 Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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What a great dilemma to be in.
Having skied at both neither is a bad choice (both are on my personal top 10 list of great places to ski). Both Fernie and Rossland are fairly "core" ski towns although Fernie by virtue of international and big city access attracts more weekenders and international punters. By the same measure it also has more nightlife than Rossland though I'm sure the local scene once you are embedded is pretty much the same.
You can do the stats re acreage/ no of lifts yourself but both places I've found to be very welcoming to newcomers.
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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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Red Mountain is like Fernie. However, since I last went to Red I belive its been developed quite a bit. Great Mountain. The main town is Rossland with a few Bars & cafes . Town is detached from the Ski area. just like Fernie. Loads of Antipodeons go there.
IF you liked Fernie then you will like Red.
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Awwwh thanks for your help guys I am really starting to be drawn by the idea of Red as I am not particularly bothered by nightlife especially the pain of hangovers !
Now I just need to pursuade my boss to let me have a couple of months unpaid leave (I tried the argument of most people have had maternity leave by my age I deserve a break and that didn't go down to well !)
And also how to get through the next 5 1/2 months with no holiday and control the excitement 
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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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stanton, Don't say that tbh that is sort of what is holding me back from going for it I was seriously miserable after returning from my two weeks in Banff in February and wanted to pack it all in and go to Argentina for the summer but then realised I would have to come back and face the English Winter  I sort of cheered up with a couple of nice days out walking on the fells but the misery has returned with the rain.
Maybe I should just sell my house and put in for a job transfer to Calgary ?
LOL or maybe I shouldn't go to Canada but remortgage and spend the money on therapy (then I would be sick !)
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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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Was at Red this year - though quite small, it is without a doubt the best place I've ever skied 
Rossland is quite a nice place, pretty small but some nice bars and restaurants - it is however pretty remote and disconnected from the mountain (like Fernie I believe, but worse since there is only a rickety and apparently unreliable bus) so you'll definitely want to have a car so you can get to other places.
Saying that I've done a few seasons at Whistler and though I'm kind of going off the place a bit from a week or two holiday point of view, If I was stuck in one place it would probably be there.
If it is courses to improve your skiing, Whistler is definitely the place (you can get a season lesson pass which gives you unlimited access to some of the best courses you could ever want to do), though if you want to become a gnarly, hardcore, cliff hucking, tree skiing, free-skier Red is probably the place.
My boss wouldn't give me unpaid leave, so I left - twice!! 
Also stanton is right, once you've done a season, you'll find skiing a few weeks a year nowhere near enough!!
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Maybe for a visit, but not the whole winter surely?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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God I could never work for myself am way way too disorganised and I do quite like my real life job so thats not the issue !
stuarth, though if you want to become a gnarly, hardcore, cliff hucking, tree skiing, free-skier Red is probably the place.
That does sound very tempting to be honest but not sure whether my thighs could cope 
As for Kicking Horse I am not sure, I should have gone on a trip there when I was in Banff this year?
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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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I spent four days in each a couple of seasons ago. Steep powder was my only requirement (I was happy to sacrifice nightlife!) and for this Red was perfect - a great variety of terrain considering the small number of lifts. It's one of the few resorts where there always appear to be more people off-piste than on. The locals are extremely friendly and will generally point you in the right direction and often take you down themselves - the downside is that you can feel pretty intermediate skiing down behind the average Red local. The tree skiing is phenomenal - you can pretty much ski anywhere on the two hills without stopping (beware a few cliffs though!) Overall, Red is about the closest you can get to cat-skiing without the cat.
Fernie was great but felt more of a 'standard' resort (with the upside of better nightlife). The skiing, although challenging and diverse, didn't have the same atmosphere - there just aren't the same opportunities to ski 10m from the top of the lift and feel like you'd skinned into the back country. Again the locals are very friendly - they'll definitely point you in the right direction even if they don't actually come with you. Admittedly the conditions weren't as good as they had been in Red so I may be unfairly biased!
The friend I stayed with in Red bought a condo three years ago and he was considering Kicking Horse as well as a few locals had compared it with Red and Fernie. Those who have been certainly speak highly of it.
I do agree with stuarth that whereever you go, get a car as there are a lot of great, smaller hills in BC that the locals can point you to.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Helen LS wrote: |
edpyke, Thanks for that review
Well Red certainly seems to be winning the competition at the moment its the Nonstopski 11 week instructor course I am thinking of doing ?
My Skiing took a serious change in direction this year I seemed to get my bottle back and did my first couple of double blacks and had a fab time doing some off piste so that is what I am really looking to do more of as well as improving my technique
Thanks everyone for your reviews and contributions |
Helen,
Red is a wonderful place. Bear in mind a few things. This is quintessential north american 'if you can see it, you can ski it' terrain. There are basically 4 groomed trails (and a couple of cat tracks), the rest of the 'marked' runs are basically freeriding routes through trees. The signage, when you find it, is kinda advisory, and the best way to discover Red is to follow locals or tracks in to the trees, not by yourself of course.
