It all started a few years ago, when I was an increasingly frustrated Graphic Designer. Frustrated with the day to day toil of sitting in front of a computer screen and the non-active lifestyle that goes with working long hours and frustrated with the company I was working for. Don’t get me wrong I still love design and the creativity that comes with that, I think I was just stuck in bit of a rut. I had a decision to make: should I have a fresh start in a new design job, or do something a little different. That’s when it hit me. The best part of the year was the usual week away in the mountains, so why not make it more than a week? After a little bit of Googling, I noticed a few companies offering courses and one quoting ‘Learn To Ride Like A Pro’ seemed to stand out from the rest. With a promise like that I had to investigate! To cut a long story short, after some intense saving, cashing in a bit of inheritance money and my Mum thinking I was barking, I found myself at Heathrow bound for Fernie for what I was hoping to be a life-changing 3 months. I wasn’t disappointed!

I decided to head out a week early to hopefully get over the jetlag and basically just to get settled. After the first week of riding I was getting to know the hill and my fellow course mates and soon the first day of the course quickly came. Having had only about 6 or 7 weeks snowboarding experience behind me, I was more than a little nervous how my riding would stack up against everyone else’s. I had no need to worry though as the groups had already been sorted out according to time on snow and soon found everyone in the group was of a pretty similar ability. Similarly the laid-back style of instruction soon had us all flying down runs we were taking a bit more gingerly before! In the first week our instructor was Steve and he had an awesome style of teaching. Really laid back and it felt more like a bunch of mates out riding giving pointers on how to improve technique and by the end of the week the improvement in everybody’s riding was huge. Steve would only get us to work on one thing at a time to improve our riding; something I now know is an essential part of the CASI philosophy. They make sure that as instructors we don’t bombard our students with loads of tactics and techniques which will just confuse them. Make sure everything is kept simple by using just one at a time and don’t move on until the student has mastered it.

As the next couple of weeks went on we got to experience the different teaching styles the instructors use. Sometimes they spoke a lot about technique and the reasons why we do certain things and why the solid stance we have had drilled into us is so important. Other times they would give us a tactic to improve a certain element of our riding and just let us ride and experience for ourselves what effect it was having on our riding. We were also experiencing the powder that Canada is famous for. It snowed a lot in January, so much so that at one point we had about 10 days of epic powder days in a row, where the snow was at least knee deep. On days like these the mornings were pretty much spent enjoying the powder and getting used to riding snow I don’t think any of us had experienced before. The first place most of us headed first thing on a powder day was Cedar Bowl. Getting off the Bear Chair and dropping into Cedar Ridge through the trees was just an amazing feeling and something I hadn’t experienced before.

Well into the third week we started working a lot more on our level 1 assessment, so lessons started getting serious. We had to show the instructors that our riding was strong enough to get us through and they started to show us the CASI progression and how to teach lessons from complete beginners through to showing people how to do their first turns. We also had the opportunity to have private lessons from any of the instructors. I had my first with Sean as I felt his teaching style really suited me and we worked mostly on my riding to make sure I made the grade. He took a look at my riding and gave me a couple of things to work on to smooth out my toe-side turn and I could feel the improvement straight away. During regular lessons we started giving mock lessons to the rest of the group with our instructor looking on and pointing out ways to improve. At first I found this pretty difficult, as I’m sure the others did, I hate giving talks and had never given a lesson before. It helped loads that we were all in the same boat and helped each other out as much as we could. The tips that the instructors gave us helped as well and after giving a few lessons we all started to feel a lot more comfortable with it. A couple of weeks later and we were ready! A very nervy, exciting and fun 3 days later and we were celebrating!

