The 10 Best Avalanche Probes To Use for Avalanche Rescue in the Backcountry

Avalanche Probes come in many shapes and sizes.  How long should an avalanche probe be? Well it really depends on where you’re skiing. Are you backcountry skiing in Europe, Canada, Alaska or the PNW if so the best avalanche probe length is the larger 320cm probes.  Skiing in Colorado, Wyoming or Utah?  A smaller probe like the standard 240cm length will work as most avalanche victims are buried at a depth within 7 feet of the top of the snowpack.

All these probes are easy to use, however just like any of your avalanche safety gear you should test, and test often.  Test it at home. Test it during your next avalanche class.  Test your probe in the field whether out touring on a splitboard or ski touring, and make sure you’re comfortable using it as being a good probe striker can increase the chance of survival for buried victims of avalanches.

Best Avalanche Probes We Tested

Mammut Carbon Probe Light 240

Are you planning to enter a ski mountaineering race and looking for a super lightweight probe?  If so the Mammut Carbon Probe Light 240 Probe has your name on it.  The only probe on this years list to be made of Carbon comes from one of the leaders in avalanche snow safety, Mammut.

When it comes time to extend the probe, the Mammut Carbon 240 flies open super fast, especially for a 7 section probe.  You simply pull on the handle and toss the probe out away from you to extended to it’s full length.  I wouldn’t however recommend using this probe for snow science classes or taking measurements in the field as the bottom 40cm is without any form of cm markings, instead it’s bright orange. This is a great probes for ski touring thanks to it’s super lightweight, think Rando type probe.

Probe Length: 240cm
Probe Weight: 6.17 oz.
Price: $109.95

Black Diamond Quickdraw Pro 280

Back for the second year in a row, a great all around probe that’s in the middle of the length and weight spectrum comes to us from Black Diamond. The Black Diamond Quick Draw Probe is as the name implies, incredibly fast to open and deploy. And once opened the locking mechanism on the top of the probe offers some serious piece of mind.  No more false strikes with a collapsing probe if you’re using the Black Diamond Quickdraw Pro 280 Avalanche Probe while probing snow.

With a steel probe tip and aluminum probe frame Black Diamond’s Quikdraw Pro 280 Probe is a serious contender for best avalanche probe of the year. It’s reliable, easy to use and can be used in most snowpacks.

Probe Length: 280cm
Probe Weight: 11.3 oz.
Price: $79.95

MSR Striker CX 320

Another probe back the second year in a row on our roundup of best avalanche probes is the MSR Striker Probe.  This year we picked the 320cm version to review as when you’re in a deep snowpack, more is always better when it comes to length. MSR came up with a blend of secret sauce by utilizing durable aluminum pole on the lower sections of the probe and lighter carbon for the upper sections.  By not having 100% aluminum build MSR was able to shed some weight on this probe.

Similarly to the other probes we tested, the MSR Stiker CX 320 is easy to throw, and easy to secure by simply pulling up on the handle once the probe is fully extended.    The only thing that could make this probe better would be more snow measurement markings, as this probe only measures 5cm distances, so I would not recommend this one if your taking a level 1 or 2 avalanche course.  More so for freeskiing and splitboarding in deep snow.

Probe Length: 320cm
Probe Weight: 10.5 oz.
Price: $99.95

Ortovox Steel 320+ PFA

The heaviest and burliest probe on this list is most likely overkill for you and I. Ortovox’s Steel 320 Probe is just as the name implies made of Steel.  With almost 3x the weight of the smaller 240cm probes we tested, the Ortovox Steel 320 is not for messing around.  This is the sort of probe heli ski and cat ski guides might carry with them for when the sh*t has really hit the fan and burial depths go beyond the capacity of a 240cm probe.

Why Steel?  Have you ever tried to dig through avalanche debris? Dig through chunks of hard frozen award shaped blocks of snow?  If so then you sure as heck aren’t using a carbon shovel or wanting to poke through the snow with a carbon probe.  This is where trusted steel comes into play but the tradeoff is serious weight for a backcountry snowboard / ski probe that inheantly will take up a little more space in your snowboard backpack due to the length of the probe being 320cm.