The tree skiing is IMHO without peer, the vertical good, and crowds don't exist. Lifts are slow, but at Red the skiing is so intense a slow lift ride up gives you a nice rest.
It's one of my top 5 hills, and everytime I visit I find more lines I never knew existed. Often discovered by talking to the friendly locals on a lift. It's depressing when 65 year olds kick your ass on a steep tree run, but it gives me something to aspire to at least! It looks small on the trail map, but it skis big, and the pow is light and frequent.
I did a couple of blog entries on our trips this year, scroll thru the entries at the URLs below if your interested:
http://gortonator.spaces.live.com/?_c11_BlogPart_BlogPart=blogview&_c=BlogPart&partqs=amonth%3d1%26ayear%3d2007
http://gortonator.spaces.live.com/?_c11_BlogPart_BlogPart=blogview&_c=BlogPart&partqs=amonth%3d2%26ayear%3d2007
And some photos in one of the photo albums at:
http://gortonator.spaces.live.com/
Do it - you'll be a good skier at the end.
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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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gortonator, WOW photos are amazing and cool blog entries too
I am definitely getting more tempted especially with being a liverpool fan so no problem with the name for me
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Helen LS wrote: |
gortonator, WOW photos are amazing and cool blog entries too
I am definitely getting more tempted especially with being a liverpool fan so no problem with the name for me |
thx Helen - Fernie is a great place too, but more resort-y. Red is somewhat unique - at least for a few more years.
Nearby Red, good excursions for day trips are Whitewater, near Nelson (epic pow) and 49 Degrees North in Washington, a fun little locals hill. Schweitzer in Idaho is a little further, but very worthwhile if you have a weekend off you course .... Schweitzer is another pretty much unknown gem.
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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, 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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stuarth, Stop it If I see anymore I am not going to be able to cope (go on post em really!)
I am not back in work till tomorrow I know when I asked for a career break of 6 months the other week I got told I was being ridiculous ! Which is why I have worked out if I take no leave I can have the whole of Jan off paid and just feb and march unpaid and then use the following years for the first week in April!
And then I started to think why didn't I do this ten or 15 years ago when I was younger (and more flexible!)
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Never been to Red - looks like a cool mountain.
Just googled the piste map.
However I still reckon Kicking Horse is the place in Canada.
If I was heading to the land of maple syrup then it would be my choice for the season.
Some friends went there in 2005 for the winter and loved it.
D.
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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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Is there actually anything in Golden?
Not been there myself (skiing at least) but a bit of a mixed bag - heard good and bad things about Kicking horse.
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| stuarth wrote: |
Is there actually anything in Golden?
Not been there myself (skiing at least) but a bit of a mixed bag - heard good and bad things about Kicking horse. |
Fresh meat Mondays
Just a little redneck rail/lumber town slowly being disneyfied. Increasing ski bum population attracted by great lift served terrain and short drive to Roger's Pass backcountry. KH is hell to most when its top to bottom boilerplate moguls though.
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Spent two winters in Golden & Kicking Horse - 2001/02 and 2002/03.
These two winters were average in terms of snowfall and I still skied more powder in each than during a season at Keystone, Colorado and Park City, Utah.
Only the Niseko area on the island of Hokkaido, Japan has given me more pow in a season.
Amazing lift served & lift accessed (hiking) terrain for all abilities.
Definitely a mountain that will continue to challenge you as you get better.
Fabulous people, views. Uncrowded.
Golden is a real town. Real Canada. You either love it or hate it. I love it because I can return 3 years later and still know and say hello to people on the street.
Not for everyone either in terms of lifestyle or the difficulty of the skiing (terrain + snow conditions).
The touring mecca of Rogers Pass is about an hour west and the new resort development Revelstoke Mountain Resort a further 30 minutes. Lake Louise is about an hour east.
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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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Red had dodgy seasons in 2001 and 2005, in fact most of BC did those years. KH is pretty reliable snowwise, I suspect, and is a great open bowl and chute and bumps hill. Red is about steeps and trees - very different places to ski.
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When I hired my skis, the guy in the shop commented that mogul was a dirty word in Red! Just too few skiers for the terrain - they don't often form. I didn't see any proper bumps until I got to Fernie by which stage I was rather missing the trees (although that may just be because my ageing knees are beginning to grumble!)
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Helen I think the trick to this is to be so good if you resign they'll either welcome you back with open arms when you return or will give you the desired career break.
Saying that I'm a lawyer and I knwo the stance of most law firms on this asmost senior partners are 
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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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God I change my mind so quickly on this one I now can't decide whether to go for the career break because I am bored of life here ! and go to canada or Just go on holiday and put in a transfer to go and live in Scotland I really don't know ............
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Disagree Alexandra.
Kicking Horse has some great beginner terrain on the bottom quad and in Crystal Bowl.
