Schweitzer/Kicking Horse/Revy ?

[2FUNKY]

G is so much fun to be around and is mostly house trained.
I absolutely love skiing and chilling with the sweeet guy!
so glad he found us at Alpental, my wife adores him.

dosfunky is hilarious with the stay away from northern idaho ski area stoke. fuck dude, northern idaho patriots don’t want US visiting any time of the year.

Lol. Nah. You are welcome ANY time, as with most others. I just like to keep the place on the DL. GET OFF MY POW!
Happy to show people around our “boring” hills.

[mooseknuckles]

northern idaho patriots don’t want US visiting any time of the year.

JackAttack stopped by for the Kim treatment this week. https://twitter.com/KimKardashian/st...264832/video/1

Lol. Nah. You are welcome ANY time, as with most others. I just like to keep the place on the DL. GET OFF MY POW!
Happy to show people around our “boring” hills.

This place is totally on the DL....shhhhhh https://www.tmz.com/2018/07/06/kim-k...-conservative/

Back on topic... OP- chase the snow, drive the loop!

[Vets]

I did recon sampler road trip the first week of April that included two of the areas you mentioned, Schweitzer and Revelstoke.
I skied various amounts of fresh snow on 7 out of my 8 days skiing.

After flying into Spokane I did the following loop:

Schweitzer (Fun hidden powder stashes.)
Whitewater (41cm of fresh overnight for their closing day. Good food too.)
Silver Star (Stayed at Silver Star Bed and Breakfast and was shown around the mountain the next day by the owner, Mike.)
Revelstoke (I skied part of the day with a long time local and he reminded to tell others how overrated Revelstoke is. ;-) They also seem to lack imagination naming their runs. Lots of orange signs with Cliff's name on them.)
Lake Louise (Lots of fun zones on the back bowls. I had dinner at Sushi House Banff (Sushi on trays on electric train.) They served my favorite sushi, uni. It was great!)
Sunshine Village (This is the only resort on this trip that I had skied before. I was shown all around the mountain by a local. It made a big difference.)
Mt. Norquay (My only day without any significant fresh snow. However, after riding up North American Lift (a must-do experience) and skiing a run with a patroller who gave me beta on the best places to ski there that day.)
Mt. Spokane (A good call for a morning ski with an afternoon flight home from Spokane. Great tree skiing too.)

I would gladly return to any of these resorts as well as spend more time in the area to check out other skiing options.

I only had to buy one lift ticket (Mt. Spokane) since all of the other resorts are on the Powder Alliance or Mountain Collective.
Even more resorts in the area are included on various passes next season.
Powder Alliance resorts include Schweitzer, Whitewater, Silver Star, Castle, and Marmot Basin.
Ikon/Mountain Collective resorts include Lake Louise, Sunshine Village, Mt. Norquay, and Revelstoke.
Epic Pass will include Fernie, Nakiska, Kimberly, and Kicking Horse.
Having these passes may help you on your trip. Lots of great choices and all of the above might be the best answer if you have the time.

[Hammer-Down]

I have been out there from the EC several times....skied all the highlights except Red Mtn....did the Powder Highway shit ton of driving road trip....glad I did it, was super fun, got it out of my system. Now I just go to Kicking Horse. It's the balls, plain and simple. Like any "trip" the snow can suck, but I have had good luck. After skiing a lot in Utah the past 7 years returning to KH for the first time in many this past season was an eye-opener. There is nobody there....it skis big. yes the gondi can be busy on a pow day, but it looks worse than it is. If you are in line first thing and ski until the last bell, you will get plenty of skiing in and will have earned your beers. For me it takes almost a full day of travel on each end to get there, but it is worth it, the place is rad. We love it there. Despite the big commitment (flights, driving, etc) we bought passes there for the upcoming year.....and no I am not a dentist.

[Stymie]

.....and no I am not a dentist.

Um... we're all dentists, I thought...?

Thanks for the intel.

We are bouncing back and forth between KH and Fernie. With Fernie we could also do a day of catskiing at Fernie Wilderness Adventures. Anybody ski with them? No catskiing around KH that I can see... but the terrain is better for us.

