J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by steverandomno

Snowmass is great, especially for beginner/intermediate. Aspen is a really cool town also. Not what I expected at all.

Squaw is also a great resort. There is loads for the adventurous intermediate and advanced skier. The beginner/intermediate area, whilst not as extensive as snowmass, is located mostly towards the top of the mountain (nr the massive olympic sign), which makes a nice change. If you want to push the boat out, check out the "Resort at Squaw Creek" resort hotel. It's worth every penny and you wont forget the experience. The nearby town (Tahoe City, not really a city) is nice too.

If you go to squaw you should check out Northstar, a few mins drive away. It has some really good intermediate terrain and offers free 1-2 hour intermediate lessons dealing with moguls etc... (at least when I was there!). I rekon it is one of the US' most underrated resorts.

The drive from Squaw round the lake to South Lake Tahoe (where Heavenly is based) is nice but I don't get the whole Casino thing, sorry!

Going for Squaw also allows you to do a weekend in San-Francisco.

Hope this gives you a bit more to go on.

Yes, broadly this is right.

My take:

Green = Beginner - Always groomed and almost always 'wide' for the entire run.

Blue = Varies hugely - Almost always groomed except on powder days when there is already a good base. Like green runs, almost always 'wide' for the entire run. Sometimes moguled.

Black Diamond = Varies hugely - more interesting terrain. Unlikely to be 'wide'. Almost always some unavoidable obsticle strewn areas such as lift towers, trees, rock fields large moguls. Often ungroomed. No mandatory air. Features such as cliffs and bolders are usualy marked.

Double Black Diamond = Anything goes. Obsticles may be unmarked. Mandatory air may be required. Never groomed. May have special access requirements, such as avi gear etc...

The green rating is fairly uniform from resort to resort. However, there is very wide variation in the steepness, and dificulty in general, of blue and black runs from resort to resort. It is mostly driven by marketing departments wanting to appeal to all types of skiier. Most resorts will have roughly 60-80% blue/green and 20-40% black regardless.

You will find that skiing in North America is generaly more 'open' - with more bowls and open areas of tree skiing than in Europe. Whilst 'trails' are often clearly marked, there is no such thing as off piste. only out-of bounds and off-limits.

Where are you thinking of going?

OK - I thought Big White to Silver Star was a bit longer than that. I'm a slow driver.

P.S. If you do make it to Fernie and find yourself in town, drop by the 'Curry Bowl' on the crowsnest highway. Very near the Park Place Lodge hotel on the oposite side of h'way. Great asian food and a warm welcoming atmosphere.

Another alternative is to drive the whole way.

Sydney to Big White is only 54 Days 17 Hours according to Google. (not including toilet breaks)

Type in "sydney australia to big white bc" in Google maps.

Be sure to take the...

"Slight left to merge onto ????????/??????? "

it's a tricky turning.

If you realy don't mind travelling then a great trip eould be into Seattle and out of Calgary.

You could go up through the North Cascades national park and cross the border at Osoyoos. (~7 Hours on Google) I've never done that route (interesting). Usually we fly into Vancouver. The road from Vancouver to Hope is flat and then you start going up into the mountains. Going via Osoyoos rather than Vancouver might be a good route. the boder crossing at Osoyoos will probably be much less busy than the one to Vancouver.

The scenary from Kelowna to Calgary is amazing. It is definately something to see in your lifetime. You might want to consider a stop at Revelstoke or Golden to break the journey. You could do a nice little itinerary, skiing mt Baker on the way to Big White and Revelstoke/Kicking Horse on the way to Calgary.

bennyboy

1. Silver Star is only an hour and a bit away and is really cool,
2. Fernie is quite a long way but do-able for a weekend easily

Mate... how fast do you drive?

Google has Big White to Fernie at 7 hours 22 mins straight which I rekon is a gross underestimate. Adding toilet breaks, winter driving conditions and the family factor etc.. would probably double it. It is theoretically possible, but probably not much fun.

Loads of live music but generaly in bars rather than clubs.

There are a couple of decent little clubs/bars but nothing of an Ibiza or London level. I remember a place called the ski bar which was pretty good despit the generic name. Garfinkles is a very popular and decent apres ski place also.

On another note - Check out the ski museum when you'r there. They have a great exhibit dedicated to the 101st mountain division. Trust me, their story is fascinating and inspiring.

Great choice. Big white is a great family resort. There is loads to do for everybody.

The Skiing is usualy great and varied there are wide open long groomers and lots of tree skiing and interesting terrain also.

The hill is about a 45 min - 1 hour drive from town and the grocery prices are high on the hill so make sure you stock up in town before you go up the hill. Whilst the restaurants are OK this is not the place for a gourmet experience.

To answer your specific questions:

1. Is it easy to get in a car and do a day at another resort?

2. How far is Fernie from big White (ie. can we go for a weekend to another resort without it being a big ordeal?)

Fernie would be a push. It is a days drive especially with family in tow. You would be better off aiming for someware a bit closer. Silver Star is a ~2 hour drive from Big White and owned by the same company. There is more steeper terrain at Silver Star, not to say that there isn't steep terrain at Big White. Revelstoke is doable for a weekend. It only opened last season and boasts almost 6,000 ft vertical terrain. It is also very uncrowded. we stayed at the Days Inn in town, which is perfect for a quick couple of nights. Kicking horse is also doable for a weekend but is about another 1.5-2.5 hour drive from Revelstoke.

3. In layman's terms what is the snow like over christmas at Big White (lousy, good, disappointing, consistent, surprisingly good, variable?)

Variable.

4. Is there anything to offer my husband in the way of tree skiing, off-piste etc?

Loads of options. One badly kept secret - go lookers right immediately at the at the top of the black forrest express for some dense trees, usually with loads of powder. (experts only + ski with a partner). There is also loads of tree skiing of various levels in between most of the groomed runs.

5. last time we put our 15 month old in creche for 2 weeks of half-day creche and it was too much. He was traumatised. This time i'd prefer to find a local girl for a couple of hours a day to play with the kids (throw snowballs, build snowmen etc) and be based at our condo. Is there a local paper or some other way of advertising for someone?

No idea - sorry.

You will have a great time at Big White.