A
Winter of Options
by Mitchell ScottCold temperatures,
driving snow, mountains around every turn, a land held in the clutches
of winter for nearly six months of the year. This is British Columbia
in wintertime, and for the skiers and snowboarders of the world, it is
paradise. But what makes this province an unparalleled alpine
destination is its variety.
Under Whistler’s Shadow
Just
13 kilometres (eight miles) south of Whistler-Blackcomb’s Creekside
Village, where gondolas and lifts provide access to one of the most
revered ski resorts in North America, there hides a gem. Deep in a
stand of old-growth cedar, 5,000-square-foot Scandinavian-styled
Callaghan Lodge is a world away from the hustle and bustle of
Whistler. Outside the beautiful woodwork, airy ceilings, over-stuffed
furniture and heritage-styled windows of the
lodge is a winter wonderland. Finished in 1998, the Callaghan
Lodge gives guests the option of cross-country skiing on a groomed
course that encircles a lake outside the structure, but it is the
premium powder and terrain of this alpine beauty that will best widen
your eyes. A short snowmobile ride from Hwy 99, the
Callaghan Lodge is one of BC’s premiere backcountry lodges: The
luxury of five-star living, the joy of five star skiing and
snowboarding, hidden under the shadow of North America’s most famous
five star resort.
Beyond the Frontier
Deep in the British Columbian north, a world away
from the rush of civilization, there is an outpost that is distinctly
civilized. After a charter flight from Vancouver, board a small plane
in the town of Smithers and fly even further northward to an airfield
in the middle of snow-capped mountains whose end you cannot see. With
650,000
hectares
(1.6 million acres),
Last Frontier Heliskiing operates on the largest tenure of any
helicopter operation in the world. With three groups of five per
helicopter, it is as intimate and exclusive as heli-skiing gets. The
terrain is so vast head guide and operations manager Franz Fux — a
Swiss master who’s been guiding in BC for 25 years — regularly takes
clients to runs never visited before. Not a cloud in the sky or a
breath of wind. Waves of peaks roll into the forever. Even on the
flats, weightless powder roils at your waist like it’s made of air. On
the steeps it flies over your shoulders in a contrail of white smoke.
Puurrfecting Powder
Snow swirls in a cloud of white as the helicopter
touches down outside
Baldface Lodge. In the heart of the powder-blessed Selkirk Range,
at an
elevation
of 2,014 metres (6,600 feet), the Lodge is just a short flight above
the picturesque village of Nelson, the next three days will be spent
immersed in trees and powder, accessed by a diesel-fuelled magic
carpet. Within minutes of pancakes and coffee you step out on a thin
ridgeline back dropped by spectacular panorama of peaks. Below lay a
landscape made soft with glistening powder. Encased spruce trees look
like stalagmites. Cornices curl over wide, treeless bowls. Looking
down at an untouched slope of deep powder, with Kootenay Lake visible
far below, the eyes and mouths of your group begin to widen with the
excitement only deep powder skiing can deliver.
Island Style
The
wide, endless expanse of the Pacific Ocean, clumps of
rainforest-covered islands, and the snow-capped mountaintops of the
Coast Range. These are the views from the 1588-metre (5215-foot)
summit of
Mt. Washington Alpine Resort on Vancouver Island.
Well-positioned to strike first at the onslaught of moisture-laden
storms that roll in from the Pacific, Mt. Washington is perhaps best
known for its’ nine metres of annual snowfall (30 feet). But it is the
decidedly down-home community feel that best imparts fond memories on
all who visit here. Relatively small and intimate, Mount Washington
typifies the experience at any one of the community based ski resorts
that dot the province. Mt. Washington epitomizes the BC ski
resort experience. Something for everyone, activities night and day,
draped in epic snow, in a location as majestic and spectacular — not
to mention as unique - as any in the world.