The CASI level 1 course is broken into two parts, riding standard and teaching. For the first 2 days Jay was assessing our riding constantly and showing us all the different lessons that make up the CASI progression. Starting with ‘Basic Mobility’ which is taking a class of complete beginners who have never snowboarded before and explaining to them what a snowboard is and what different parts of the board are called/for and putting a board on and doing up the bindings for the first time through ‘Side Slipping’ etc and finally beginner and novice turns. At the end of each day you get a quick one to one with Jay explaining what you’re doing well and, most importantly, what needs to be improved. In my case he wanted to see more up and down movement and at the end of the second day it was to be more aggressive. The third day is for the teaching assessment which, for me, was the day I had been dreading most. To say I was nervous when it was my turn would be the biggest understatement ever! Once the day was over though and we waited in the bar for our results the tension was almost unbearable. One by one the biggest smiles you’ve ever seen started appearing as people got their results and CASI badges!! The beer started flowing and didn’t stop until the early hours and there were some very sore heads the next day!

As the weeks rolled by we started working towards the level 2 assessment. The level 2 course is a lot more in depth, as it involves teaching intermediate riders. A lot of the early work involved watching peoples riding and figuring out what needs to be worked on and different tactics to use, the riding standard is also much higher. We worked really hard to get our riding to standard, especially the advanced sliding turns. I found it very difficult to move my pivot point from my front foot to the centre of the board. One day it just clicked and once I had those in the bag it was a case of doing as much mock teaching as possible to get confident with the huge amount of different lessons that had to be memorised for the exam.

The level 2 course is a 4 day course, 1 longer than the level 1 although it is structured in much the same way. The last day is the teaching assessment and the first three days are spent working on riding standard and watching the assessor show us all the possible lessons and a variety of tactics to use. The group I was in had Glenn as our assessor and we spent the first three days doing mock lessons and working on the riding standard. The one to ones at the end of each day were very helpful. Glenn said my teaching was excellent but still had to work on my riding. Once again, as in the level 1, I had to show more flexion and extension, up and down movement, as I was fairly static going in and out of the turns. At the end of the third day we finished our lessons and headed to the pro hut to meet with Glenn for our one to one. We waited. And waited! Glenn seemed to take an age to get down the hill and when he did arrive, wasn’t looking too clever. He’d had a fall on the way down and injured himself.

When we got to the hill for the last day Glenn turned up in jeans saying the fall the day before was worse than he’d thought and he couldn’t go out. Our group was split up and put into different groups; I was put into Jays, who had been my assessor for level 1. We were all a bit shocked and had to slightly rethink our lesson plans, as all the instructors look for different things and teach in different ways. It was quite a big obstacle to overcome, especially as it had snowed a fair bit overnight and all the level 2 lessons are best suited to groomed runs rather than at least a foot of fairly heavy fresh snow! There was a very nervous wait at the end of the day while Glenn and Jay got together and discussed my riding and teaching. Eventually Glenn called me over and with a big smile said I had passed, but just barely!! I think all the difficulties affected me and added to the nerves but in the real world these are the sorts of things that happen all the time.

I am so grateful to all the instructors and staff at Nonstop for a life changing 3 months. They work really hard to make sure everyone is happy and go the extra mile to ensure everyone is feeling at home. As well as all the great instruction there are all the extras that make Nonstop stand out from the crowd. There are the activities like cat-skiing, dog sledding etc. and the trips away are fantastic, a highlight being the trip to Montana which happened to be my birthday and everyone on the trip made sure it was one to remember, although I don’t remember much!! I’m pretty sure I didn’t buy many drinks as the bar served beer in huge 4 litre pitchers and there was a hell of a lot of Jager going round, and I certainly had my fair share! Another highlight was Hotdog day. This is where everyone on the mountain, and I mean EVERYBODY dresses in 80s gear! At the end of the course there was quite a few of us that headed to Lake Louise for an extra two weeks snow. It was a great time and gave us a chance to unwind after all the hard work of the previous few weeks. It was super warm and we spent a lot of the time, with varying degrees of success, in the terrain park. Lake Louise being an RCR resort, the same as Fernie, there were no kickers but a lot of rails and boxes and by the end were all starting to get pretty confident with our skills.

