Revelstoke Mountain Resort Skiing
Bottomline: Revelstoke Mountain Resort should be high on your list if you want powder snow and a Ski Resort that caters to the modern powder-hungry skier/snowboarder. The resort boasts the longest vertical in North America (i.e. 1,713 metres/ 5,620 feet) and averages around 9-14 metres of powder snow per season! Getting There: Revelstoke BC is around 200km away from Kelowna International Airport, the resort is a further 6km outside of the town of Revelstoke. There are airport shuttles between Kelowna and Revelstoke, and there are shuttles between the town of Revelstoke and Revelstoke Mountain Resort. I drove directly to Revelstoke Mountain Resort but used the shuttle to the town regularly. Observations: Before I’d ever set foot in Revelstoke I’d heard skiers and snowboarders talk of legends about the snow there. The over-the-head face shots of blower pow, unlike any they’d seen before. This was long before I knew how to ski or knew what any of that meant but I could tell from their goggle-tanned expression of enthusiasm that it must be a good thing. I’ve only personally learned to ski in the past few years so when I read online that Revelstoke Mountain Resort has very little beginner terrain I was a little anxious about what to expect. The difficulty in terrain is generally split like this: 7% Beginner, 45% Intermediate, 48% Advanced. Terrain for all experience levels: But once out in the resort my fears were soon quelled. The intermediate terrain does not feel too difficult and the sheer amount of new snow on the ground will usually make even steeper runs feel forgiving. The actual ski resort at Revelstoke is pretty new, opening for it’s first season at the end of 2007, but it has all the hallmarks of a location that will become the premier ski/snowboard resort of Canada. We stayed at the Sutton Place Hotel in a suite during our visit which was amazing. After a long day of skiing we could ski right back to our Hotel, drop off our skis and head straight for the hot tub to unwind our muscles and get them ready for our next day skiing on the mountain. A view of our Suite The bedroom. Luxury! Our stay was only a few days long so it felt almost like a whistle stop. More fresh snow was in the forecast and it was a hard decision to pack up and move on. The snow was everything we expected and the terrain on the mountain exceeded our expectations. The resort hasn’t been carved into big long wide ski runs that simply go from top to bottom. They curve and narrow and widen and offer...
The Conrad Kain Hut in the Bugaboos
Bottom Line: A modern and comfortable cabin in the wild and rugged Bugaboos of the Purcell Mountains. Amenities include running water, stoves, electric lighting, heating and wall outlets. None of those conveniences can compare though with the views of rock spires and rumbling glaciers that surround this Hut. They simply need to be seen to be believed. You will be amazed that you can stay in this place for only CA$25 per night! Observations: The Bugaboos in the Purcell Mountains near Golden, BC have long been famous among Mountaineers as a destination to experience some of the finest alpine climbing available in the world. But a stay at the Conrad Kain Hut needn’t just be a base camp for climbers alone. Indeed, on our visit we rubbed shoulders with trail runners, day hikers, backpackers, photographers and a few families with children. Hopefully the photos included within this article can help to explain why everyone capable of hiking the steep trail from the parking lot should visit this place and consider a stay at the Conrad Kain Hut. Getting There: From Golden, BC drive towards the settlement of Brisco. Follow signs for Bugaboo Provincial Park in Brisco which will take you onto a good gravel road. This winds it’s way towards the Bugaboos parking lot for 45km’s. Once parked look for the chicken wire and logs held in a few corrals in the parking area. Surround the base of your vehicle with this wire and hold it in place with the logs. This is needed to stop porcupines from getting under your vehicle and nibbling on any rubber. The wire and log corrals Our vehicle protected The hike in is exceptionally well maintained, containing ladders, hand rails and concrete steps where they are needed. The trail to the Hut is only 4.6km’s long but rises close to 700m’s in elevation. Take it steady and slow and expect to get to the hut in 2-4 hours, allow for the views on the hike to cause you to linger and stop often. An Oasis in this Rugged Landscape: Once at the cabin we checked in with the friendly Hut Custodian who was expecting us. He gave us a quick tour and let us know where we could sleep, store our food and hang and stash our equipment. The Hut sleeps up to 35 people hostel style and from June to September expect the Hut to be full most weekends, but it will usually be quieter from Monday to Friday. You will be sleeping shoulder to shoulder with the person next to you. This is common for every mountain hut we’ve been to. The First Floor Sleeping The Second Floor...
