Sunshine closed again today in case anyone is interested.
My car was also completely frozen this morning, obviously all water frozen, and coolant and ice in the brake fluid and the battery had frozen. We also had a pretty thick layer of ice on the inside of our double glazed windows even with the heating on all night. The school buses all stopped running, but the schools don't close for cold here, so the kids did have to go once the truck had thawed.
As arv said, this is not usual for this time of year, but we had had a pretty mild winter up until this point. Also we don't get the ice storms like the East coast got last week, those look really nasty and I really wouldn't want to contemplate being without power in these sorts of temperatures.
Looks like we will get a little warmer tomorrow and Wednesday with some snow, but then back down to -30C for the end of the week and if you trust long range forecasts, nothing much above -15C for all of the following week.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Is it normal to wear multiple ski suits when out in temperatures like that? one XS and one XXL?
also is there any exaggeration there "we also had a pretty thick layer of ice on the inside of our double glazed windows even with the heating on all night" ! I geuss ill just have to do jumping jacks or something in the lift qs.
Feel free to keep us updated on snow/weather conditions! i find them very interesting and informative so thanks go to banfflakelouise, Reality_in_Banff and solarfish!!
keep up the info, i love hearing about it.
Cant wait for Jan 3rd!!
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?
The coldest I have skied here is -35C a few years back at Lake Louise, that was really cold and it was essential that there was no skin exposed at all (full balaclava and goggles, neck warmer, long gloves overlapping coat sleves etc). It was also interesting that I had to get a different wax on the skis at that temp because they slowed down! But that sort of temperature is rare. 'Normal' cold temps would be about -15C and that is 'refreshing' but not unpleasant.
I usually ski/board with a t-shirt, rugby shirt and jacket on the top and just ski trousers on the bottom. Up until this year all my gear has been Columbia Titanium, purchased during our first year out here in 1995 when we found that our European fartbags were about as much use as a chocolate fireguard. I have only changed this year because the trousers and gloves were worn out after 12 years, but the jacket is still being used even though I am using paper clip for the zipper!
It is no exaggeration about ice on the inside of windows, it is not uncommon, but it does not mean the rooms are cold, just that the windows are very cold. As I type this I am wearing a t-shirt inside and it is -21C outside, no problem.
Sunshine is open today, the slopes are pretty empty, but I suspect there will be more closures later in the week as the temps are expected to drop well below -30C again.
Reality went skiing with Santa this week. He'll be back on the slopes in Sunshine Village Dec. 20, 24 and 25, and at Lake Louise Dec. 23-25th.
The annual New Years Eve Torchlight Parade is on again at Sunshine Village and Norquay, and you can also watch the lights from the comfort of downtown Banff.
More details in Reality's latest Real Banff Ski Report on YouTube:
Just got back from my first day snow hosting at Sunshine. It was cold this morning and skier/boarder numbers certainly down on the same time last year (blame credit crunch, less snow, travel costs or anything else!) but snow was in good condition. All lifts open and certainly all intermediate stuff was really good. Several guests were making very favourable comparisons with Lake Louise, apparently the conditions there are still very icy. Looks like temperature will improve a bit of the coming week, but we could still do with a lot more snow before the advanced/extreme stuff opens up. All in all I would say good 'early season' conditions, but probably we are a little beyond 'early season' now
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
I was in the area Friday and judging by the numbers of punters dashing between the shops in Banff it seemed that lift opening were very limited due to the extreme cold. Guess its warmed slightly.
After all it is free
After all it is free
I was thinking about trying out the double layer snowsuit.... I hid inside as much as possible instead... although we were out cross country skiing on Thursday and I managed to work up a sweat!
Here's my team at Banff Lake Louise Tourism sending out a holiday message
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.
All lifts are open, the temps are warming and the sun is shining... all is well in Banff National Park!
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
gdizzle wrote:
Is it normal to wear multiple ski suits when out in temperatures like that? one XS and one XXL?
also is there any exaggeration there "we also had a pretty thick layer of ice on the inside of our double glazed windows even with the heating on all night" ! I geuss ill just have to do jumping jacks or something in the lift qs.
