Discovering the Inland Northwest Backcountry I’m on the wrong side of the road as I skin up Columbia Mountain. It looked good from Google Maps, but as I continue to ascend it looks like I’ll either be skiing mellow trees back down to the car or dropping into some very steep terrain with trees and […]
Immense But Not Impossible Read More »
Where exactly Big White Ski Resort is located was pretty much a big mystery to me before our first trip to the resort earlier this winter. I knew it was near Kelowna, B.C., a few hours north of the border, and that they often open early and get huge powder dumps when other regional areas
Big White Ski Resort: Re-defining Family-Friendly Fun in B.C.’s Okanagan Country Read More »
Skiing and snowboarding may not be for everyone, but who wouldn’t love to sink shoulder deep in mineral-rich hot springs water with an amazing lake and mountain view spread out before you? A road trip to Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort and Nelson, B.C., is a classic Inland Northwest winter getaway. The three-hour-and-change drive from the
Nelson, B.C. & Ainsworth Hot Springs Road Trip Read More »
If ever I wanted to be adopted by a town, I’d like to be able to call Fernie my home. In fact, in a single weekend visit it already feels like that. It isn’t the way everyone greets you with quaint Canadian charm, eh (they do), or the surrounding mountains in which the town is
Home Sweet Home to the North: Fernie, B.C. Read More »
I’m standing in a snowdrift on Spokane Street in downtown Rossland, British Columbia. As is typical of streets in old mining towns in the mountains, Spokane Street is incredibly steep, and today it’s been made skate-rink slick for the upcoming bobsled competition, the centerpiece of the Rossland Winter Carnival. Next to me, two women discuss,
Celebrate Winter at the Rossland Winter Carnival Read More »
I took my first pair of ColdPruf Quest performance base layer top and bottoms out on their inaugural adventure back in October in some pretty unusual backcountry conditions: elk hunting in cold, wet, miserable weather made worse by the body aches and chills that were my daily and nightly companion thanks to a bad flu.
ColdPruf Cold Weather Base Layers Read More »
Experience winter wonderland in Fernie, BC at these exceptional places to hang your toque for the night. Renowned as ski destination, Fernie B.C. is a picture-perfect Rocky Mountain town 3 hours from Calgary that has become the alternative travel hot spot to Banff, Lake Louise and Canmore. Outdoor winter fun is endless with skiing at
Unique Places to Stay in Fernie, BC Read More »
A Growing Number of Inland NW Backcountry Riders are Using Snowmobiles to Go Farther, Access New Terrain & Still Earn Their Turns I roll out of the parking lot at Valley Power Sports in Pinehurst, Idaho, stoked to have my sleds back and ready for the snow to fly as splitboarding season gets going. Wait…what
Going the Distance Read More »
Finding Early Season Turns from B.C. and Mt. Hood to Local Bitterroot Snow Magnet Lookout Pass The end of August is when the jonesing starts for me. It’s typically right after I receive the first ski magazine subscription for the season. You dissect every page, inspect every photo with a fine tooth comb and this,
Skiing allows you to “be intentional about creating memories for the family,” says Brad McQuarrie, general manager for Mt. Spokane Ski and Snowboard Park. He and his wife Brenda have always made it a priority to ski with their four children – three daughters, now ages 20, 19, and 15, and a son, 13. “We
Ski School: Lessons Learned by Mt. Spokane’s Brad McQuarrie, Father of 4 Read More »