Since doing the 11 week course in Fernie I have spent the last 2 seasons working at Cypress Mountain in Vancouver. It is not the biggest of places but the terrain is fantastic and when the snow is good it can rival a lot of places. It has really good atmosphere and an awesome bunch of instructors. When it came to taking my first lesson I was nervous as hell but all the training from NONSTOP gave me everything I needed and once I started the nerves soon went and everything came back to me without me really having to think about what I was doing. In my first season we had some amazing snow, loads of lessons and a huge FIS World Cup Snowboard competition. We were lucky enough to see pretty much all of the event, which attracted some of the top riders from around the world, competing in what would become the Olympic halfpipe. At the end of the season we had a Snowschool party with some awards, some of which were given out by the Director of the Snowschool and others which were voted for by the instructors. I was in a state of shock when my name was called out as Snowboard Instructor of the season. This was voted for by the other instructors and to get something like that in my first ever season instructing was amazing and topped off an amazing year.

Last season saw the mountain preparing for the Winter Olympics, as we hosted all the snowboard and freestyle skiing events. As Cypress is only small, it closed down completely for 5 weeks and as full time staff we were taken on by Vanoc to work this period. As the snow wasn’t too great in Cypress this season, the mountain closed 3 weeks earlier to preserve the snowpack needed to build the courses. We were on paid leave for these 3 weeks so took the opportunity to see some other resorts. A group of us went to Whistler a couple of times to find some fresh snow and to Mount Baker in the States. We also went to Big White for a couple of days, which was awesome.

All in all I definitely feel like I made the right decision to head out to the mountains. I am now trying to decide what to do for next season and am researching as many resorts as I can in both Canada and the US. Bring on the winter!

NONSTOP Ski instructor courses

NONSTOP Snowboard instructor courses

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After finishing sixth form back in 2007, I booked myself straight on to NONSTOP’s 11 week instructor course. I had heard about the programme through a family friend and I had my heart set on being in Fernie for my year out before university.

I arrived in late December, to get a bit of practise in before the course, as I had only snowboarded for around four weeks since swapping in my skis the year before. I moved into NONSTOP’s Red Tree Lodge in January, ready for the start of the course. Everything worked out better than I could have imagined. The season was immense, with day after day of light fluffy powder to shred. On this course everything is set up so that you have the best experience possible, from group lessons to one-on-one sessions, trips to other resorts and even the opportunity to go cat skiing! The instructors cover all bases, from core technique to freestyle. I loved the whole experience and met lots of great people.

After completing my CASI Level 1, I spent the rest of the course training for the AMP program. I wasn’t sure about my plans for the following year, so in the end I decided against taking my Level 2. However, after getting home in May, I decided to defer my place at uni and go out for a second season in Fernie – this time instructing.

I started applying for snowboard instructor work in June, had flights booked in September and found out I had the job in mid October. I was in!

It was yet another great season. The snow wasn’t the same as the year before, but working was a whole new adventure. I taught kids from age 5 to 13 at a range of levels, which was so rewarding, as I put my skills and everything I’d learnt into practise. Of course it can be very challenging, but getting to do what I love every day is a dream.

Over the course of the season, the team bond in the ski school becomes stronger and stronger; working alongside friends and others who share your passion. We took part in improvement sessions throughout the season, offering us the chance to train for level 2, 3 and 4. If it’s a career you want to pursue long term, working your way up through ski school is the way to go. As soon as I passed my level 2, I was getting more work and priority over less qualified instructors.

I have now finished my third season and plan to do a fourth. Over my time in Fernie I have taught both kids and adults and have been a part of loads of other ski school programs. It is definitely possible to travel the world and work as an instructor – there are so many places to explore. However there is a huge advantage to returning to the same resort, as you get to know the ins and outs of the ski school.

Fernie is wicked, with so much to offer. People living here are friendly and have such a passion for the outdoors. It is a small town and the legendary powder brings in many from out of town on weekends, but for the rest of the week the mountain is all yours to explore. I am now gearing up for my first full summer season and can’t wait for what it brings, with mountain biking, river rafting, hiking and so much more.