Feel free to keep us updated on snow/weather conditions! i find them very interesting and informative so thanks go to banfflakelouise, Reality_in_Banff and solarfish!!
keep up the info, i love hearing about it.
Cant wait for Jan 3rd!!
No, we had -39 in Lake Louise and a silk base layer/arc teryx fleece/semi-insulated jacket had me fine, the sun was out though so it kept things feeling pretty warm It wasn't windy at all. Good gloves help.
It sounds cold but really it is not that bad.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
It is warming slightly here. Still no new snow but there is some (small amounts) forecast for the coming days. I was out yesterday, skied from most of the lifts at Sunshine and the snow is still good, there is just not enough. Temperatures are expected to hover around -20C or below most mornings and around -15C most afternoons, that is what we had yesterday and it was great for skiing if you have all skin covered. Numbers are still down, there were 3500 at Sunshine yesterday which is not bad for a midweek day, but that is probably the biggest number in a week or so. What this does mean is that for those that do come, the snow will last a lot longer and whilst we are a bit rationed with the white stuff that is no bad thing (unless you are the owner of a ski hill!). I'm going to spend today and tomorrow at home, but will be out at Sunshine again at the weekend so will give another report then. Merry Christmas to all.
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.
Phew, got back this morning so Happy Christmas everyone.
Its official, Banff was deffo very cold over the last 12 days but as Billy Connelly says "there is no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes" luckily all our gear worked well, the only purchase were some neoprene masks for the kids. We have never experienced anything like that kind of cold before but in a strange kind of way I really enjoyed it. It made you feel invigorated and alive.
Sorry I didn’t manage to catch up with you Reality. The bus timetable changed on our Norquay day and so we missed it! Instead of waiting an hour for the next one we decided to head back over to Lake Louise. Apparently Norquay was pretty quiet that day because we weren’t the only ones caught out by the timetable change!
In summary, fantastic holiday. Skiing, sights, sounds and facilities were terrific, everyone we came across was super polite and the service we received was first class. Arent Canadian drivers well mannered towards pedestrians. It must be the first country where I have experienced this kind of courtesy.
Cold or no cold we had a great time and I would go back tomorrow if finances would allow..............
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Cobra.., I think we need a full TR with all the proper recomendations
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Ordhan wrote:
Cobra.., I think we need a full TR with all the proper recomendations
i agree!! glad you had a great time Cobra!! im there in 7 days ... cant wait!!
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
gdizzle wrote:
Ordhan wrote:
Cobra.., I think we need a full TR with all the proper recomendations
i agree!! glad you had a great time Cobra!! im there in 7 days ... cant wait!!
Ok - a quick roundup
Just to position us -
We are a family of 5. Three daughters aged 8, 10, 14 and Mrs Cobra and myself. Its our 3rd ski holiday and we class ourselves as early / middle intermediates. Never been to Canada before.
- booked with Inghams on a package for 11 nights and stayed at the Banff Inn (only place we could find with a family room) - top end of town about 10mins walk from downtown. The hotel was simple but clean with good sized rooms (we had a loft suite). Ive stayed in better and Ive stayed in far worse. The decor needed a bit of updating but I wouldnt hestitate to stay there again.
- Flight with Monarch who are tight as a gnats chuff when it comes to legroom / seat sizes etc. We where informed a couple of weeks before departure that they needed to use a smaller Airbus than planned which meant we had to stop over at New Foundland for refuelling. This added a couple of hours onto the trip and in all we spent about 14hrs on the plane. Luckily the flight back was on the larger airbus and without a stopover and with the wind in the right direction we had a 8.5 hr flight.
- Transfer to hotel was fine. Getting ski hire and passes etc was all handled very efficiently no problems at all.
