's a must read if you enjoy skiing the wilds of the PNW.

[Craig Seasholes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable schuss through PNW skiing history. Loved photos, eg a young Bill Stark and talented women from wooden ski adventure skiing days. Would love a multimedia companion to the video and photo archives Skoog has used in his research and presentations.

[Corinne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very thorough history with a lot of photographs.

[Nick Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a PNW raised skier I found this book incredibly interesting. Familiar peaks, names and stories make this book a solid recommendation for anyone who has called the Cascades home.

[Savannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the stories most, felt like I was getting through all the facts about who skied what for the first time when.

[Dave Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Skoog does such an outstanding job of detailing the rich history of northwest skiing of all types.

[Luke Funk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed as an audiobook, not sure if I would have made it manually reading through the names and dates.

[Erin McMahon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun to read all about Washington mountains and skiing history!

Gave it a 3 because ir was a little dry to me