I’ve got two significant trips planned for this year so far. At Xmas we’re headed to Whitefish Montana to celebrate with my SIL’s family, with a possible side trip to Fernie for a few days. Our regularly scheduled Feb ski vacation looks like it might be back to Banff to hit some new mountains, mainly Revelstoke. And I could possibly get a bonus day in November at Ski Dubai, for no other reason than to put a Mad River Glen sticker somewhere in the facility.
Always thinking winter
Probably a trip to Park city. I have been invited to go join some friends in Chamonix for a bit of a boys trip. Working on the negotiations with my wonderful wife. If we don’t do PC may try for something a bit closer in Colorado
Fall is here in Telluride already. After 25 years here, we’re decamping to Bozeman, so Bridger Bowl and Big Sky this winter! I’ve skied Big Sky a long time ago, but Bridger will be all new. Hiked up it last week, and it’s hard to tell with no snow on it, but the uppers are STEEP. Scheduled for the annual Heli trip to Crescent Spur, BC last week of January with an old friend. Hopefully we don’t jinx the snow for Montana. Last year truly stunk in SW CO.
I have no objections to changing the thread title to Ski/Ride. Should I send the request in? It’s all sliding on snow (or wet rocks and slippery grass).
I’m not much of a skier, tho my wife and I have been taking one nice ski trip each winter. I was hoping some of you skiers out there could answer some questions about Canada resorts.
We’re looking at Banff or Whistler/Blackcomb in the first week of Feb. I’m leaning towards Banff, just because the flight/drive would be considerably less from Chicago. If we go to Banff, Lake Louise or Sunshine? Is it going to be absolutely freezing that time of year? Is the snow much better at Sunshine?
To give you an idea of our interests, our last 2 trips were to Beaver Creek and Deer Valley. My wife really liked the lodging/amenities at Deer Valley. We both really enjoyed all of the wide open greens up at the top of Beaver Creek. She prefers greens and the easiest blues. I’m only slightly more adventurous. Sunshine looks like it has several really long greens. She prefers ski-in/out. I have no problem taking a shuttle. We have zero interest in night life. A significant appeal for her is the low altitude, as that tends to bother her. Any experience with the busses/shuttles from the airport?
Well, I almost have my February vacation planned out. I’ll be visiting friends in Aspen right away on the 1st for a week before heading to Costa Rica, then back home for Lutsen with the family and ending solo at Whistler. This is the reward for almost four years straight of two or more jobs to pay off student loan debts and catch up on retirement savings. What better way to celebrate than by taking a month off to ski until your legs fall off, with a trip to the tropics in the middle just for shits and giggles?
We got over a foot in the mountains, three New England ski areas are open this weekend; Killington, Sunday River, and Wildcat. It’s a good start to the season.
Wet rocks are good, but don’t forget moss and good old sand.
My first tracks this year were 20 Oct., so add astroturf and horizontal snow fence (laid down in 1997 by a friend) covered with leaves and a dusting of snow.
First week of February? Probably cold, although sometimes there is a late January/early February thaw. For polar mittens, masks and headgear for inside your helmet, go with www.baffin.com. For boot heaters, go with wireless ThermaCELL Heated Rechargeable Insoles. Use tubes connected to a fan to thoroughly dry out your boots at night, put baby power on your feet before you put on your socks, and repower your feet and change your socks for dry ones regularly. For clothing, layers do the trick – thin moisture wicking base layer of poly (or poly/wool, or silk – but these do not wick as well as straight poly), medium to thick insulating layers of poly or poly/wool, windproof but breathable external layer. When it comes to staying warm, moisture is your enemy.
Lake Louise has a lot more beginner and intermediate terrain than Sunshine. (Sunshine has a lot of advanced, and both have a lot of expert.) The snow is wonderfully dry. The elevation is about 5400ft - 8600ft, so you will notice it, but it will not be as troubling as Beaver Creek’s 9500 feet.
Lake Louise does not have ski-in/ski-out accommodations. There is a shuttle from the hill to the townsite where there are some places to stay, and then on to something really special: the Chateau Lake Louise. Pay the bucks and get a room with a view of the lake. You will love it. The view really is that nice.
Once you get from Calgary to the Rockies, the drive up through the Rockies to Lake Louise is beautiful. You might enjoy poking about in Banff on your way to or from Lake Louise.
Whistler/Blackcomb also has a lot of beginner and intermediate terrain. The snow is heavy – similar to Cascades concrete and Sierra cement if you get a warm dump of it late in the season – so early February is usually a good time for Whistler. Although the elevation of about 2200 - 7,500ft is lower than Lake Louise, you still might notice the elevation. Whistler/Blackcomb tends to be a bit busier than many western ski destinations due to its popularity with skiers from Japan.
The drive from Vancouver to Whistler/Blackcomb takes a-boat the same time as the drive from Calgary to Lake Louise, and it is just as lovely, and even more interesting, for it goes up Howe Sound.
Sorry (yeh, I’m a Canadian), but I don’t know anything about the airport to resort shuttles for either Lake Louise or Whistler/Blackcomb. Hopefully the links can help you out.
If you have not already been there, consider Mont Tremblant in Québec for one of your annual jaunts or for a weekend quickie. It has a lot of terrific beginner and intermediate skiing (albeit denser eastern snow), all at relatively low altitude and below the tree line, a lovely ski village, and Québec cuisine – but that is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of what it offers visitors. Let’s put it this way: non-skiers from six to one-hundred-and-six can have a wonderful time there.