This is why I chose it as the venue for the Instructor Training Programmes I used to run there (In the Powder).
An excellent balance of terrain to improve personally and professionally.
And I've had some unbelievable days when the gondola has been on wind/snow hold.
Just got to know where to go I guess.
And in my experience of 5 winters in and around that area (3 at Big Mountain, Montana with regular excursions to the the Great White North & 2 at Kicking Horse) if KH isn't getting it, then most resorts in the 'Powder Triangle' ain't getting it.
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You know it makes sense.
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Agree with Mike here
In an "average" BC winter Fernie and Red will get quite a lot of rain, as both quite low.
KH will fair better as alot of the mountain is higher..., scenery is better, you can eat great sushi at lunch, BC access is amazing,
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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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| edpyke wrote: |
| When I hired my skis, the guy in the shop commented that mogul was a dirty word in Red! Just too few skiers for the terrain - they don't often form. I didn't see any proper bumps until I got to Fernie by which stage I was rather missing the trees (although that may just be because my ageing knees are beginning to grumble!) |
Red has some good bump fields. Funneling under the Motherlode chair is an excellent bump run where you can watch the disgustingly good locals ply their trade. There''s usually long bump runs on the slides - some of the easiest to get to runs on Granite, and decent bump fields winding under the chair on the backside. But it's the trees you're there for ....
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Poster: A snowHead
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| norris wrote: |
Agree with Mike here
In an "average" BC winter Fernie and Red will get quite a lot of rain, as both quite low.
KH will fair better as alot of the mountain is higher..., scenery is better, you can eat great sushi at lunch, BC access is amazing, |
Hmmm - an average BC winter sees little rain at Red, and it has decent vert so rain in town or at base is typically snow a little further up. I think Red does get more snow on average than KH, but not a huge amount more. I need to check that. Obviously tho, if its warmer than average, both Red and Fernie can suffer with wet stuff. Didn't used to be much of a risk, but who knows with the current climate?
BC access is rather good at Red too. There's a cat operation that takes you on to terrain that will be lifted if all goes to plan in the next few years. Or you can easily hike to some amazing stuff.
And its true - there's not much scenery when you dodging the tight trees and chutes at Red
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| norris wrote: |
Agree with Mike here
In an "average" BC winter Fernie and Red will get quite a lot of rain, as both quite low.
KH will fair better as alot of the mountain is higher..., scenery is better, you can eat great sushi at lunch, BC access is amazing, |
Go with an open mind - be prepared to rent a car for a couple of weeks & hit up the others + Whitewater + Revy + Iceorama.
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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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Rumour is that once Revelstoke is up and running that it could be the place in Canada.
Apparently its get on average twice the snow fall of whistler.
And it will be interior powder, not west coast maritime elephant snot.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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In my experience of skiing Powder Springs Resort and Cat Powder Skiing (which have both been absorbed to make Revelstoke Mountain Resort), the snowfalls are prodigious but because of the massive vertical can be super light for most of it with heavier pow and sometimes rain at the base.
Very exciting project.
I for one have submitted a CV to instruct there.
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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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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Haggis_Trap wrote: |
Never been to Red - looks like a cool mountain.
Just googled the piste map.
However I still reckon Kicking Horse is the place in Canada.
If I was heading to the land of maple syrup then it would be my choice for the season.
Some friends went there in 2005 for the winter and loved it.
D. |
Red's trail map is at best 'advisory' ... there's no marked routes once you get in to the trees on Granite, or head off the back of Red. In fact. there are mostly no signs either - exploration and/or friendly locals are required to show you how to get around and find the numerous incredible lines.
There's easily enough skiing for a season - you might even know the hill by the end of it ...
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| gortonator wrote: |
| Haggis_Trap wrote: |
Never been to Red - looks like a cool mountain.
Just googled the piste map.
However I still reckon Kicking Horse is the place in Canada.
If I was heading to the land of maple syrup then it would be my choice for the season.
Some friends went there in 2005 for the winter and loved it.
D. |
Red's trail map is at best 'advisory' ... there's no marked routes once you get in to the trees on Granite, or head off the back of Red. In fact. there are mostly no signs either - exploration and/or friendly locals are required to show you how to get around and find the numerous incredible lines.
There's easily enough skiing for a season - you might even know the hill by the end of it ... |
I'd go as far as saying that the Red trail map is best ignored!! If you rip off the Red mountain map section from the Granite mountain section then kind of roll up the bits into sort of cones you'll be a bit closer to how it really is!!
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Helen LS,
As promised another little nudge towards giving up work and hitting the slopes - I've added some photos of Red Mountain (well Granite mountain actually) and a few of cat skiing nearby to my snowheads gallery
http://www.snowmediazone.com/the_zone/showgallery.php/ppuser/224/cat/500
Seem to have got them in there twice and they are a bit jumbled up - but you get the picture(s!)
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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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FAQ
And I'm not asking for time off, I'm telling work to eff off! 