I have reapplied for university since realising through instructing that I want to pursue a degree in primary education.

For anyone who is looking at doing a Nonstop course, it will be a great experience in so many ways – do it!

June took part in NONSTOP’s 11 week snowboard instructor course. Follow one of the links below if you’d like to find out more:

Ski instructor courses

Becoming a ski instructor

Snowboard instructor courses

Becoming a snowboard instructor

I left NONSTOP’s course feeling amazing, it really was the best time that I’d had on snow. Since then, over the last three years, I’ve had plenty more incredible experiences, but I look back on my time in Canada with the rosiest tint. It really was a turning point for my snowboarding. My technique was ripped apart and put back together again, which allowed me to ride far more challenging terrain, while having far more fun! The stuff I’m hitting now in Chamonix is a dream when you’ve got that solid Canadian style.

I haven’t been back to Canada since that course unfortunately, but I know I can’t hold off much longer before I return. I’ve had a LOT of time on the snow, but I’ve truly miss the way things were in Fernie. The whole mountain is your playground there. They have more snow than I’ve ever seen in Europe, and there’s a fraction of the amount of people to track it out! It seemed to dump constantly while I was there, every day was a powder day, and the clouds didn’t get in the way of your riding because those perfectly spaced trees just ate it all right up and allowed you to see perfectly… [sigh]… those were the days!

When I chose to do an instructor course, I didn’t really have any intention to teach, at least not straight away, but I did want to have it in my quiver. I knew that the course would do wonders for my riding (which it did), would be a hell of a lot of fun (which it was) and would teach me some pretty handy skills (which it has). Although I haven’t taken the plunge into the instructing industry yet, I’ve still taught a fair amount of friends and I can tell you – my CASI skills really worked, and the results were extremely rewarding.

So, enough of the aftermath and onto the course itself. NONSTOP really is an appropriate name for this company; it was a full-on three weeks! That suited me just fine though, I love snowboarding and I’ve always wanted to squeeze in as much as possible into my time on the Mountains. Going into the course, my only minor concern was that the theory of things might get a little boring and get in the way of riding. Those worries were brushed away within the first 20 minutes! The first run on the first day started with riding maybe 100 yards on a groomed cat-track, before watching our instructor (Glen) launch off into a beautiful powder bowl. After watching us stumble a few times down that run, Glen spent 10 minutes giving each of us something to work on during the next descent. This pattern continued over the course of the next three weeks. We got taken to some of the best areas of the mountain – the places the Glen and Ryan wanted to go themselves – all the while having our technique refined and moulded with the most chilled out, pressure-free instructional style.

Towards the end of the 3 weeks a little more seriousness was brought into the course as we were prepared for our Level 1. By this point all of our technique was pretty sound and we just had to learn how to pass that on to others. Thankfully we’d been on the receiving end of excellent teaching for a couple of weeks, so learning to do it ourselves was less of a challenge than you’d imagine. It was just a matter of remembering the techniques for taking beginner and novice snowboarders through each stage of the development process. Learning those techniques was actually quite a bitter experience, as I realised that my own experiences as a beginner, a few years back, were un-necessarily painful and complicated! CASI aims to get beginners having a great time from when they first step on a board, and their techniques really do make it easy for people to learn.

The exam day is quite scary, but that whole process really doesn’t get in the way of the fun that you want to be having on the mountain – you still get plenty of amazing riding time in.

Thankfully I passed, as did everyone else on the course. It’s amazing to see that a couple of the folk that I was riding beside then went on to gain their Level 2s and are currently working as instructors in Canada… I’m not jealous… honest. Good on them though. It goes to show, whatever your motivation, you can get a lot out of an instructor course. They wanted to become instructors and there was a very clear path for them. I got just as much out of the course even though I didn’t share their plans – I’ve got some life-long skills and a completely different outlook on mountain riding.