Jackrabbit Johannsen (the fellow who cut a great many cross-country and alpine ski trails in the northeastern USA and Québec, including Stowe, Lake Placid’s Whiteface, and the Laurentian’s Maple Leaf Trail, and who climbed in Greenland at age ninety-five, skied for over a century, and lived to one-hundred and eleven – the world’s oldest person at the time), cut the course on Mt. Tremblant for the first racing of the Kandahar Cup in North America: “unquestionably the wildest, toughest, bush-whacking, pole-riding adventure ever held.” (It finished up on what is now the bottom of the Flying Mile.) For decades, people took the train to ski at Mont Tremblant, and still people visit it from throughout eastern Canada, particularly folks who are into easy-going, relaxed skiing, picturesque ski-in/ski-out accomodations, and really, really good food. You can skate, alpine/christie ski, telemark ski, cross-country ski, snowshoe, ice climb, dig into the snow overnight in a National Park, ride in a horse-drawn sleigh, ride on a dogsled, ride in a helicopter, sit by fires indoor or out, fine dine, soak in spas, be massaged . . . .
The area developed as a year round outdoor Mecca that today is easily reachable from Chicago via Porter Airlines (Chicago Midway to Toronto downtown Billy Bishop to Mont Tremblant with a shuttle to the hill). Porter is a good airline to fly on. There is a mid-day layover in the heart of downtown Toronto, which when you think about it could be considered a bonus.
Air Canada can also get you there via one of their budget lines, but it would cost more and take longer, from O’Hare to Toronto Pearson to Montreal to Mont Tremblant. Driving would take less time while still allowing for a leisurely meal stop. The last time I flew on Air Canada it was from Toronto to Vancouver for skiing at Whistler. It was on one of its budget lines. While loading, my barrel pack rolled back down the conveyor and knocked out the loader. The seats were so tightly placed together that I could not open my laptop. Between Toronto and Vancouver, I was kneed in the nuts by a ditzy flight attendant who climbed on top of me to reach for something (a blanket or a pillow) from my overhead bin for a passenger, a lot of people got the shits after a couple of hours and most of them could not wait long enough for a washroom, and the vcr in the overhead bin across from me caught fire and had to be extinguished. That was the second worst flight I have ever had. The return flight after the skiing was too restful: the plane did not arrive. Without any notice, the lights were shut off and we passengers were locked in overnight in one of the airport’s radial arms.
It was bitter cold when we were there, 2nd week in Feb last year. But proper gear makes everything manageable. The upper t-bar at Lake Louise is harsh in the bitter cold, and that accesses some amazing terrain, so that’s a concern. We did one more day there at the end of our trip with warmer conditions and the t-bar was fine.
There was a lot we didn’t explore, but we felt that Lake Louise had much better expert terrain than Sunshine. We were pleasantly surprised with finding fresh powder off Goat Head for our last runs of the trip, but I would pick LL if you only had a few days. Fortunately, there’s no reason not to hit both.
We also spent two days at Kicking Horse, which is a 90 minute drive west. KH is AMAZING; can’t say enough good things about it.
Thanks much - great info. I’ll let you know what we decide.
Not sure why we scratched Tremblant. I think largely b/c we just really like being in big mountains! But it sure would be closer, and we’ve been meaning to visit Quebec…
Given my wife’s preference for comfort, the Chateau looks attractive…
Getting a big mountain feel from green runs can be problematic.
The best big-mountain views usually are up in the peaks. Green runs often do not go all the way to the top.
Green runs tend to be on access trails that traverse a lot. When skiing on access trails in the trees, you don’t get the sensation of being on a big mountain as much when compared with skiing in open bowls that provide expansive views.
If you are looking for a big mountain feel and you prefer green runs, look at various resorts’ trail maps and identify which green runs go to or close to the peak, and of those runs, which ones have a view that is not blocked by trees. Then look for youtube vids of people skiing down those runs to determine if the run has a big mountain feel.
Whistler/Blackcomb and Lake Louise both have a lot of truly mind-blowing big mountain views from their peaks, but for a big mountain feel while skiing green runs, I’d suggest Whistler/Blackcomb over Lake Louise, simply because Whistler/Blackcomb has more green skiing that is not in trees when compared to Lake Lousie. For example, Whistler Burnt Stew and Blackcomb Green Line v. Lake Louise Eagle Meadows.
Just to throw a little loop here, does it have to be N. America?
It may be that money is no object for you but direct flights from Chicago to Munich, Salzburg or Zurich at that time of year are very reasonable. I priced up a trip to Canada a couple of years ago and was very surprised at how expensive everything was. Car hire, ski hire, lift tickets and accommodation. (the lift ticket alone for Whistler was double the one we bought in Saalbach, as was the ski hire. That alone was the equivalent cost of a transatlantic flight)
You may find that you could make a substantial saving and get the advantage of whole other cultural experience and there are many world-class resorts to choose from.
If this is a big concern, Sunshine has more green and easy blue runs that are out in the open than Lake Louise. There’s basically one run down each major lift at LL that winds around and gets you back down, but that’s not why people go there to ski. SV involveds taking a really long gondola up to the village - it’s at the base of the main ski area and would allow someone who skis greens to have a lodge up in the fun stuff.
Another way to get around the derth of greens with expansive views is to develop technique so as to be able to ski the blues and blacks. That’s why god created astroturf (well, something close to it anyway).
While waiting for your local hills to open, put in some time on a tilted variable-speed endless slope (conveyor belt) with a good ski instructor helping you with your technique and Bob’s your uncle.
Check around to see if there are any such indoor ski training facilities in your area, or get your ski buddies to put together some funding to replace the Chicago Snow Studio’s carpet simulator with one of these and use some of the profits to fund ski trips.
I can hold my own on a snowboard, but primarily a skier.
But it sure would be closer, and we’ve been meaning to visit Quebec…
