HELI SKIING

J

JDUB28

Member
Howdy,
So my dad has just given me the confirmation that he and I are going Heliskiing next spring break (late march-early april) in BC.
I am curious where you think I should go. Obviously the ultimate goal is: super deep pow, and obviously it is never a guarantee, but I would love to hear your guys' opinions on where to go.
Specifications:-My dad is not what you would call a very strong skier, so he doesn't wanna be killing himself every single run-my dad also wants some pretty cushy and luxurious accomodations-I want some deep deep pow/anything one would find in a ski movie-the more runs, the merrier!-we will be traveling from LA so convenience is a minor factor
Sparknotes: I am going heliskiing, where should I go
Thanks!
 
for what you are looking for, you can pretty much go anywhere. Deep Pow is the nature of the game... unless it's a really bad snow cycle, but that shit's not predicable.

CMH has many operations throughout the kootenays. Go check out their website with your dad, they have a really good site that helps you "choose the right location for you".
 
in that region, also look into Cat Skiing operations. Many quality places that offer what you are looking for.
 
this is true. There is also some places with both. Snow water is a heli operation by Nelson that has a cat, so when the weather is no good for flying, you still get runs in. Combine that with their sibling operation Valhalla Powdercats, you're guaranteed a good time.

I think they have an "ultimate package" which includes catskiing with Valhalla, heli skiing with Snow Water, and a day or two of skiing at Whitewater Resort and Red Mountain. Everything is within an hour drive.
 
I just went through this. Honestly, it's a little late to book for some of the best ops. Micah Heli was effing tough to get dates for, highly coveted. Retallack is booking up fast too.

We started by requesting 3 days full on heli / 4 days heli assisted touring in February. Because of their return client bookings, we had to settle with getting 3 days the first week of March, followed by 5 days of dirt bagging Rodger's pass. Sounds like a perfect week to me. Props to my dad for getting $$ for leaving a 12 year marriage to my ex-step-mom!!!

Good luck with your booking. One thing I would say is to stick with ops that have very little down days. If this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, as it is with me, you don't want to gamble on a skunk in AK. Interior BC is best bet.
 
and seth morrison both being part owners... plus karl the gnarl.

honestly, what makes retallack great is that is accesses gnarlier stuff than the other ops...but that gnarly stuff is way over almost everyone, but pros' heads.

what you actually WILL end up skiing is going to be super similar to what all the other ops have.
 
owned by skiers for skiers. and a friend went there and he raves about the place if i had enough money to go there i would choose them in a heartbeat.
 
Well one thing to note is that you might want some other people to pitch in reasons are that you could end up with OLD people who are blowing their money. My friends dad went Heli skiing and told me he did not get to ski anything gnarly because the other OLD people could not ski it. The pilot will go where the worst skier will ski.
Since your dad may not charge as hard you may get less runs. Even its super expensive, lighter skies will increase your runs by a lot. Its a lot less work when your skis are lighter.
Also stress will effect you and your dad, If you are stressed out it will take a toll on your day. Go into the day with a more chill feeling it will be less stressful which will elongate your day.

Sparknotes: Stay chill, light skis, maybe with a group you know destroy...
Sparknotes 2: Drink Red bull?
 
There is a lot of... well, not misinformation, but half truths from people here. Yes, Retallack is sick, I have been there, and the POSSIBILITIES for gnarly terrain is there, but no, you won't get to ski it. I have been to a few cat ski operations here in the kootenays and there are some better than others, but saying that Retallack is the best is just ignorant.

A big part of me doesn't even like going cat skiing due to the fact that you DON'T get to ski what and where you want, with exception. If you are part of a solid crew of people who are with the same guides for multiple days of good stability, than yes, you'll get to dabble in some more technical terrain, but just like with everything in life, you're only as strong as your weakest link.

Of course, this thread is about HELI skiing, NOT cat skiing. I have never gone heli skiing before, but safety protocols are the same industry wide. They will not take you down something unless they KNOW it is safe, and you CAN ski it. With that in mind... and considering you will be with your father who doesn't even want to go ski technical terrain, there isn't much need to talk about who has the "best" terrain. The only heli op I can recommend with any confidence is SnowWater. This is because I have worked with them before and they are super chill, their lodge is in a beautiful setting, and they have a cat on stand by so there are NO DOWN DAYS. They don't have as big of terrain as the heli ops further north, but trust me, the terrain is plenty good enough. But as I said in my first post, there's no real going wrong. All heli ops in the province are professionals with more terrain than you will ever be able to ski, and serve amazing food, in amazing lodges.
 
CMH is probably the best bet for accommodating everything you're looking at. I've been to Kootenay, and it's epic! Really depends on your group, but the terrain there is almost identical to some pow/tree/pillow shots I've seen in everyday is a saturday. If your looking for more runs/bigger open terrain, check out TLH. Similar set up to CMH, except in the coast mountains, and one heli per group.
 
Ive been to Mike WiIgeles for that past two years and I HIGHLY recommend it. You'll get more pow than you could ever ask for, Ski some huge lines and the food is amazing. I love that place.
 
HeySo ya my dad is willing to spend a good chunk of money considering that heliskiing is (as for now) a one time thing. Snow water is sounding really good for convenience/lodging, but hows the skiing there in late march however?also, I was thinking that maybe mica heli would be a possibility. What are your opinions about mica?thanks!
 
