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Whistler backcountry tour

Monday, 09. 3. 2007  –  Category: Snowboarding

This is a guest post from Paul at Alltracks Academy, who provide Ski & Snowboard Instructor Courses in Whistler.

Like many snowboarders & skiers, I began touring for one simple reason – to hunt powder. Quite frankly, the thought of walking up steep mountains just didn’t seem that sensible when you have gondolas, cable cars, chairlifts, even bloody T bars do the job better than you. However, the insatiable desire to ride deep snow can lead to pretty desperate measures. After big snowfalls, using resort lifts allows you to access great terrain quickly taking you to your favourite spots not far from the groomers. Due to the speedy access though, it generally does not take more than a few days for even so called “secret spots” to get destroyed by other users.

It was during my time as a bum living in St Anton that this phenomenon caused my friends and I to take a leap into the unknown and plan our first tour. We knew we just needed the ability to travel further from the resort to access the good stuff and if it meant walking up mountains we wanted to ski down – then so be it.

Since these initial forays, backcountry skiing and snowboarding has undoubtedly become the highlight of my time in the mountains. Now I have come to appreciate the serene beauty of the mountains far away from resorts as well the adrenaline of powder filled descents. Since coming to Whistler, I have been fortunate enough to hit many amazing areas in the backcountry haven of the Garibaldi Park. Although riding Whistler after big snowfalls is as fun as ever, there is something about the environment, the quietness, the scale of untouched wilderness of the Canadian Coast Mountains that equals the exhilaration of the big vertical available. It is this combination that motivates me to attach my skins and spend half my time fighting gravity and heading up rather than down.

One of the favourite touring routes in the Garibaldi Park is the Garibaldi Neve traverse. Although it can be done in a very long single day, it is generally enjoyed as a two day event allowing for some great skiing along the way. Although not hugely technical, it does offer the feeling of really being away from it all, especially as some of the tour covers glaciated terrain and I have always wanted to do the route.

As most skiers and boarders will know, last year saw some unbelievable snowfalls, especially in the resorts of the Pacific North West – normally Whistler receives an impressive 33ft each year but this time it totalled a staggering 45ft! Clearly, there was no real need to tour for powder, but like I said already – over time it has become just as important to me to enjoy the beauty of the mountains as much as the riding. It was with this in mind and John (my good friend from my days in St Anton and now professional ski patroller) set off toward the Garibaldi Neve.

Navigation on this tour can be difficult and so we had had to wait to be as sure as possible for clear weather and a break in the heavy snowfalls to allow the snow to settle. Starting off at the access point for Diamond Head we skinned up the fairly mellow track for about 45 minutes up to the Red Heather Meadows Hut. Being close to Vancouver, the Diamond Head area is very popular with backcountry skiers and snowboarders based in Vancouver. Although this is not ideal if you want to totally avoid other people – it did at least mean John and I did not have to break track. The going was fairly easy and we both wondered whether the tour we were planning would have been riden since the last snowfall. There definitely seemed to have been quite a lot of activity over the last few days, presumably people had been in a similar situation as us – waiting for the right conditions.

After a brief stop outside the meadows hut, we continued up along Paul Ridge taking in the views and just revelling in the majesty of the mountains. However, it was hard to ignore the powder fields to the side of us and the temptation was there to sack off the touring and start enjoying some skiing. When we eventually reached Diamond Head Cabin, there were two other groups there chilling out. One group was planning on staying at the hut and enjoying the touring in the immediate area whilst the others were set on a more technical route up to Mamquam Mountain.

After some discussion as to whether we should continue on our planned route, or change our goals and dump some of our kit at the hut, and tour up one of the closer peaks, we decide to opt for the latter. The snow here looked great with some steeper riding on the slopes to the north.

After shedding our sleeping bags and tent, John and I headed north to ski Columnar Peak. Although the tour wasn’t too steep to begin with, the incline increased when heading to the saddle between Gargoyles and Columnar. By the time we moved above the treeline – we were both ready for a break but obviously more aware of avalanche hazards as we entered the alpine terrain.

Touring up in the open terrain always feels good. Although the going was harder, we were both itching to get riding and the pace picked up as we neared the saddle. It was clear there had been snow activity on the steepest aspects so we were going to pretty much stick to the fall line from the saddle. Although this would mean a slightly shorter descent than anticipated, we both knew it was the right thing to do. After a short break to reconfigure our gear and check out the views – it was time to reap the reward.

John dropped in first and skied a beautiful line down the first pitch to the relative security of the treeline. I knew it was going to be good before I even began – John’s rooster tail from the back of his Gotamas told me that much. I can never explain the joy of riding down a deserted slope filled with a couple of feet of powder. It has got to be the best thing on earth. You just don’t want it to end. I cruised up to John with apparently the biggest grin ever. Meeting up and sharing those moments with your best friend is almost as good as actually doing it. You just have to share those sorts of experiences.

Now in the treeline, John picked his line through some sparse trees blowing up the snow as he went, before coming to rest at the bottom of the slope. I set off again enjoying the contrast the trees offered and making fresh tracks just the right of John’s.

From where we were, we couldn’t admire all our handiwork, so we headed back towards the hut to a decent vantage point. This is the final part of any skier’s or snowboarder’s ritual. I defy anyone not to look back and appreciate their tracks – whether they’re a novice all the way up to the most accomplished rider.

Back at the hut, John and I celebrated in true rock n roll style with a cup of tea and a snickers whilst kicking back with some Vancouver guys that had been doing little laps off the ridge. Although ever so slightly deflated for not going for our initial goal, we ended up with a cracking run and stayed well within our limits. Everyone in the backcountry needs to have the ability to reassess their goals as they go. When out on the ground, factors do change and sometimes that means walking away from something you’re really keen to do.

When getting into to ski or snowboard touring, it is absolutely critical to use the services of a qualified mountain guide. In conjunction with this, you should start building up your own knowledge by attending training courses regarding avalanche safety and mountain skills. By employing a guide and improving your knowledge, you can wave goodbye to the crowded resort pistes and begin enjoying what the mountains really can offer you.

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This is a guest post from Paul at Alltracks Academy who provide Ski & Snowboard Instructor Courses in Whistler.

Tags: Backcountry, Canada, Mountain safety