The Epic Snowjourn Takes Off
Our trip across two western Canadian Provinces and three northwestern states continues. The last few days at Panorama in east central BC have been great. Sun Peaks is next on the calendar. If we had been thinking, we would have arranged this differently; essentially we’re backtracking twice through Revelstoke. Sun Peaks should have been first, then Revelstoke, then Panorama and on to Banff. Oh well, guess we won’t be very green friendly on this leg.
Days 5 – 7 – Panorama
Clouds dominate the sky this morning. The promise of snow is eagerly awaited. The coming storm front includes winds to 45 mph, so we expect short bursts of skiing followed by a retreat to shelter. This season the storm will be welcome, as the area has not had its usual amount of snowfall.
Panorama is a wonderful area, well-geared to families and experts alike. The village includes restaurants, a grocery, dozens of lodges and townhomes, the Nordic Center, and RK Heliski. Last night was a nice dinner at Chopper’s Landing in the RK Heliski Lodge. Excellent sushi and a wonderful Korean Bibimbap bowl. Good beer, a bar and a decent wine list should satisfy your epicurean needs.
There’s a good variety of runs for every level of skier, including snowcat rides into near off-piste backcountry, and the ultimate powder hound heliskiing experience onto 11,000-plus foot local peaks and bowls. There’s even ski paragliding, if you dare!
From its 8,038 foot summit Taynton Bowl offers multiple double diamond chutes to challenge the adventurous for powder or moguls. The cozy Summit Hut is the central collecting point for all things, including food and drink, the rustic alpine sun porch, and Monster X snocat adventures.
It’s been ten years since we were last here and experienced the whole mountain, including a day of heliskiing. You wouldn’t think it possible, but I was disappointed. Because of avalanche hazards above the tree line, we were limited to runs in bowls just above and into the trees. I was on a new pair of what were then termed wide powder skis. I didn’t like them – not responsive enough for my taste, particularly in sometimes tight tree glades. So, already two disappointments.
To further temper my enthusiasm, as group trailer with one of the emergency packs I speedily bounded over a large bump only to find two trees. With no way around I tried splitting them – semi successfully. I clipped one hard enough to crack two ribs. Combining broken ribs with an unrecognized sinus infection at 11,000 feet ended up being enough to seal my day.
I carried on for another run up the mountain, but by early afternoon my energy and aerobic capacity came crashing down. I was done. It was a humbling experience. As someone who prided himself on skiing anything, that was hard to take.
There will be none of that this week. Ten years does a lot to your body. Good sense is finally something I’ll succumb to.
Our last full day here begins with clouds and light snow. About mid-day, a gusty wind moving a front through materializes as promised. Snow flurries come and go. We stick to mid-mountain to avoid the even higher 45 mph winds at the summit. Mid-mountain temperatures hover around 28o F. It’s warmer below and the hard pack begins to soften later in the afternoon. Mid-mountain runs are grippy and softer than earlier in the week, requiring less concentration to avoid the occasional patch of ice.
We run our last day out to 3pm before calling it. This is a wonderful, full spectrum area that has something for every kind of skier. Lift lines are virtually non-existent. People are friendly and from a wide variety of places; chairlift talk is always interesting. One fellow rider hailed from Holland and comes here regularly. We met others from England and all over Canada. Tomorrow we head for Sun Peaks near Kamloops, BC, a six hour, 300-mile drive. This could get interesting, as Canada Hwy 1 often closes for avalanche control along the route. We’re keeping our fingers crossed for no surprises. An early start is probably advisable.
Day 8 – Panorama to Sun Peaks
Thankfully the 300 miles on Highway 1 goes without incident. Though our day began in 34o rain on slick, slushy roads and we passed a few semis, trucks and cars in ditches, the last half of the journey was in sunshine. Kamloops was a very mild 50o, but the sun’s out and the threat of precipitation seems to be waning until cooling returns Monday evening. That means we should avoid rain at Sun Peaks and possibly get some new snow. Fingers crossed!
The scenery remains spectacular in typical Western Canadian fashion. Lake Shuswap, though huge and beautiful, is just another of the many lakes across south central BC.
Kamloops is a quintessential inner British Columbia city of 103,000 nestled at the confluence of the North and South Thompson Rivers. It strikes me as surprisingly large. As seems typical in this region, towns are based around hubs of the Canadian rail system. The countryside lends itself primarily to ranching, logging and a growing viticulture.
