best catskiing operation in BC?

[thecadgod]

So, wanted to report back on how the day went with Powder Mountain out of Whistler.

There were two groups in two cats. My buddy and I were part of the “expert” skier group. Our group consisted of a young couple from Norway, three guys from Colorado and Michigan, a father-son from Quebec, a middle-aged mom and her 13-yo from Whistler, two guides and a photographer. I was a little Leary about how things would go based on the make up of the group. The other cat was full of 50-60 year old French-Canadians with all the wrong gear. I was glad they weren’t in our cat.

Whoever mentioned Avy danger was right. There are two zones the cats operate out of and we had the lower, more mellow terrain due to new deep snow conditions. Snow was nearly 3-feet deep in some spots. I have a 30” inseam and I stepped off the cat track to piss and sunk in all the way to my crouch. Yea, “crouch deep” for my first day cat skiing didn’t suck.

So, after a fun warm-up run, I was feeling more optimistic. Despite the deep snow, the group was skiing well and nobody was lagging. Turns out the Gal from Norway rips (she threw an unexpected 360 off a transition) and the little 13-yo was a total ripper. He threw a backflip of the same transition…and stuck it.

After a few runs down low, we went higher and got some longer, steeper lines. Stuff was sloughing pretty bad in the tight chutes, so I understood the conservative approach to lines. Snow conditions were stellar. We timed it well.

Guides could ski and due to the skill level of the group, found lines and terrain that fit the ability and struck a balance between fun and challenging. I never felt like anything was really difficult. In fact, I felt like the whole zone was like a bigger version of my home mountain, Stevens Pass on a really deep day, but without any competition for fresh lines.

So, we ended up getting 10 runs while only expecting to get 6-7 earlier in the day. The guides kept saying how cool it was to be in such a capable group because they had less to worry about and got to ski more. One guide had been a guide a Wiegle’s before and was a solid skier. The other was less of a ripper but super cool and would point out the best lines if you were towards the end of the line up. All in all, the experience surpassed expectations (well, terrain was a little more mild than I would have liked) and I feel like we got really lucky hitting the snow and group jackpot.

The zone we skied is called “Tricouni”. There is another zone higher up with longer Alpine terrain and descents called “Cypress” that they will hit today. Would be fun to try that zone another time.

Good news!!! Good weather, good guide, good group, the trifecta.

[XXX-er]

I duno if Skeena is still doing 1 day drop-ins but it was 400$ and if you filled a cat with 11 riders you got 1 free place

so the ski store owner filled the cat with a group of bro's and the "Radest dude" got the free seat

fun trip, guys doing figure 11's and 360's

[phatty]

Attachment 403912

Awesome report, Bandit! Glad it worked out for you and your buddy.

[skinipenem]

@banditman

Sweet!

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk

[gman321]

Seems to me that the best cat skiing operation is the one you can get into. I’m trying to book a trip for next season, and there really isn’t any availability at the top ones. Thought a year out it’d be easier.

Any tips for snagging a reservation?

[plugboots]

My buddy did a waitlist at Selkirk snowcats, somebody canceled so he got in with a really good group. They liked him and now this’ll be his third year. So I guess I’d wait list at a bunch.

[Shorty_J]

I've use the waitlist twice to get a day trip when I was in the Nelson area for a week or so but it hadn't slowed in a while each time so that might be how I got on.

[Huskier]

Same, dumb luck at Valhalla calling the night before. Maybe they have a mailing list that'll let you know when the following year reservations open up? Also, bummer the number of ops/permit areas <<<apparent demand. Not a single open seat this year, and verrry slim pickings for next

[gman321]

What have folks heard about White Grizzly? They have some availability next season, but not a ton of TRs online that I can find.

I like that they cater to experts, but unsure if super tight trees will be a bummer. Advantage seems to be that you get to ski steeps even in higher avy danger.

[meepmoop24]

What have folks heard about White Grizzly? They have some availability next season, but not a ton of TRs online that I can find.

I like that they cater to experts, but unsure if super tight trees will be a bummer. Advantage seems to be that you get to ski steeps even in higher avy danger.

I'm heading to WG in March so will report back, but I chose them because we wanted an op that caters to strong skiers. From what I remember, I don't think their trees are particularly tight since they've done some glading. Be aware that their lodge is a 15-20 minute drive from the cat staging area, so you won't be able to go straight from lodge to skiing each day. It wasn't a big deal for our group but just something to note.

[GoldMember]

What have folks heard about White Grizzly? They have some availability next season, but not a ton of TRs online that I can find.

I like that they cater to experts, but unsure if super tight trees will be a bummer. Advantage seems to be that you get to ski steeps even in higher avy danger.

We filmed there about 11 years ago, link below. A couple of points from when we were there: First, it was really sketchy conditions which is unusual for that zone since they essentially get no wind so no slabbing. The guides were really freaked out with what we were seeing so we remained pretty low angle which really limited what we could shoot. Second, with no wind, the tree tops really load up with snow so when we were experiencing the warming temps, there were 'tree bombs' the size of Volkswagens dropping in the forest. If you got hit with one of those, it could kill you.

As for the lodge, it's really laid back, not a party hall. Good food, you're left alone with just your group, which is nice. It's a decent experience. The trees aren't that thick with a fair amount of glading having been done over the years. Just wish we could have hit it with good conditions.

https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...B-C?highlight=

[Shorty_J]

What have folks heard about White Grizzly? They have some availability next season, but not a ton of TRs online that I can find.

I like that they cater to experts, but unsure if super tight trees will be a bummer. Advantage seems to be that you get to ski steeps even in higher avy danger.

I've been there twice.

There are some tight trees for sure but the steeps are good and there are some nice open areas and pillow lines too.

And the food and lodge are very good.

I'd go again if it were in the budget.

[jables]

Good Beta in this thread. I'm not good at planning ahead, but was hoping to book a trip this late March before the big 4-0 gets me end of April. Obviously every season is different, but sounds like snow can still be good in March in BC, or is that risky?

Any other North Americans Cat skiing destinations to consider, esp that time of year? Never been to BC and I am confident it is le tits.

If anyone has any revised beta/recommendations/updates since this thread is a few years old, post em up.

[whyturn]

Retallack was insane with 5 feet in one week Big timber and bowls with great guides Red mtn was also fun just lower tide when I went


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[Shredhead]

At this point it's probably too late to get a reservation at one of the premier ops.
I've always had good trips booking Southwest into GEG and renting an SUV/Mini Van. Chase storms on the Powder Highway and scour the web for open seats.

Some smart young buck should set up an App that aggregates last minute seats at Cat/Heli Ops.