Nemo Kunai 2P Mountaineering Tent Review
Bottom Line: A versatile, innovative and aesthethic tent that is light weight while still holding onto all the features you’d expect in a true 2-person, 4 season tent that will see you through the heat of Summer into the depths of a snowy Winter. First Impressions and Observations: As soon as I held the Nemo Kunai 2P tent in my hands my first thought was: “Yes! A tent that finally comes in a truly usable stuff sack”. I’m not going to lie, the stuff sacks that come with most tents usual disappoint me. Most times they are nothing more than a basic sack with a draw string to close them at the top. Nemo has provided, as standard, with the Kunai 2P tent a stuff sack that is not only waterproof, but allows for airspace to be compressed out and it has a glow in the dark map of popular constellations on the inside! Tent manufacturers take note, this is how you impress a camper before they’ve even had a chance to actually look at the tent. The Kunai 2P tent and pole set Awesome compression stuff sack “Recharge with your headlamp”. Neat! Pitching the Kunai 2P Mountaineering tent is extremely straightforward also. It has two main poles that cross over the main tent body and then an additional brow pole to increase head room at the tent door and provide extra height to the vestibule. The main tent body pitched The front brow pole on the tent Swivel Hub on the Kunai 2P Tent Fully sealed up inside this tent gets warm fast! I can see how the double walled design will make this an amazing tent in Winter. But what about Summer? The venting system to make this a true 4-Season tent, and not just a Winter Tent, is quite remarkable and innovative. Venting on the entrance door Looking down the end of the tent Struts that hold a part of the door open Door vent with strut from the inside Vents have been installed at both ends of the tent, but more than that, struts have been installed into the fly to allow for the vents to be held open, increasing airflow. Awesome! Inside the tent there are pockets where you’d need them. A pocket on each side of the tent down low for a phone or wallet and overhead pockets for a headlamp. If you turn your headlamp on and place it in the overhead pocket it diffuses light around the tent. Side stash pocket Top pocket in the Kunai 2P Tent Space is at a premium inside the tent, but this is understandable as it’s meant as a...
10 Reasons To Run Squamish 50 Every Year
This year made my 3rd year in a row running a distance in the Squamish 50 series. My love affair with the Squamish 50 began when I signed up for my first trail race, the 50km option, in 2013. The following year would see me attempting and finishing my first 50 miler and this year I chose the 50km option once again. What exactly is it about this race that keeps me coming back for more? Here are 10 of my favourite things about this race and reasons why you should put this race on your yearly schedule. 1.Finish line hugs. The race director, Gary Robbins, actually waits at the finish line both days to congratulate every single runner that comes across the finish line with a hug (he might even let you tousle that glorious beard, if that’s your kind of thing). Don’t be surprised either if random runners are coming up to you to hug you, high five and give you a job well done. There is just a lot of love going around at the finish line of this race! 2. Singletrack trail for miles upon miles. The course has been designed to contain at least 85% beautiful forest singletrack.This is trail running at it’s best! 3. Running in a rainforest. That’s right, this isn’t just any forest we are running through. This is Pacific Northwest Rain Forest which means there are giant cedar and hemlock trees, ferns filling the forest floor and moss a colour of green you wouldn’t believe. It’s vibrant, it’s humid and the air is filled with the scent of wet earth and vegetation. 4. Bouncing across wooden mountain bike bridges. Did you know that almost all of the trails in Squamish have generously been created by the SORCA (Squamish Off Road Cycling Association) mountain biking community and do you know what mountain bikers love? Wooden bridges! Funny because trail runners love them too. The short ones curve steeply requiring you to pay extra attention to your footing and the longer ones bounce with each step which means the bridge rises up to meet your foot at each placement. 5. Salty potatoes. This might not sound like a big deal or even that tasty. But run 23 km (14 miles), 50 km (31 miles) or 80 km (50 miles) on a warm August day and tell me that the starchy, salty, melt in your mouth potato doesn’t hit the right spot. 6. High fives everywhere. I like to think that trail runners are a different breed of runner. They are friendlier, more excitable and more willing to have a chat on the trail....
Exploring the Whistler Via Ferrata
If you haven’t already, check out our previous post about Via Ferratas and our experience on the Squamish Via Ferrata at the Sea to Sky Gondola. You can read that here: An Adventure on the Squamish Via Ferrata Well, after our morning out with the Mountain Skills Academy on the Squamish Via Ferrata we were psyched to check out the Whistler Via Ferrata next. The Whistler Via Ferrata was one of the first of it’s kind in Canada and we were told that it was a few grades harder than the newer one recently opened in Squamish. Fresh off our experience in Squamish we were excited to see for ourselves what it was like! It’s longer than the Squamish Via Ferrata being a 4 hour return trip from the Roundhouse on Whistler Mountain. Myself and Spring met up with our Guide and group at the base of the gondola in Whistler. From there we took the gondola up and got to know each other on the scenic ride up the mountain. At the top we went to a little cabin near the Roundhouse to get our harnesses, helmets and lanyards. Coming straight off our Squamish trip we felt like seasoned pros with the equipment. Weather couldn’t slow us down. We headed out promptly and got the day underway. Clouds were building overhead and weather looked to be rolling in but it didn’t slow us down. Right away we got that big mountain feel. From the Roundhouse you will be starting above the trees in the Alpine. We were surrounded by rock, ice and snow. After hiking for a bit towards Whistler Mountain we gained the base of our route and the fun of climbing the “Iron Road” began. We clipped into the security of the metal cable running along the length of the route and started moving upwards steadily. We could definitely feel that this Via Ferrata was different to the Squamish one. The rungs were further apart and in places you needed to hold onto rock to move upwards. It was varied and interesting but never too hard. A girl in our group had never done anything remotely like this before and she found it a lot of fun. We always had the reassurance that we were protected as we were clipped into the metal cable. Bringing back the High 5 on Whistler Mountain! The route had an awesome mountaineering feel. We traversed ledges, moved around blocky features, ascended steep cliffs, all while working our way towards the summit. If you want that feeling like you are aiming for an objective in the mountains and working to achieve it...
