Western Canada Ski Touring Lodge Experience

The prissiest backcountry mountain adventure outside of heli-skiing? I'd think so!

Introduction:

The ski touring lodges of Western Canada make for a memorable and rewarding week in the mountains.

Imagine being whisked away from staging area and 20ish minutes later landing beside a lodge in the middle of nowhere with slopes of untouched powder in all directions. The helicopter then flies away leaving you to a pursuit of gluttony before its return a week later. The gluttony does not stop with ski touring. The meals, hospitality, guiding services and lodge amenities are also huge part of the overall experience.

This blog will explore themes consistent to all lodges as well as individual rankings of each. Subsequent posts will feature details about each lodge.

Profile:

"It doesn't have to be the steepest run but it does have to be the longest"

In order to provide a some context to this (and future ski touring analyses), I think it is important to paint a picture of who I am as a skier. I am certainly a below average downhill skier who is usually quite slow on the decent. My saving grace is that I don't often fall. I have high endurance and can usually push over 2000m on consecutive days. Anything over 40deg gets scary for me and I don't think I've done much over 45deg. When it gets steep I need good snow. I also like to keep my feet on the ground; therefore, hate pillows.

Likes:

• Planar slopes and avalanche paths

• Peak to creek style runs

• Long runs

Hates:

• BREAKABLE CRUST

• Lazy guides and partners

• Rockies snowpack

• Short (<300m) yoyo skiing

Risk Preferences:

Lower than average risk tolerance for:

• Steep skiing with poor ski quality

• On-sighting descents

• "No fall" ski lines

Above average risk tolerance for:

• Up-tracking through exposed terrain

• Overhead hazard

• Glacier travel

The Conrad Seven:

My first ski touring lodge was Fairy Meadows led by Conrad Janzen. Conrad is a highly respected mountain guide by clients and peers alike. His primary occupation is Parks Canada safety specialist. But he still does a selection of guiding on the side. He gave me a list of his favorite lodges in Canada. Last year I had the pleasure of completing at least one trip to each of the lodges on his list.

The list of lodges (in no particular order are as follows):

1. Selkirk Mountain Experience

2. Selkirk Lodge

3. Burnie Glacier Chalet

4. Battle Abbey

5. Sorcerer Lodge

6. Icefall Lodge

7. Fairy Meadows

• Snowfall lodge is a newer lodge that was not built when he provided me with his list. If I had the opportunity to talk to him again about this list, I am confident there would be a new list with eight lodges.

Lodge Ranking:

The experience one has at their lodge week is highly dependent on weather, conditions, group, etc. This ranking tries to look at the offerings objectively based on my observations. There will be more details on each lodge which will provide insight on rationale in subsequent posts.

Ski Terrain (above treeline):

Based on elegance of runs, quantity of terrain, variety of aspects available (N, E, S & W), run lengths, etc.

1. Icefall Lodge

2. Fairy Meadows

3. Selkirk Mountain Experience

4. Selkirk Lodge

5. Battle Abbey

6. Burnie Glacier Chalet

7. Snowfall Lodge

8. Sorcerer Lodge

Ski Terrain (below treeline):

Based on similar criteria to above. Tree skiing includes higher avalanche risk runs such as chutes and avalanche paths.

1. Selkirk Mountain Experience

2. Battle Abbey *

3. Snowfall Lodge

4. Sorcerer Lodge

5. Burnie Glacier Chalet

6. Icefall Lodge

7. Selkirk Lodge

8. Fairy Meadows *

* I'd say it would be tough to have a good time at these lodges in the event of high avalanche hazard.

Lodge Amenities:

Based on rooms, seating space, satellite huts, showers, sauna, running water etc.

1. Selkirk Mountain Experience

2. Icefall Lodge

3. Snowfall Lodge

4. Battle Abbey

5. Burnie Glacier Chalet

6. Selkirk Lodge

7. Sorcerer Lodge - I think this has been substantially upgraded since i was there

8. Fairy Meadows

Meals:

This is largely dependent on the chef that is servicing your week but I think most strive to offer a consistent brand. The chef is highlighted where warranted below. I've left fairy meadows off the list because it is an ACC hut and groups can bring in whoever they want to cook (including self catered).

1. Battley Abbey - Kelly Mager

2. Selkirk Lodge - Kelly Mager

3. Snowfall Lodge - Natale Hungr

4. Selkirk Mountain Experience

5. Burnie Glacier Chalet

6. Sorcerer Lodge

7. Icefall Lodge

Lodge Experience Description:

Each lodge has unique characteristics. This section will cover themes consistent amongst all of the lodges.

Schedule:

The trips are a week long. Skiing start times depend on weather, objective and conditions but are usually anywhere between 8-9am. Days typically feature an average of 1500m. The itinerary is usually organized to give weaker skiers the opportunity to do shorter days. Trips begin with a half day of avalanche training and search/rescue scenarios

Skiing:

The terrain at the Conrad Seven is very complex and all the trips I've done to these lodges have been guided. I think nowadays Fairy Meadows is the only option for self-guided trips. Having a guide is a good way to go to get the most out of your trip since the guides are familiar with the terrain, snowpack, ski quality and aspects. Some operations have satellite huts which allow for a broadening of the available terrain and makes for interesting variety.

Meals:

The meals have always been high quality with ample food. Breakfast usually consists of a continental-type first course featuring oatmeal, cereal and fruit followed by a second course consisting of bacon, eggs, pancakes, etc. I've even seen croque madam, french toast and eggs benedict on offer. Lunch stuff is laid out and guests have the opportunity to make their own wraps and sandwiches with cold cuts, cheese, humous etc. There's also an ample selection of high quality snacks, baked goods and trail mixes to pack for the day. After skiing there is an "apres-ski" spread put out. This features soup combined with a high quality and large portion snack. Examples include walnut pie, nachos, charcuterie, pizza etc. Dinners are usually served at 7ish and often feature multiple courses. Its amazing what backcountry chefs can do with limited resources. The pre-planning required to order all the food, package it up for the helicopter and conduct the meal prep is nothing short of fascinating.

Amenities:

The facilities at each lodge vary widely from the simplistic and rough ACC lodge of Fairy Meadows to the palace-like offering of the Durrand Glacier Chalet. Beds are always comfortable and all lodges (except for Fairy Meadows) provides bedding with duvets. All lodges have facilities for keeping you clean and comfortable either featuring a sauna, shower or some have both! The saunas have a system for you to heat up water and create a makeshift shower or birdbath type of cleaning operation. Most lodges have shared rooms. For instance Fairy meadows is dorm, most of the others have shared rooms for 2-4 people, Durrand Chalet has private rooms. People snoring can be a challenge at these lodges. Consider ear plugs (or a baseball bat) ;)

Group Dynamics:

The lodges generally attract an older international crowd. I find that things are generally slowing down at these lodges since I've started going to them including shorter days, less vertical, mellower runs, etc. Group dynamics are also more often strained than in the past due to the disparity between skier ability and fitness. Don't let age fool you though, some of the stronger groups I've had have been mostly 50 and 60 year old's and some of the weaker groups have been filled with younger people (30's). Ski touring is truly a sport where age doesn't matter. Perhaps the high cost of the lodges is contributing to groups that are less fit because many of the people who can afford them are always busy with work or from an international area where people are unaccustomed to the seriousness of the terrain here. Demographics and guides are always oscillating though. The above is merely a subjective commentary on the general trend I've noticed.

Stay tuned or (better yet) subscribe to our mailing list so that you don't miss any in-depth analyses on the lodges mentioned above, Kokanee Glacier Cabin and ski camps!