Monday, March 7, 2011

Whistler Blackcomb (Part I)


Whistler Blackcomb is one of the World’s premier ski resorts and a personal favourite of mine. It has over 8,100 acres of terrain to explore and 200 marked trails. My Dad, brother and I ski it every year over the Christmas break and never seem to tire of the terrain or the atmosphere in the village.
Blackcomb Glacier
I have chosen to break this ski resort into two blogs (Part I and II) because it so large I would not be able to tell you everything you need to know in one blog. Part I will focus on the terrain of the two mountains.

Whistler Blackcomb is unique in the fact that it actually features two mountains: Whistler Mountain and Blackcomb Mountain. Blackcomb mountain offers high alpine skiing. Some of my favourite areas are 7th Heaven, a large bowl that faces into the sun. It features tons of powder and something for all skiing abilities. My absolute favourite run is the Blackcomb Glacier. To get there you take the Glacier Express Chair to the Horsemen T-Bar and hike up 60 ft to the top of the glacier. Skiing the glacier is something every skier should experience (but is best for strong intermediate and advanced skiers).

Whistler Mountain offers a wide variety of high alpine bowls, all of which offer fantastic skiing. A must-ski is Harmony Ridge. With both high alpine bowls and glade skiing the mixed terrain keeps you on your toes. On cloudy days head over to the runs off of Garbanzo express. There you can ski the Men’s Olympic downhill course, Dave Murray Downhill, and other long cruisers. Also, while on the mountain you must ride the world-record breaking Peak 2 Peak  Gondola which spans 4.4 km across the two         mountains.

Check in next week to learn about the Whistler Blackcomb village.

Happy skiing!


7 comments:

  1. What time of year is the best time to to ski at whistler?

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  2. A friend of mine was working in Whistler during the Olympics and said that he was able to watch the mens downhill. It sounded pretty incredible and I envy you for having the talent to stand up the whole time.

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  3. I have only ever skied once in my life when I was ten, and I broke my thumb on the bunny hill. Needless to say, I've been terrified to try again. Your blog makes me want to give it another chance.

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  4. If I were to learn how to ski I would want to do it at Whistler. I just know there are talented teachers there and some of the best skiiers. I like the fact that it can appeal to any level of skiier. Hopefully I can travel there and experience it myself.

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  5. This is amazing. I would love to have the guts to fly down one of these mountains on skis - but that won't be happening any time soon. Have you ever been nervous about downhill skiing?

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  6. I have never been skiing before but hope to one day. I don't know why, but I get the feeling that to be a good skier, you need to have good lower body strength, something that I don't possess! This post makes me want to try it out, even though i'll probably be terrible.

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  7. This is amazing! I have always wanted to go skiing in Whistler. This blog was helpful since most people only say it was amazing but without any details of where to go for certain runs. Thanks!

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