Probe Length: 320cm
Probe Weight: 24 oz.
Price: $130.00

Backcountry Access Stealth 240 Probe

Exactly what every avalanche probe should be like, the Backcountry Access Stealth 240 Probe features a minimalist design that does nothing to sacrifice quality. Constructed with full-strength carbon components, the probe is incredibly lightweight and extra strong. It compacts easily and can be conveniently stored in your backpack without taking up much space. This would be a good probe for a deeper snowpack.

Best of all, the BCA Carbon Stealth 240 quickly assembled so you can cut down on time wasted and start your rescue efforts right away. This BCA avalanche probe is really easy to use.

Price: $59.95

Black Diamond Quickdraw Probe Carbon 240

The Black Diamond Quickdraw Probe is awesome. Literally the first time I threw it and pulled tight everything lined up, making the Black Diamond Quickdraw Carbon 240 the fastest probe deployment I’ve ever seen. The shaft is wide enough to get a good grip even with wet gloves but the oversized tip means the opening will be bigger than the shaft, allowing it to cut through with minimal friction, increase sensitivity, and all-around just be awesome. That, plus the alloy-plastic cord and the general stiffness of the construction put this in the running for the most rugged probe. All told, I love this little guy.

Deployment ferrule: 1
Deployment section connection: 1
Ruggedness: 2
Weight: 2 (10 ounces)
Price: $99.95

MSR Striker 240 Probe

The MSR Striker 240 Probe deployment mechanism is ingenious and its size, slightly larger than the Life-Link’s, makes for easier grip. That said, the Black Diamond’s mechanism connected it quicker. Also, a few times I went to throw the probe out and noticed that the bottom section is slightly longer than the sections above; that, combined with the hard metal cord connecting it, led the probe to get hung up and requiring me to throw a second time. Like this wouldn’t happen 90-some percent of the time. But the possibility of it happening worries me, enough that I put it slightly below the Life-Link. When it comes to ruggedness, though, this probe feels like it’ll probably last long after I die. Burly.

Deployment ferrule: 2
Deployment section connection: 3
Ruggedness: 1
Weight: 2
Price: $59.95

Life Link Carbon Speed 280 Probe

At 9.5 ounces, the Life Link Carbon Speed 280 Probe is a half an ounce lighter than the other two options. At 280 cm, it’s 40 cm longer than either of the other two options, more than likely because they replaced heavier-duty cords in the other two with standard rope instead of metal (though that gives it a higher chance of failure, especially if used a lot and in grabby snow). These two factors are why I ranked above the MSR probe. That said, of the three I tried, the deployment ferrule on this is the slowest and took the most practice. Still, the lighter weight despite a longer length gives this probe the slight second-place advantage.

Deployment ferrule: 3
Deployment section connection: 2
Ruggedness: 3
Weight:
Price: $115.00

G3 Speed Probe 240

The quick and easy no frills G3 Speed 240 Probe is perfect for someone that likes to go light and fast while still having durability while deep in the backcountry.  This is possible in part because G3 made the probe carbon. For backcountry skiers in places like Colorado or Montana looking to shave weight, and be able to easily fit their probes in a smaller backpack the G3 Speed Tech 240 Probe is what you’ll want to buy.

The Probe is easy to throw open, you simply grab the handle, extended the probe (ideally downhill) and pull on the locking mechanism on the handle. For measuring snow, G3’s Speed Tech 240 Probe has .5 cm and 1cm increments marked onto the probe.

Probe Length: 248cm
Probe Weight: 7.7 0z.
Price: $118.00

Related Snow Safety Gear We Tested

1. Essential Backcountry Ski Touring Gear
2. Black Diamond Expedition 3 Ski Pole
3. BCA Tracker S Avalanche Beacon