It’s not too late to take part in the same instructor course this year. There are still places in Fernie from (13^th March – 3^rd April). Go and check out the details of the CASI snowboard instructor course here, or the CSIA ski instructor course here. You can also combine it with a 2 week improver course to get started (making it 5 weeks in total)… but obviously get on that ASAP because time’s running out!

If you want to know more about my time in Canada, I wrote an article for Whitelines snowboard magazine at the time, which you can read here (under “Zero to Hero”).

And here’s what I’m up to now.

At NONSTOP Ski & Snowboard, we thought it might be useful to compile a comprehensive list of useful and reputable snow report, webcam and snow forecast sites to solve this problem.

NONSTOP Canada: The insiders guide for snow reports or webcams on Fernie, Red Mt, Whistler and Banff, check out NONSTOP Canada. This site offers great snow reports as well as plenty of information on where to eat, where to shop, where to stay and what to do in all of these resorts.

Snowforcast.com – This site is one of our favourites because it organizes reports simply and clearly. It offers free snow reports from a wide range of locations and shows links to webcams so that you can see the snow in real time.

Ski Club of Great Britain Snow Reports – Another good site for snow reports. Although it lists reports from fewer countries, it gives more detail and also provides weekly forecasts to help you plan in advance.

The BBC Weather Snow News – If you are looking for a reliable snow report from an official source, it doesn’t get much better than the BBC. There are country overviews giving an outline of the recent snowfall, however the BBC only gives information for the major resorts. If you are going off the beaten track, it would be better to find information elsewhere.

Snowfix.com – The bonus of this site is that when you look at a report for a certain region, it presents it to you in the form of an interactive map. We find this very helpful to visualise the region and understand where the weather is coming from.

ifyouski.com – This is a helpful website that blends a ‘travel agent’ with a ‘snow report’. This site gives you information on the most recent snow fall and then gives you quotes on how much it will cost to get there.

Hopefully you can find a descent snow report amongst those sites. At NONSTOP, we have situated our instructor and improvement courses at resorts that are known to get above the average, if not phenomenal amounts of snow and fresh powder! Why not check them out.

It is also a welcome back to afterbang and hitting kickers (with a new style). After a summer of relative quietness it is good to have you back writing and keeping us entertained.

Here’s to a great winter with tons of snow. If the Farmer’s Almanac is to be believed then it will be cold winter in Canada and that can only mean lots of snow.

If you want to improve your skiing, learning to be a ski instructor is a fantastic way to do it. See our ski instructor courses, or snowboard instructor courses here.

Last weekend we held our first NONSTOP festival.

The scene was set on the beautiful Fulford Estate near Exeter in Devon.  On Friday the marquees were up, the hot tub out, the sun was shining and the past and present NONSTOPpers started arriving from far and wide.

The theme for the weekend: catching up with the old and making new friends, listening to some great music and enjoying the sunshine, surf and scenery of sunny Devon.

Here a few photos so you can imagine what we got up to in greater detail…

The Scenic Fulford Manor – home to NONSTOCK 2008

The Party Tent

Act No.1 – The Lovely Martin Harley

Act No. 2 – The Undercover Hippie

Act No. 3 – The Baker Brothers

Fireside

Swimming (washing away the hangovers) in the lake

So, a great weekend was had by all.

Watch this space for NONSTOCK 2009!

Now, you may have guessed from the title of this post that the final destination was never reached. Alas, some unforeseen circumstances came into our path…

…we never made it to St Malo but it turns out Guernsey is just lovely at this time of year!

I thought I might share the experience with you, with a few photos…

The crew:

Rupert and Dave

The team arrived in Dartmouth at 7pm, it was a lovely mild July evening and there was excitement in the air. We all climbed aboard the great ‘Nimrod’, Patrick’s beautiful Dehler 47 and tucked into a selection of lovely pasties (when in Rome!)

After a quick shandy and a safety briefing from the Skip, the NONSTOP team set sail. It was all smiles and laughter as we settled in and waved good-bye to land, it would be the last we would see for the next 20 hours.