- We had booked a ski club package which involes instruction at each of the three resorts over three days. The order was supposed to be Sunshine, Lake Louise and then Norquay. Sunshine was closed on day one because of extreme cold but the reps reorganised everything to shuffle the order so that we wouldnt lose a day. The ski club instructors and the whole thing was efficiently organised and our instructor was terrific. The kids were very well looked after - they had great fun and their instructors made sure that they where comfortable and even bought them hot choccies to keep them warm. With the rescheduled ski club we skied Lake Louise on day1, missed the bus to Norquay (timetable was changed and loads of people missed the bus on that day) so did our own thing at Lake Louise again on day 2, had a day to do what we wanted on day 3, then skied Sunshine with the ski club on day 4 followed by a couple of days to do what we wanted on days 5 and 6. I would deffo do the ski club again as it was a good way to get some instruction and get some guidance around the resorts at the same time.
- Norquay didnt ski so no views
- Lake Louise - we enjoyed the wide open runs. Not all the mountain was accessible all of the days because of the cold but we had great fun tootling up and down from the Grizzly chair and the Grizzly gondola. No queues. Conditions where good although extreme cold meant the snow was hard going at times. We liked the day lodge here the best. The food from the Powder Keg Lounge was good, well presented and good value. Chilli con carne soup for $6.95 was my daily favourite.
- Sunshine Village - again we enjoyed the fact that there where no queues and the majority of runs where acccessible from lifts from a central point. The day lodge was more like a Butlins cafeteria and Mad Trappers was packed. The food was from both was average at best and not great value. Fancy a serve yourself burger? Get yourself to the first floor of the day lodge and tuck in (dont know what they called this place but it wasnt great)! Luckily the Sunshine Mountain Lodge Inn was a more pleasant place to spend some time / have a coffee etc.
- Eating out - We had the kids with us so it wasnt party party party every night or any night in fact!
Places we did eat were:
Chillis - good continental breakfast. Good value evening meals (ribs, mexican etc) Some of the puds where great try a White Chocolate Molten if you like your deserts sickly sweet. The place was always popular and only a 2min walk form our hotel
The Keg at the Caribou Lodge - 2 mins walk in the other direction. Terrific steaks and salads. Probably had the best fillet steak ever there. A bit more expensive than Chilis but good value.
Brunos - downtown for great breakfasts
Bumpers - hmmm, least favourite place. Front of house manager prowled and made me feel uncomfortable. Food was forgetable. Ok at best but a couple of us had overcooked chicked. Salad bar (which they proudly boast about) is a salad bar, wow difficult to get too excited over that.
Elk and Oarsman - seemed to have a good atmosphere with good offers ($9 pizzas the night we were there and $8 steaks the next night).
Phils diner - Banff Springs side of the Bow River. We visited here because we had promised the kids pancakes and maple syrup one day. Its a typical diner from what I could see. A little bit shabby but the pancakes were fantastic.
We had a few nights where we just ordered from the Banff Inn Pizzaria, cant remember what it is called but it was ok for when the kids and us were too knackered to go out. Pizza, chips and burgers were ok. Dont order the Putine. we did, to see what it was, I have never been so dissapointed with something in my life! I can only describe it as looking like something you bring up after a serious night on the lash!
One other tip. Some hotels (Inns of Banff is one) provide complimentary tickets for the local bus routes for their guests. Worth asking where you are staying or if like us, you hotel doesnt provide a ticket, play the kids card and blag one! The receptionist took pity on us and gave us a family ticket for the duration of our stay because she didnt like the kids to get too cold - result!
Hope that helps - like I have said I would go back tomorrow if I could, now where is that lottery ticket......
Last edited by Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name: on Sun 28-12-08 0:26; edited 2 times in total
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Cobra.., great you enjoyed yourself I don't like Bumpers either..
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Looks like it was coming down hard at Sunshine over night!!
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?
Glad you had a great trip Cobra... I was concerned about your trip and the cold. I was up at Norquay on the Monday and the hill had been closed b/c of the frigid temps.
As for poutine... I hear the best poutine in town is at a new pizza restaurant that just opened at the Banff Inn... Carlito's Pizzaria. I haven't tried it yet, but a friend from Montreal (poutine snobs) says it's as good as anything you could get back home.
Happy New Year everyone... any fun resolutions out there?
As for poutine... I hear the best poutine in town is at a new pizza restaurant that just opened at the Banff Inn... Carlito's Pizzaria. I haven't tried it yet, but a friend from Montreal (poutine snobs) says it's as good as anything you could get back home.