Would love to do Revy- just the flights from the EC to Kelowna suck (multiple transfers and expensive). Perhaps they'll add more flights later in the summer...

[GoldMember]

I've skied with FWA. It's been a few years but it's easy access and they have some fun stuff. Their Rock Quarry zone is full of pops and drops; good, fun spot. It's a good day area with easy access from town. They're really a chill group. Their lodge is primarily a hunting/fishing lodge that works in the winter as a cat skiing op. Here's a video we did for them that shows it.



This pic came from there, too. One of my favorite ski shots of me.



PC: Mark Gallup

[skifishbum]

we were blessed to score a 40 cm pow day at kimberly season fore last
cool little resort
one of the better pow day vibes ive experianced and i dont know if fernie even opened that day with the road over from cranbrook closed

[cat in january]

Pot of gold there sfb. You guys sure put in the Karma points driving me over Roger's and out to East bumfuck. Ended up at Panorama that day and was pleasantly surprised. Good Snow always does that.

Moral is if you can-->chase snow, but with 9-11 that is near impossible. So you probably have to choose a place to go and camp there. Lots of cool places in BC that is for sure and Whistler isn't one of them.

If it was me, I would go to on the snow website and look at past years snowfall for march for like 3 resorts in BC that are your front runners. Look at map and orientation-it's March and if there often are spaces between storms, then likely warm southerly.

Skied Schweitzer, Red, Whitewater, Kicking Horse and huts in the Koots. Although dry when I was there, Red is the one I would most like to hit in good snow as a resort. But I would go for Whitewater as a base for a few reasons. Should be a good bet for powder skiing. There are helicopter outfits and touring outfits in the area to really take advantage of the time. Good food and interesting scene in Nelson. I like Ymir, but a large group fits in Nelson much better.

[Hammer-Down]

Um... we're all dentists, I thought...?

Thanks for the intel.

We are bouncing back and forth between KH and Fernie. With Fernie we could also do a day of catskiing at Fernie Wilderness Adventures. Anybody ski with them? No catskiing around KH that I can see... but the terrain is better for us.

Would love to do Revy- just the flights from the EC to Kelowna suck (multiple transfers and expensive). Perhaps they'll add more flights later in the summer...

Chatter Creek cat skiing is just west of Golden/KH, but good luck getting in there, especially just for a single day. But it is all-time. Lots of heli ops west of golden too, might be able to do a day trip depending on the operator. A completely different commitment, but did a week at Icefall lodge, next to Chatter, this past April. Super fun, that was some good shit and reasonably priced if you're paying with Benjamins

You access/flight struggle situation does not have any easy answers.......but is what keeps this area what it is. Fernie can be epic, but it is lower latitude and lower elevation. Keep that in mind depending on trip timing

[GoldMember]

Chatter Creek cat skiing is just west of Golden/KH, but good luck getting in there, especially just for a single day.

Yeah, I don't think Chatter Creek would work. They don't do single days; too remote. You'd have to fly in and fly out so the cost of the heli on top of the cat skiing would be horrendous, not to mention just the logistics to do it. Also, if they can't fly then it's a long drive to a pick-up point followed by a long snowmobile ride to the lodge. But yes, it is all-time great skiing.

[TahoeJ]

Also: you basically have to book most of those places like a year and a half in advance if you want a prime winter week.

[pman]

I did week at Revy last late Feb and Early March. Place kicked butt. Our last day we got a surprise 40cm dump and was at the lower gondola 10 min prior to opening with minimal lines. Got on the gondola in about 5 min and skied untracked waist deep power with no lines for 7 hours strait (~35K feet elevation with short slack country hikes). One of the best resort days ever.

Here's a pic of the Revy lift line one powder day...

Attachment 241670

[skizix]

Sounds like there are some votes for Fernie as well...?

Thanks all for the beta! Much appreciated.