A gentle tail wind blew us in the right direction (I have very little ‘sailing’ lingo in my vocabulary) – in essence, the wind blew, the sailors sailed and we cruised along at an average of 8 knots, which felt pretty quick! The skies darkened and night came over – the ‘watch’ system began. Dave, James and Patrick started and the rest of us went down below for a bit of kip. At 1.00am the ‘dog’ watch started and Tom, Harry and I (Georgie) took the helm… there is no need to go in to details but I will just say that I am no sailor – so the boys sailed while I ensured that the mackerel were well fed. To help those on watch stay awake (and the rest of the crew!) Harry decided to sing at the top of his voice, the words to all the national anthems he knew. Which turned out to be quite a few! Meanwhile Tom kindly steered Nimrod out of the way of any of the huge cargo ships.

Tom at the helm

The watch systems carried on, and a few of us (don’t worry – I will mention no names!) took turns in ‘feeding the mackerel’ until the sun rose, the seas calmed (a little!) and the Channel Islands came into view. It was decided by James and Patrick that due to the imminent bad weather that perhaps we shouldn’t sail all the way to St Malo and that Guernsey looked just lovely and to my absolute delight, it looked close!

Tori

Dave

Harry, Patrick, Tori and Tom

Tom and I

Mr James Dodd

To cut a long story short, we spent a lovely day in sunny Guernsey and the sailing was an exciting and enthralling experience! We made good time, in apparently relatively calm seas (although some of us would beg to differ) and more importanly by the time we were on land, everyone was smiling again – The team had bonded!

Moral of the story : Sailing is a fantastic sport, exciting and lots of fun but let’s just say, there are a few of us who will never touch another pasty, ever again!

I think I will be sticking to the mountains and snowboarding from now on! If anyone agrees and would like to chat about our ski and snowboard instructor and improvement courses, please give me a call!

By the way, in case you’re reading this and are starting to feel apprehensive about the idea of skiing or snowboarding in that much powder, it’s worth rembering these two points:

1.  1118cm doesn’t all fall at once!  You won’t have to wade through unmanageable quantities of snow, but you will enjoy plenty of fresh snow that keeps the pistes soft and the skiing/riding varied and fun. It’s so much more enjoyable when you fall into soft snow rather than onto hard packed ice.
2. Skiing or snowboarding at a resort with fresh powder and regular snowfall will improve your skills quicker than visiting a resort that relies on man made snow. If you’re skiing or riding soft snow you tend to be more confident and can explore steeper and more challenging terrain because the snow conditions are more forgiving. This definitely makes you improve quicker and therefore you’ll have more fun on the whole mountain rather than just the lower slopes.

So come and have a go and discover powder skiing at its best.

If you want to improve your skiing, learning to be a ski instructor is a fantastic way to do it. See our ski instructor courses, or snowboard instructor courses here.

• Who gets the most snow
• Who has the most fresh lines (i.e. the least people)

No. 5 KICKING HORSE

Kicking Horse is fast gaining an international reputation as a steep and deep classic resort. By this we mean the terrain is challenging and the snowfall is fantastic, giving you the best of both worlds. You can either stay up at the resort or in the nearby town of Golden. This old mining town offers a frontier style experience that may not be to everyone’s taste. Having said this there are some good bars and restaurants to choose from but the selection is not that big.

The snowfall in Kicking Horse is excellent with 665cm falling this season alone. Being colder than other powder meccas, Kicking Horse is renowned for having good quality, light, dry snow.

In addition to this the resort is still growing in popularity so lift queues aren’t often long and the runs will be pretty much empty. At the weekends the Calgary crowds tend to dominate so aim to visit during the week and you won’t have to share the plunder!

Summary: Well worth a visit for any expert skiers or snowboarders – great steeps, good average snowfall, not too busy, lift system needs expanding soon.