Mike Wiegeles Heli Skiing in Blue River B.C

http://www.wiegele.com/default.htm

my team was fortunate enough to get sponsored to there for 2 days.

depending on the weather the night before you could either be skiing peaks and wide open glaciers to pillows in the trees. i went april 7,8 and the weather was magnificent and snow was incredible.

also the hospitalitie there is incredible. the rental shop is filled with Atomic Bentchettlers and Blogs and Armada JJs and ANTs and plenty of other skis. the cabins they have there are so nice and probably the comfiest bed you will ever sleep in. plus the food is a 5star level( im talking crem brule, mouse,lobster tail,veal ect) and its all part of the package.

they did offer cat skiing as well but i would not recomend it

here are some pictures to give you a good example of what they have.

http://www.certainimages.com/2010/06/sports-2/

but i cant garantee thats what it would be like for you. snow conditions change hourly and you cant decide what you terrain you would be skiing till the morning of.
 
if you want to be secluded in a beautiful lodge in the mountains 100kms away from anywhere go to chatter creek. they off heliskiing there also now and the cat skiing terrain is unbelievable.
 
see jacob i told u im not the only one who likes wiegele, btw thats a great review of the place
 
defanately cmh monashees. they have a great lodge and great skiing. when i went the pow was up to my waiste every day for 10 days and my about 5'8. the lodge is amaingly comfotable and has a bunch of facilities. gym, rock wall, bouldering corner, great bar, relax room with couches and shit, hottub, pool, sana, and steam room. 10/10 stay here. its where they filmed a segment in 2012 warren miller, so that proves how deep it is, and has the craziest drops and easyer ones for your dad.
 
Hey, you may want to consider one of the newer outfitts. there are many in BC and ya for sure stay in BC as already mentioned. I work at a place (gotta be honest here) that's in Terrace. They get sick snow, are in the movies all the time, check out all the Standard Films and many of the MSP films including the new one to be released. Anyway, the snow is increadible and they just added 2 snowcats for the days when it's snowing too hard to fly. No down days guaranteed. The terrain is awesome and it's really easy to get there which saves time and money just traveling. The company is Northern Escape Heli-Skiing.

Check them out at www.neheliski.com
 
definitly look into places with both cat and heli skiing. if the weather isnt good, you cant use the heli, but you can use the snowcats. if you go to a heli only place, you could get screwed into only 1 or 2 days of skiing depending on the weather
 
^ this guy knows whats up
I went to snowwater last year with my dad (who also isnt that strong of a skiier) and it was awesome. most of their terrain was steep trees and pillow lines, but TONS of deep pow. also the snowcat backup is awesome, when i went it was storm a lot, so we swapped between the cat and heli 2-3 times a day. all the guides are really fun to hang out with, and the lodge is really nice with red seal chefs.
I think the owner even got his blasting permit last summer, so avalanche safety should be pretty good
sparknotes: if I had cash to go heliskiing again, go to snowwater
 
snowwater is a fun little place, but I found that there wasn't any real apline or glaciers. we spent the whole time in the trees wishing we could get up high. we also seemed to ride the same place a lot, not sure if that's becuse they have a really small area or what.

Snowcat back up is awesome, we skied everyday and the only other place zi know of that can get you out every day it Northern Escape Heli-Skiing. They have huge terrain and loads of it. great trees and amazing alpine with really long runs. That still is my first choice.
http://www.neheliski.com
 
and his brother is high up on avy control for BC highways.

I've never been to Snowwater, but I know Patrick and Maria and they're great people.

 
if your dad is not a strong skier and he doesnt want to be killing himself every run then dont go heli skiing, go cat skiing. when your heli skiing they rush you back up to the top so you can get the most out of your money and it makes you so tired. when you go cat skiing its way more chill cause you in the cat, blaring music and eating and stuff and they bring you to a different spot each time. cat skiing>heli skiing
 
your definition of catskiing makes it sound like a super crowded pow day, while heli-skiing is a super empty pow day. not sure how that can justify cat being better?
 
It's true, the peaks in their tenure aren't as high as places further north. If true alpine is what you're looking for then SnowWater isn't what you're looking for.
 
It's true, the peaks in their tenure aren't as high as places further north. If true alpine is what you're looking for then SnowWater isn't what you're looking for.
 
It's true, the peaks in their tenure aren't as high as places further north. If true alpine is what you're looking for then SnowWater isn't what you're looking for.
 
That's not been my experience with heliskiing. they always seem to match groups together with similar desires and then go at the speed the group wants. some groups do more skiing in a day and others do less. the also match terrain to each groups ability... cat skiing is a lot slower and does give you a rest on the way up so it is a good option if you're really concerned about your fitness.

Some companies now have both helis and snowcats which offers the best of all worlds. Northern Escape Heliskiing offers both and guarantees you'll ski everyday of your trip. 0 down days.

http://www.neheliski.com/

 
I have been to a few heli/cat ops in N. America and Mica is my favorite spot by far. Nothing like their remote/fly-in lodge, super sick terrain, and virtually 0 down days. You don't need to worry about snowcat backup at Mica because they fly all but maybe 1 day per season.
 
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