Ski Whistler: November 2007 - Whistler Accommodations - Whistler Ski Vacations

First Days of the Whistler Ski Season

November 19, 2007

Well, it's Monday and I have to do a few 'real world' things today. But, the first two days of the ski season were awesome! Locals were so stoked that I talked to a few 'dudes' on the gondola who told me they had lined up at 4:00 am on Saturday morning to ensure they were first in the Whistler Creekside Gondola. Yikes!! I like powder as much as the next guy/gal but lining up at 4:00 shows some kind of dedication!

Yesterday I hooked up with few of my friends from Extremely Canadian. As always - a BLAST!

We took a few runs through the trees near the Emerald Chair. The snow was nice and light but as always in the early season - there were more trees than I remembered! The base is at approximately one meter right now but will hit triple that in a month or two. Then all those pesky trees are insulated in a nice bed of snow and I can ski right over them!

After that, the avalanche signs were dropped and we made the hike from the top of the Emerald Chair to the top of the Harmony Chair. This was about a 25 minute hike but WELL WORTH IT!

The motionless chairs were hanging off the Harmony line and few people had made the effort to get all the way to the top. Each of us had a fresh line through one of the Harmony Horseshoes and I bagged my first untracked, double black diamond of the season!

Here is the current Whistler Blackcomb Alpine Forecast for the week November 19-26, 2007:

Synopsis..A Weak Low Moving Southeastward Along The Bc Coast Will Brush The Area With Cloud Cover And A Chance Of Flurries This Morning And Early Afternoon. A Ridge Of High Pressure Will Begin To Build In This Evening Bringing Dry Conditions And Mainly Sunny Skies Through Tuesday.

5 Day Trend..The Ridge Will Continue To Hold Over The Region With Sunny Skies And Dry Conditions Persisting Through Friday.

What does this mean? Well, it's perfect weather to make snow on the mountain and work on your tan while you hike for turns in the backcountry! Make sure to travel safe when heading into the BC!

Remember, the Official Opening Day of November 22, 2008 means Blackcomb will open and fresh lines will be available all over again!

Whistler Mountain Opens - November 17, 2007

November 17, 2007

Whistler Mountain-November 17, 2007

Well, winter has officially started in Whistler Resort. Whistler mountain opened and the crowds lined up early. Some were waiting for fresh tracks as early as 6:45 am.

We decided to take it a little easy and enjoyed a nice family day complete with brand new equipment for our 5 year old daughter and then a 'crack of noon' upload on the Whistler Village Gondola.

The snow was falling heavily from mid station to the top of the gondola and conditions were machine groomed with powder on the marked runs and nice and soft in the trees and other areas.

While is was possible to ski our to mid station it is not advised and is marked as area boundry.

As the freezing level has been moving from the valley up to the higher elevations and then back down to the valley the lower mountain conditions were quite firm.

It was a great decision to open early and we saw Stuart Rempel of Whistler Blackcomb in the Roundhouse and he was very pleased with the turn of events.

I am going to sneak up for a few runs in the morning.

Whistler Opening and Ottawa Skiers

November 15, 2007

Skier: Smiley | Photo: Paul Morrison | Courtesy: Whistler Blackcomb
If you've been sleeping under a rock you may not know that Whistler Mountain is opening on November 17, 2007. That's one week early. The valley is stoked. The Ullr party is tonight and more snow is forecast. Time to shred!

The skier pictured above is Shawn 'Smiley' Nesbitt. He is a long time Whistler local and hangs with the 'A' crowd in town, including Richie Schley. Smiley is one of the many Ottawa transplants here in Whistler. Over the years there have been many notable freeskiers who cut their teeth skiing on the icy slopes of a handful of ski hills around Ottawa. I've had the pleasure to ski with many of them both in Ottawa and Whistler including; Wendy Brookbank, Chris Winter, Smiley, and Paddy Kaye just to name a few.

And another Ottawa skier has gone on to fame if not fortune in another way. Paul 'PK' Kristofic was recently named Canadian Ski Coach of the year. What an incredible honour! I grew up ski racing with Paul and we started coaching at the same time. Paul has stuck with the profession and has been a key architect on the huge success of the Canadian Men's Ski Team. Here is a link to an interview with Paul in SRC.

Early Start in Whistler?

November 14, 2007

This is the time of year when it becomes evident that EVERYONE in Whistler is a ski bum at heart. The question is simple...will the mountain, or even better both mountains, open early? How long do we have to look at the gondolas or chairlifts hanging idle.

The snowmakers put down a dusting of snow earlier in the month but mother nature came through over the weekend with one of those huge West - or wet - Coast systems. It slammed into the lower mainland and Vancouver Island with a vengace. A few degrees warmer in resort and we would all be sitting inside watching movies this weekend.

As it stands, Whistler-Blackcomb will announce tomorrow if there is going to be an early season kick off.

Stay tuned and hope the ski bum in Hugh Smythe and the rest of the operations team comes out!

Whistler Cornucopia Brings More Than Wine

November 10, 2007

Last night brought out sommelliers and other wine lovers and foodies to enjoy the Conrnucopia feast. Shelley attended the Crush event last night with our good friend Karen Smith, brand manager of Mission Hill.

More importantly for you die hard skiers, a huge low pressure blew through the valley dumping a ton of snow in the alpine. There is more forecasted for the rest of the weekend too. Almost a meter (3 feet) is expected to fall before the middle of next week.

Things are looking really white up top which makes everyone excited as the Ullr parties are due to start next week.

Whistler Events to mark on your calendar:

Opening Day - Nov 22, 2007
!Whistler Film Festival - Nov 29-Dec 2, 2007
Deep Winter Challenge - Jan 2008
Whistler Blackcomb Foundation Fundraiser - Jan 25-26, 2008
Winterpride - Feb 3-12, 2008
Pontiac Cup - Feb 6-12, 2008
Alpine World Cup - Feb 18-24, 2008
Women's Week - March 2008
TELUS Ski and Snowboard Festival - Apr 11-20, 2008

Bring it on

Whistler Crashes

November 06, 2007

The World Cup ski tour is finally coming back to Whistler after many years. Things are starting to ramp up towards the 2010 Olympics and the venues will be tested starting this year.

Here is some video to get you excited for the spills that follow downhill ski racing.

Yesterday was a gorgeous day in Whistler. I snuck an end of season mountain bike ride in with a buddy. The trail was pretty gooey and very slippery. I haven't been riding much and had a few tumbles.

The fact that the ski season is merely weeks away is starting to sink in. The mountains have been busy making snow on the intermediate terrain and the alpine has been receiving snow since September.

There are always a bunch of obstacles like hidden ditches, stumps, rocks and even trees that are eventually buried under 10 feet of snow by February. If you're coming to Whistler to get your early season 'stoke' on, remember - those obstacles will hurt both you and your equipment!