 Poster: A snowHead
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Hello,
I've been offered a position to teach in Whitewater and Fernie... having a tough time deciding. I've been to Whitewater, great mountain. Never been to Fernie... What do you believe would be more ideal for teaching and spending a season?
I'll likely base my choice on accommodation. Whitewater has great snow and great terrain; Fernie is quite a bit bigger though with a lot of snow... but I hear it suffers from rain and frequent closures... though the town is also right next to the mountain making the commute much easier.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Never been to Whitewater so can't help there. Nelson has a reputation as being a hippie town. Lots of bc bud.
Fernie I really like. Skiing can be great. I have experienced rain there though. Like you wouldn't believe rain. But still love it. Good bowl skiing there.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Kulharin, Fernie town isn't quite next to the mountain, more like 15 - 20+ minutes drive, depending where you are lodging, but still closer than Whitewater. The advantages of Whitewater are Nelson for lodging - great town with plenty of live music most nights and close to Red for your days off 
Had rain at Fernie and also fresh pow. Whitewater was great when we were there, more low key and great terrain. Even better now they put the extra lift in I would think and Red expanding too.
For you it would be depend on the amount of work you are going to get surely ? If I were just doing a season I think I'd go to Whitewater, if work factored in possibly Fernie
Good luck wherever you end up.
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The hours seem about the same... In the end I'll likely base it off the most suitable accomm I can find for the start of Dec... I guess either way I can't go wrong?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Never been to Fernie, but if it was me I'd go to Nelson/Whitewater too. Whitewater isn't really all that far from Nelson, and Red has some of the best inbounds skiing in BC.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Well a balance of work and personal. I'd like to teach and I'd want to ski a lot.
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I say hit WW.
They don't close the best bits of the resort when it dumps.
There's loads of off-piste (the whole resort practically is, right?).
You won't get slammed by Calgarians every weekend.
Red is just down the road and has added the Grey mtn lift (with further PAYG cat skiing up the next mtn to!)
Revvy is a 1/2 day drive away.
Excellent vibe around the resort.
Best food in the ski resort world.
Getting from town to hill is hardly an issue - hitching is totally commonplace.
Perhaps the downside is that you may not have so many hours clocked as a teacher as there may not be the need at WW?
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Thanks! I've heard good arguments for both... The biggest thing is suitable accommodation; the final decision will likely come to that; I've been on the hunt in both towns. Nelson seems easier/cheaper... while Fernie would be closer to the mountain.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Have you looked on ilovenelson.com and bhubble.com?
How much closer is closer? 15-20mins?
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The mountain is about 5-10 min from Fernie. Whitewater is about 20 from Nelson.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Yeah I guess for me that's pretty much the same thing...
Good luck! Let us know what you choose 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Fernie has been disqualified because the cost of living for accommodation is far to expensive there. Castle has become the new contender, so I can live in Ymir, go and ski and teach at Whitewater and hit some of the other mountains in the area... Or go teach and ski pretty much exclusively at Castle Mountain.
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Ymir to Castle mtn? That looks like quite the commute 
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You know it makes sense.
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Heh, I'd be living in Beaver Mines for Castle... Never been to Castle, only Whitewater.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Castle is great. Better than Fernie IMHO.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Castle can be good, but a few things.
The lifts are very old and slow. This keeps the crowds away.
It can be very very windy; this can make it perishingly cold and close a lot of the lifts.
The chutes are great.
Beaver Mines is small.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well I'm used to skiing Big White, and that's a hell of a windy mountain more often then not.. Plus the wind comes from the west, north west and south west, which matches Big White's aspect... so it's often windy and always exposed above the tree line and on many piste runs to the point it gets heavily scarred up, along with giant wind drifts... more so than any other mountain I've skied on.
Isn't Castle primarly east facing with dominant winds from the west? if that's the case isn't wind only a major concern at the top of the mountain?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Kulharin,
Castle is a lot windier than Big White. Its a very very windy part of the world. Filling up the car in Pincher Creek on a minus 20 day was one of the worst weather experiences in Canada; second only to the 8 inches of frozen truckers pee in the KH pass.
The top lift often closes due to the wind (IME) and this means the best terrain isn't accessible. Sometimes the snow is wind powder rather than powder.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@Kulharin, Listen to @gryphea, Castle is a great little place, but when we were there the top lift shut do to problems for a good 2-3 hours, it was windy, not many folks skiing there, it was windy, the lifties thank you for turning up to ski Did I mention it gets windy 
Beaver Mines is small, well tiny and strung out really. We stayed at a B+B there, the supposedly one eatery, might have served drink too  wasnt open due to lack of custom. so unless its changed somewhat Pincher Creek, 20 mins at least away is your only place for any nightlife/entertainment and its not big either !
Theres a wind farm in the area, on the plains - and its where the Rockies come down and meet the Great Plains.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Though our extreme winter weather is likely somewhat different than the other side of the Rockies, to emphasise @gryphea's point, if you've got to drive some mountain road everyday something to consider carefully in your choice of location, driving in Canada in the winter really is winter driving and can be pretty wild.
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