Fernie is fantastic if the snow's in (and has fantastico side-country). Which it is often. And you're within striking distance of Whitewater and Red (both flippin' fantastic smaller areas). But you're more subject to potential pineapple express woes I think, than closer to Rogers. Interior BC is all pretty freaking good though - tough to go wrong.

[Meanfruit]

For big groups, it's hard to beat Big White, Silver Star, and Sun Peaks in Kelowna, Vernon, and Kamloops, respectively. Large villages at the resorts, plus a more varied difficulty rating then either Revy or Golden. That said, it's worth spooning with a transient on his cardboard bed to ski Revelstoke, Rogers, or KH

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[XXX-er]

For big groups, it's hard to beat Big White, Silver Star, and Sun Peaks in Kelowna, Vernon, and Kamloops, respectively. Large villages at the resorts, plus a more varied difficulty rating then either Revy or Golden. That said, it's worth spooning with a transient on his cardboard bed to ski Revelstoke, Rogers, or KH

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agree^^ 9-11 skiers will be like herding cats so if you got ski-in/ski-out facilities it will be way easier cuz everybody can get out at their own pace

with a group that size you could rent a house

[Stymie]

All... thanks for all the information.

We ended up at a ski in/ski out condo at Fernie- price/location were good- and the boys wanted to go for a day of cat skiing with FWA.

Kicking Horse next year...

[TahoeJ]

Nice. That part of BC lives up to the hype, you’ll likely have a blast.

[The Duke of Hurl]

Starting at Fernie, don't forget to get in a day at the Castle, particularly if Fernie is tracked out after a storm. Great little, steep hill in the middle of nowhere (about 1.5 hrs east). Just beware of windy days. That place can blow like nobody's business. Have fun!

[GoldMember]

All... thanks for all the information.

We ended up at a ski in/ski out condo at Fernie- price/location were good- and the boys wanted to go for a day of cat skiing with FWA.

Kicking Horse next year...

Good call, should be a fun trip. As Duke mentioned, try to get a day in at Castle Mountain, depending on their report on any given day.

[Stymie]

Good call, should be a fun trip. As Duke mentioned, try to get a day in at Castle Mountain, depending on their report on any given day.

Thanks! It was, at least partially, due to your video you did for FWA- easy to convince the troops after seeing that.

[GoldMember]

^^ Cool! Glad it was helpful. FWA is only 20 minutes from town so easy access and fun zones. I hope we have a repeat of this past winter for you. We (Schweitzer) and most of the interior BC were 50% over normal for snow. If you hit it right, you'll be choking on powder.

[Angle Parking]

Castle is great. Also, A small (16 litre or so) pack with a light slack country touring set up is really handy. 2000 ridge to the lookers left of the ski area boundary is recommended.


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[Angle Parking]

^^^ lookers right is 2000 and no worries if you do nit have AT bindings. Boot packs abound at Fernie, or at least the did when I spent the winter snowboarding there ..... gasp ....... 18 years ago!!!!!

[dufferdan]

Yeah, I don't think Chatter Creek would work. They don't do single days; too remote. You'd have to fly in and fly out so the cost of the heli on top of the cat skiing would be horrendous, not to mention just the logistics to do it. Also, if they can't fly then it's a long drive to a pick-up point followed by a long snowmobile ride to the lodge. But yes, it is all-time great skiing.

RK Heli Ski our of Panorama does single day trips. Can combo resort skiing and Heli days as you see fit. Possible even to walk from accommodations to the Heli op.

[jorion]

Hopping on this very helpful thread since some friends and I are planning on spending 10 days or so in interior BC after Christmas and I'm trying to figure out if I should upgrade my Tahoe Local pass to the Epic Pass this weekend.

It looks like these resorts are usually ~$105 CAD at the window; is that right? If so, how easy is it to get discounted tickets? Our plan is to hit wherever is getting snow unless nobody is, in which case we'd tour if there's coverage that early. This would be starting 12/28 so I imagine it would be out of the question to get discounted tickets until after 1/1. It would be annoying to pay the extra $330 to upgrade my pass and then not end up skiing more than a day or two at Kicking Horse, Fernie or Kimberly.