Washington skiers and snowboarders who choose to cross into clearly marked closed mountain areas could be charged with second-degree trespassing if a bill introduced in the Washington State Senate passes. Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill (ESSB) 5186, sponsored by Sen. Jim Kastama, D-Puyallup, passed its third reading by the Rules Committee on March 4 with a vote of 43 to 5. ESSB 5186 is accompanied by House Bill 1484.

Kastama, who works as a ski patrol at Crystal Mountain, said his goal in creating this bill is to prevent deaths and injuries of adventurous skiers. He said in the last 10 years alone, five people have died and 520 people have been caught skiing in closed areas at Crystal Mountain. “There’s something about skiing that makes people feel invincible,” he said. “I know really good skiers that tell me they’ll take a chance and go into these closed areas. We find people just ducking under that rope and disobeying the signs. It’s clearly indicated that you could die.” According to the bill, skiers who choose to knowingly trespass in an area that has signs indicating its closure can be fined up to $1,000 or 90 days in jail. However, Kastama said first-time offenders would most likely be given community service hours. Kastama said the bill got off to a rough start this session because many people did not understand the difference between closed areas and out of bounds or backcountry areas. He said the bill only addresses closed areas because those are the areas that pose a real threat to skier safety. “I love skiing, and I understand people wanting to go backcountry skiing,” he said. “This is not a bill about that.” WSU Ski Team President Tomas Sadilek said he will be devastated if the bill passes. He said new skiers should know not to ski in clearly marked closed areas, but experienced skiers who know the mountain well should not be punished for going in an area they know they can take on. “If you’ve been skiing for like 35 years and you cross the line, you shouldn’t have to do community service or pay a fine just for having fun,” he said. “If you’re new, for your own safety, you have to use common sense and not go into those areas” Sadilek said newer skiers should not even be on the mountain if they cannot judge the safety of the runs they choose to ski on. He said it is upsetting when ski patrols close backcountry areas during times of good snow because it prevents experienced skiers from participating in challenging runs. He said ESSB 5186 is unnecessary and the repercussions associated with it would be harmful to skiers’ criminal records. “It’s really annoying running away from the ski patrol like they’re cops,” he said. “I’ve gotten caught (in a closed area) by the ski patrol and they were really mean about it. I would be so upset if I got a misdemeanor charge for that.” Bill Williamson, the mountain operations manager at Schweitzer Mountain Resort, said while Idaho does not have a similar law in effect, he has worked at mountains in several counties in Washington that have repercussions in effect for skiing in out-of-bounds areas. Williamson said when he worked at a resort near Lake Tahoe, closed-area trespassers were arrested. He said the most dangerous aspect about skiers who choose to go into closed areas is that others could follow their snow tracks thinking the area is safe to ski in.

“If the person (who trespasses) gets hurt, shame on them, but if someone else goes in to follow their tracks or to rescue them, those people are endangered as well,” Williamson said.

Williamson said current Idaho law contains a statute requiring skiers to obey all signs, but there are no ramifications.

“There’s nothing with any penalty,” he said. “You can’t be in a closed area, but it doesn’t come with repercussions. I am supportive of some type of teeth that prevents people from going into inappropriate areas.”