As the city climbs its southern hillside, to this American the roads have a chaotic twist and turn. Winding overpasses and multiple 180o turns make one wonder who planned this confusion. I can’t help but think, only in Canada. Haha.
After a trip to the local grocery, we finally settle into our cozy 2 bed Wingate Hotel near downtown Kamloops around 2:30. Tomorrow may include ski boot shopping for Janice. We can’t ignore the 30% favorable exchange rate and the yearly equipment sales. So, bargain hunting we will go.
Days 9 – 11 – Sun Peaks
The weather continues to grudgingly cooperate. We dodged the rains, as our Monday, February 24th began with broken clouds and a bit of sun occasionally peeking through. Temperatures were mild as the lower mountain was more like spring skiing. Mid-mountain and to the summit remained cool and the skiing was generally a light coat of powder over yesterday’s softer pack that had set up overnight into crunchy globs. All that softened a bit as the day wore on. The very top of the mountain was much less affected by Sunday’s softening and actually remained hard pack and powder.
Tuesday brought 4″ of new, not that it mattered much to us. We were late to the party, so most of it was skied out by the time we got on the slope. But there was good news to being tardy – Janice got a new pair of boots at Jardines, our favorite Sun Peaks ski shop. Her first new pair in twenty years. At least, that’s as close as we can estimate. She says they make her better – I believe her. I’m smiling because she’s smiling.
I continue to feel more at home on skis, regaining some of the sharp edge changes and quick turns of yesteryear. They’re so much fun, but also require a lot more energy and effort. We’ll keep working our way through it. My third right knee is still a limiting factor, as the latest tibial implant runs about halfway down my shin and even though it’s been nine months, it’s still tender. Have to mind the pain and give it rest when it speaks up.
Sundance and Sunburst high speed quads have been our main focus so far, with several runs also up on Chief and the upper bowl. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate enough to make a venture to the new West Bowl quad worth the effort. Mt Morrissey, on the opposite side of the valley, is also on the agenda.
This is a great area for all levels of skier. Variety and fun for everyone although, unlike Panorama, everything here is accessed by the lifts and contained in the area boundaries. The terrain isn’t taxing, it’s fun and invigorating. Lots of fall line skiing, glades and open areas – a little bit of everything.
The village keeps growing. A large contingent of chalets offer ski-in, ski-out accommodations for families and groups. Condos and hotels can be found both at the lower Burfield lift and the upper village, along with a huge activity center and skating rink. Plenty of things to do here.
Monday we opt for dinner out and settle on the Bold Italian Eatery near our hotel. Turns out they have great thin crust pizza with some tasty appetizers and side dishes. We start with the beef & Italian sausage meatballs, baked garlic mozzarella cheese balls and move on to Pele’s Curse, a creative concoction of prosciutto, pancetta, pineapple, pepperoncini and a variety of other toppings. The hand tossed crust and the flavorings were perfect! A great way to end a good day on the slopes.
The Valentine Tree along Sundowner Run and an original hand-painted trail map from Tod Mountain about 1965.
Each day has brought a fun discovery or two: a cute little tree decorated with Valentine’s Day greetings at the edge of the Sundowner run; the 1965 hand painted area map of Tod Mountain (Sun Peaks predecessor) in the tiny apre ski latte establishment of the Tod Mtn Cafe; or other tidbits like the fifty-year commemorative wood sign for K2 skis or the 240cm souvenir speed ski in Masa’s Bar from the Sun Peaks world speed skiing races (the track record is 110 mph).
Our family first came to Tod Mountain in 1967, and I remember seeing this plywood map at the base of the Burfield lift. At the time Burfield was the only chair serving this mountain. It was a 20-minute ride that could get so cold they would give you down comforters to wrap around yourself when you got on. Believe me, you were grateful for those blankets.
We’ve discovered Canada’s second largest ski area is a major attraction to commonwealth citizens around the world. Aussies and Kiwis visit regularly. We met one whose been coming for 25 straight years now. Impressive. Another boasted his group of about a dozen senior citizens also make this a regular pilgrimage, and not just to ski groomers. These guys are looking for off-piste stuff whenever possible. Another in Masa’s Bar told us he comes for 4-5 weeks every year and has a place in the upper village. More power to them.
We’ve got another three days of skiing here before trundling off to Revelstoke. That will be all new to us. We hear it’s both exciting and challenging with epic amounts of snowfall. I’m holding my breath we’re up to it. Stay tuned.
