Here’s a sneaky inside tip for all my loyal readers (all 4.5 of them) who need an awesome Christmas gift for your outdoor friends this year: Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour tickets showing at the Colonial Theater in Idaho Falls go on sale Monday (at noon).

This season’s shows will be Jan. 25, 26 and 27. Each night will show a different set of outdoor adventure, stunt and environmental films — so if you want to see all of the films, you’ll have to get tickets for all three nights. In the past, films have ranged in length from a few minutes long to about 50 minutes. Expect to see several different films each night.

WARNING: Seeing Banff Mountain films can have a serious positive effect on your stoke. I’ve come out of past film festivals with my head full of ideas on big adventures I need to try. Seeing past film festivals provided me with piles of encouragement to take up bicycle touring, rock climbing and peak bagging as regular pastimes.

To get a taste of what’s coming with this year’s films, check out this year’s YouTube video trailer at www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jfPonLYujY or get on YouTube and search for "Banff Mountain Film Festival trailer 2023."

The film festival is sponsored by the Idaho Falls Nordic Ski Patrol and it is the 45-member group’s main fundraising event for the year. The patrol uses proceeds from the film festival to pay for emergency medical equipment, member training and events.

Patrollers are trained in emergency medical skills, rescue and injury transport.

Some of the patrol’s events include beginner cross-country ski lessons at Harriman State Park during the park’s free ski day and a Ski with the Patrol day.

In the past, the patrol has donated funds for grooming equipment at Harriman State Park and provided ski equipment for local elementary kids to learn to cross-country ski during P.E. classes. Nearly 500 students have learned to cross-country ski with boots and ski gear donated by the patrol in 2019.

The patrol also hosts cross-country ski field trips for fourth and fifth graders from local elementary schools to Harriman State Park.

Most of the patrol members during on-duty time patrol two main areas: Harriman State Park and the backcountry outside of Kelly Canyon Ski Resort. Some patrollers do double-duty patrolling at the ski resort as well.

The Idaho Falls Nordic Ski Patrol’s success gained national recognition when they were awarded National Ski Gold Unit Citation by the National Ski Patrol System for 2022.

“This is a really big deal,” said Rick Williams, an Idaho Falls ski patroller. “Not many patrols can say that.”

“Being awarded the NSP Gold Unit Patrol of the Year Award is recognition for all the members both past and present, representing the hard work that has taken place to make this a great patrol,” said Nordic ski patroller Jerry Jensen in NSP Magazine. “Idaho Falls Nordic Ski Patrol is what all ski patrols should be. It is a family of individual volunteers who come together for a common purpose. When there is a need to be filled, many members jump in to make it happen.”

The Nordic Ski Patrol in recent years has added bike patrolling to its skill set. Some patrollers “unofficially” log patrol hours during the summer on horseback or hiking.

When not patrolling, the group offers first aid training to Scouts, community CPR training, patrolling at mountain bike races, music festivals, trail run events, marathons and teaching CPR in high schools.

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Another big deal going on Monday is the annual Avalanche Awareness and Avy Savvy program at 7 p.m. at the Colonial Theater, 450 A St. in Idaho Falls.

The program is free and the first 500 attendees receive a swag bag. There will also be several nice door prizes of avalanche gear.

Besides presentations on winter backcountry safety, the film “Into The Hills” will also be shown.

This is a great program to remind backcountry skiers to beware of the dangers and warning signs when they play during the winter.

One immensely important resource for winter backcountry users is the website https://bridgertetonavalanchecenter.org.

This site offers up-to-date information on snow conditions and where the dangers exist. For example, avalanche conditions were labeled “considerable” for the Teton Range on Tuesda with “cautious route-finding and conservative decision making being essential.”

Checking in on this site before embarking on winter trips into the mountains should be a part of any trip routine, like remembering your ski boots.