No. 4 WHISTLER / BLACKCOMB

Whistler continually wins the accolades, namely the top resort in North America and deservedly so. It has the most extensive, fast operating and efficient lift service of any resort allowing you to reach all the corners of this vast resort. The customer service is fantastic, tissues to blow your nose at every lift station; people carrying free hot chocolate on their backs to hand out when it gets very cold and hosts to guide you around the mountain, also offered for free. There is a great selection of bars, restaurants and clubs for those looking to enjoy some après ski.

As for the snowfall, this season Whistler had a whopping 1018cm! So why is this great resort only at number four?

Whistler has almost become a victim of its own success and as such attracts huge numbers of visitors every season. The weekends and public holidays can see very long lift lines and if it has just snowed then you could be in for a long wait too. For this reason Whistler falls down slightly on our second criteria. Despite having a huge amount of terrain you will always be competing with a large number of people for those fresh lines.

Summary: Amazing resort, great service, tons of snow but, you have to compete a bit too much for the fresh lines.

No. 3 RED MOUNTAIN

Red Mountain is one of those hidden gems of a resort. Anyone who has been will tell you it is some of the best skiing or snowboarding they have ever done. There are two cone shaped mountains, Granite and Red, that both offer 360° worth of lines. You can literally take any line on the mountain, a truly unique offering. Additionally, as there is practically no one else on the hill you will feel like you have your own private resort! You can stay in purpose built condos on the hill or in the town of Rossland about five minutes away, a lovely ski town with a very relaxed vibe.

The snowfall topped 700cm this season and with a short season this amount is even more impressive.

Crucially, your chances of finding fresh lines at Red are very high. There are never very many people on the hill, even on a powder day, so the snow lasts longer and there is more for you and your friends to enjoy.

Summary: On the right day, being at Red is like experiencing lift accessed heli-skiing – empty runs, no lift queues, lots of snow, plenty of fresh lines.

No. 2 WHITEWATER

This little known resort is located near the colourful, cultural town of Nelson in British Columbia. It has something for everyone, from steeps, deeps, chutes, bowls, glades, groomed cruisers and gentle rollers. It has built its reputation on deep snow, non existent lift queues and big hospitality. Plus, the food in the Whitewater ski lodge is so delicious there’s even a famous Whitewater recipe book!

The town of Nelson is 12 kilometres from Whitewater and is a fun quirky little town nestled on the shores of the stunning Kootenay Lake. Nelson has some great heritage buildings (350 to be exact) which along with the numerous music shops, museums and galleries give the town a unique cultural feel. It’s truly one of those places that people find hard to leave.

As for the snowfall well it averages a massive 1200cm a season!

With this much snow you would think it would be a packed resort however, you will rarely find a lift queue and if you see more than a handful of people on the slopes it will be a surprise. All this means the powder lasts longer and you get more fresh lines. The only downside is the small and quite old lift system makes it harder to access all the fantastic terrain, however Whitewater is as much renowned for its backcountry access as it is the resort so if you’ve got the knowledge you can enjoy endless lines outside the resort boundary.

Summary: A true hidden gem – tons of snow, nobody there, down to earth friendly locals, great town.

No. 1 FERNIE

Fernie is located in the southern most point of British Columbia and has gained a reputation for being an amazing powder destination. The terrain in Fernie is fantastic with five large alpine bowls to explore and steep tree runs to play in. You can ski or ride pretty much anywhere within the boundary of the resort making it perfect for those who love big mountain skiing or riding.

The town itself offers something for everyone with a wide selection of restaurants; bars; cultural offerings and a very friendly atmosphere. If you are coming for a holiday or looking to do a season then Fernie will not disappoint.

The snowfall is the real reason people come though, with over 1120cm of snow this season it was hard to beat. There were over 40 powder days in a season running from December to April making it one of the highest snowfalls in any resort anywhere!

And the key factor in making it number one is there’s no one to fight for the snow with. Even on a powder day you will only have to line up for a maximum of five minutes! Fernie’s fantastic snowfall, amazing terrain, empty runs and a great town make it our number one powder resort in Canada.

Summary: Our choice for the top powder resort in Canada!

Who would you choose?