Carlito's ! That was the name of the place. We were staying in the Banff Inn and tried their poutine from Carilto's - we couldnt see the attraction Im afraid. It didnt taste as bad as it looked but blimey what a combination! (for the uninitiated - chips, gravy & grated cheese)
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Just to let you all know, yesterday was incredible at Sunshine. Powder everywhere, about -10C which is perfect temperature and I had a fantastic day I'm not out today, but forecast has quite a bit more snow for the coming week so any of you looking to come out here for the New Year should have great conditions.
After all it is free
After all it is free
solarfish, PICS!!!
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.
I wanna go back !
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
arv wrote:
solarfish, PICS!!!
Its going to be a long time before I am bored enough with the powder to stop and take pictures Actually I will start taking a camera because I'm sure we could have got a couple of nice shots. I was snow hosting again and we were guiding a group of Aussies who had never seen conditions like it. We took them to a couple of 'secret stashes' including one little slope where they did ask us to take some pictures of them standing up to their thighs in powder!
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Quote:
Carlito's ! That was the name of the place. We were staying in the Banff Inn and tried their poutine from Carilto's - we couldnt see the attraction Im afraid. It didnt taste as bad as it looked but blimey what a combination! (for the uninitiated - chips, gravy & grated cheese)
haha poutine does look gross... but I sure do love it... it should have been made with cheese curds thou... and it's great the day after a night out! Was Carlito's good aside from that?
I drove thru a bit of snow this morning to work... it was like a wall actually... nothing, nothing, nothing... wammy... snow flying into my headlights!
Here's the text message we sent out this morning about our ski area's:
'A great mountain day! 2-5cm new snow. SUNSHINE-light snow, high -13C/9F. LAKE LOUISE-mainly sunny, -9C/16F. NORQUAY-mainly sunny, -6C/21F.'
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.
Reality_in_Banff wrote:
Quote:
Carlito's ! That was the name of the place. We were staying in the Banff Inn and tried their poutine from Carilto's - we couldnt see the attraction Im afraid. It didnt taste as bad as it looked but blimey what a combination! (for the uninitiated - chips, gravy & grated cheese)
haha poutine does look gross... but I sure do love it... it should have been made with cheese curds thou... and it's great the day after a night out! Was Carlito's good aside from that?
I drove thru a bit of snow this morning to work... it was like a wall actually... nothing, nothing, nothing... wammy... snow flying into my headlights!
Here's the text message we sent out this morning about our ski area's:
'A great mountain day! 2-5cm new snow. SUNSHINE-light snow, high -13C/9F. LAKE LOUISE-mainly sunny, -9C/16F. NORQUAY-mainly sunny, -6C/21F.'
We found Carlitos quite good. Apart from poutine we tried a couple of pizzas and I think the kids had a burger one night which they didnt moan about too much. The pizza was a good size, hot and nice and fresh. Im not sure the fries were that great but it kept us fed on a coupleof nights when we were too tired / cold to venture out.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
and over a foot of snow predicted in the next few days - cannot wait!
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Here's our text ski alert for today: Mainly sunny with a few flurries today. Up to 5cm fresh snow. SUNSHINE-high -19C -2F. LAKE LOUISE-high -14C 7F. NORQUAY-high -14C 7F.
I"m heading to Sunshine on Sunday... gonna try and get out for some cross country skiing on Saturday... it's time to get the holiday pudge off!
The New Years fireworks in Banff were beautiful... they set them off from Tunnel Mountain, we watched from the bridge over the Bow River... then we headed down Banff Ave. to infront of Wild Bills where a bit of a street party breaks out each year... wandered into the crowd with only my camera, came out with a crown and 20 helium balloons!
Hope 2009 brings lots of laughter to everyone!
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?
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Reality was out on the slopes for the Lake Louise Torchlight Ski Run and also has a preview of the upcoming Ice Magic Festival in Lake Louise, all in Week 7 of the Real Banff Ski Report:
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
! I geuss ill just have to do jumping jacks or something in the lift qs.
It wasn't windy at all. Good gloves help.
