Ski Resorts
Nine Days to Whistler!
In nine days I’ll be on my way to Whistler for a six-day trip that is sure to involve copious amounts of beer and riding. I’ve been lucky enough to visit Whistler more times than I can remember, so I’ve actually lost track of how many visits I’ve made. I keep going back because I know the terrain quite well, I’m very familiar with the town, and I always have a great time. And when you’re spending the money to fly out there, buy almost a week’s worth of lift tickets and pay for room and board, you want to know that you’re going to have a good time. And when I’m in Whistler, I always have a good time. Whistler does have its warts – it tends to be pretty busy, it’s unbelievably expensive, and it tends to fill up with drunk fratboys on American long weekends – but I have found over the years that the positives far outweigh the negatives. So I keep going back.
One thing that concerns be about this trip, though, is that I haven’t seen the Symphony, Harmony or Peak chairs reported as open in quite some time due to avalanche danger. In fact, the avalanche danger at Whistler is so unusually high that they’re actually reporting on it daily; you can view what they’re detailing here. Those three chairs lead to some of the most picturesque and challenging runs on Whistler Mountain. I suppose I can take solace in the fact that 7th Heaven, a similar area on Blackcomb, appears to be open, but I’ll still be really disappointed if all of that Whistler terrain remains unavailable.
But whatever. I’ve even had incredibly good times when conditions have been so shitty I’ve had to download from mid-mountain. It’s all still an amazing amount of terrain compared to Ontario. And I’m also looking forward to dropping in on my cousins, who just opened a new restaurant in Vancouver named Splitz Grill. Splitz has been a Whistler mainstay for years, and they recently took the plunge and opened another location, this time in Van City. If you happen to be in the area and like burgers, you should definitely check it out!
Discussion
Post a comment
Have fun but be careful, the snowpack is crazy dangerous at the moment. There have been 2 avalanche deaths (out of bounds but in normally open areas), a slide on little Whistler (under the Harmony chair I think) and one on Pika’s Traverse that pushed a snowcat off the trail. Apparently the riding in the trees finally has reasonable coverage though I haven’t checked myself.
Blackcomb is completely open but the snow coverage was thin last weekend (although it’s snowed a lot since then). I’m afraid I think it’ll be a while before the Alpine on Whistler opens.
Good luck, have fun and be safe.
Whistler is still REALLY sketchy right now and I’m sure it will be in 9 days too. Be careful!
And definitely ride the Peak 2 Peak. Please don’t forget about hitting up Elements for breakfast. And please don’t tell anyone else. It’s our little secret, right?
I’m really worried about the terrain that won’t be open. At least Blackcomb looks largely open generally, including Seventh Heaven. Steve just came back and he has a whole write-up I’m waiting for .. *cough*steve*cough*
I will definitely hit Elements though. Just wrote myself a reminder.
–adam
Coming soon! Hopefully tomorrow.
mmmmm Elements breakfast.