When I thought about Whistler, I pictured a big, Snowmass-like, sprawling family mountain with a Vail-like base village. (I knew about the village from a summer visit.) It’s a Vail-owned resort and that fact alone made me skeptical.
Still, I planned a visit because of its legend in the ski world. It’s a bucket list resort.
I was so gleefully wrong about that. What an incredible place.
Last week, my buddies and I flew into Seattle, made a day-trip to Stevens Pass (also awesome) and drove north to what I now consider to be the best lift-accessed terrain on the continent.
Here’s the trip in photos:
Chaining up the Volvo on an early Saturday morning before conquering Stevens Pass. Easy-going lift lines after the morning rush at Stevens Pass on a powder day. A quick stop in Vancouver on our way to Whistler. The ski-clad Volvo fit right in on Granville Island on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Our first ascent on Blackcomb’s Glacier chair. The resort listed visibility as “unlimited” on this day and they were right. Took a walk up to the Blackcomb Glacier. Vista number 55 out of about 534 that we experienced on the mountain during the week. While we only had two days with new snow, conditions stayed soft throughout the week. A cold, quiet morning on Blackcomb heading up the Glacier chair. Overnight wind buff gave the mountain a nice reset after two dry days early in the week. “Unlimited” visibility rears its lovely head once again. This endless vista comes at the top of the Peak Express chair on Whistler. The light couldn’t have been flatter on this day and I did not see what I was getting in to, here. Luckily, my buddy talked me through what was below. And then the snow came. A Whistler powder day is something not to be missed. There’s just so much to be skied. Incredible. A look at Blackcomb from the Whistler side. There’s no good way to showcase the sheer size of this place, but this photo puts in perspective just how far away Blackcomb and Whistler are from each other.
Midwest Ski Journal 