Logo
    Show
    Hide
    Login
    Close

    SITE LOGIN

    • Forgot your password?

    ROUTES LOGIN HERE

    Register

    Backcountry Skiing Guides
    • REVIEWS
      • Ski Gear
        • Skis
        • Boots
        • Bindings
        • Climbing Skins
        • Poles
        • Snowboards
      • Clothing
        • Hard Shells
        • Soft Shells
        • Insulation
        • Mid Layers
        • Base Layers
        • Gloves
        • Socks
      • Accessories
        • Safety Gear
        • Goggles and Helmets
        • Ski Touring Packs
        • Ski Boxes and Bags
        • Sleeping Bags - 4 Season
        • Technology
        • Sunglasses
        • Insoles & Braces
        • Books
      • Off-Season Gear
        • Hiking
          • Rain Shells
          • Day Packs
          • Apparel
          • Footwear
          • Safety
        • Camping
          • Backpacks
          • Sleeping Bags
          • Sleeping Pads
          • Tents
          • Coolers / Cooking
          • Furniture / Storage
          • Lighting / Power
        • Biking
        • Paddling
        • Climbing
        • Mountaineering
        • Running
      • Lifestyle
      • Lodges and Accommodation
      • Nutrition
      • Manufacturers
      • Destinations
      • Training
      • Gear of the Year
      • Pro Skier Interviews
    • FORUMS
    • STORE
      • Guides & Maps
      • Gear Deals
        • Alpine Touring Boots
        • Backcountry Skis
        • Alpine Touring Bindings
        • Backcountry Accessories
        • Off-Season Gear
        • Climbing Skins
    • ROUTES
      • Coast Mountains
        • Callaghan Valley
        • Coquihalla Highway
        • Cypress Provincial Park
        • Duffey Lake
        • Elfin Lakes Squamish
        • Howson Range
        • Shames Mountain
        • Smithers
        • Vancouver Island
        • Whistler/Blackcomb
      • Interior Mountains
        • Bonningtons Traverse
          • Copper Hut Routes
          • Grassy Hut Routes
          • Huckleberry Hut Routes
          • Steed Hut Routes
        • Goat Range
        • Kicking Horse Mountain Resort
        • Kokanee Glacier Park
        • Kootenay Pass
        • Red Mountain Resort
        • Revelstoke
        • Revelstoke Mountain Resort
        • Rossland Range
        • Rogers Pass
        • Trout Lake
        • Whitewater Ski Resort
      • Rocky Mountains
        • Banff National Park
        • Bow Yoho Traverse
        • Fernie
        • Jasper National Park
        • Kananaskis Country
        • Kootenay National Park
        • Lake Louise Ski Resort
        • Sunshine Village Ski Resort
        • Wapta Traverse
          • Balfour Hut Routes
          • Bow Hut Routes
          • Peyto Hut Routes
          • Scott Duncan Hut Routes
        • Yoho National Park
      • Quebec
      • Newfoundland
      • Ontario
      • Yukon
      • Submit A New Route
    • LODGING
      • Coast Mountains
      • Interior Mountains
      • Rocky Mountains
    • VIDEOS
      • 2018/19 Gear Reviews
      • 2017/18 Gear Reviews
      • 2016/17 Gear Reviews
      • 2015/16 Gear Reviews
      • 2014/15 Gear Reviews
      • 2013/14 Gear Reviews
      • 2012/13 Gear Reviews
      • 2011/12 Gear Reviews
      • 2019 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2018 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2017 Outdoor Presscamp
      • 2017 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2016 Outdoor Presscamp
      • 2016 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2015 SIA Show
      • 2014 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2013 SIA Show
      • 2012 Outdoor Retailer
      • Tips and Tricks
      • Backcountry Skiing
    • SAFETY
      • Plan Ahead
      • Equipment
      • Resources
      • Avalanche Skills Training
      • Managing warmth & heat loss
    • ABOUT
      • Advertise
      • Glossary
      • Contact Us
    • REVIEWS
      • Ski Gear
      • Clothing
      • Accessories
      • Off-Season Gear
      • Lifestyle
      • Lodges and Accommodation
      • Nutrition
      • Manufacturers
      • Destinations
      • Training
      • Gear of the Year
      • Pro Skier Interviews
    • FORUMS
    • STORE
      • Guides & Maps
      • Gear Deals
    • ROUTES
      • Coast Mountains
      • Interior Mountains
      • Rocky Mountains
      • Quebec
      • Newfoundland
      • Ontario
      • Yukon
      • Submit A New Route
    • LODGING
      • Coast Mountains
      • Interior Mountains
      • Rocky Mountains
    • VIDEOS
      • 2018/19 Gear Reviews
      • 2017/18 Gear Reviews
      • 2016/17 Gear Reviews
      • 2015/16 Gear Reviews
      • 2014/15 Gear Reviews
      • 2013/14 Gear Reviews
      • 2012/13 Gear Reviews
      • 2011/12 Gear Reviews
      • 2019 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2018 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2017 Outdoor Presscamp
      • 2017 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2016 Outdoor Presscamp
      • 2016 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2015 SIA Show
      • 2014 Outdoor Retailer
      • 2013 SIA Show
      • 2012 Outdoor Retailer
      • Tips and Tricks
      • Backcountry Skiing
    • SAFETY
      • Plan Ahead
      • Equipment
      • Resources
      • Avalanche Skills Training
      • Managing warmth & heat loss
    • ABOUT
      • Advertise
      • Glossary
      • Contact Us

    HOTTEST REVIEWS


    Elan Ripstick 106 Skis Fritschi Xenic 10 Bindings Arc'teryx Nuclei FL Jacket Gregory Targhee 32 Pieps Micro Transceiver Scott Freeguide Boots ZAG SLAP 104 Skis

    VIDEOS YOU'LL LIKE


    Marker Duke PT Bindings Salomon Shift Pro Boots Black Crows 2020 Skis Dalbello Quantum Boots Atomic Shift MNC Binding Scarpa F1 LT Boots New G3 2020 Poles

    NEWSLETTER SIGNUP

    Unsubscribe
    backcountry skiing utah
    avalanche canada
    Rivers Ocean and Mountains
    • Home
    • »
    • Forum
    • »
    • Touring Locations
    • »
    • Coast Mountains
    • »
    • Sea to Sky Gondola Opening offers up new terrain for backcountry skiers
    Ascent Magazine

    FORUMS

    Here’s your chance to tell everyone about everything and anything to do with backcountry skiing. Follow the simple steps to register and WHAMMY, you’re in. If you are pulling your hair out with frustration, have a look at the help forums for answers or take a pause and drop us an email at: info (at) backcountryskiingcanada.com. We’ll do our best to help out as soon as we can (but all bets are off on a powder day, obviously).  

    Sea to Sky Gondola Opening offers up new terrain for backcountry skiers

    • RSS
    • Subscribe
    • skifreak
      2014-05-21 08:56:45

      Sea to Sky Gondola Opening offers up new terrain for backcountry skiers

      The Sea To Sky Gondola recently opened its doors to the public offering up rides into the alpine above Squamish BC. Although there is no ski resort associated with the gondola, they say this will open up a new playground in winter for backcountry skiers looking for easy access to a variety of alpine terrain. Have a read of the article below and check out the terrain photo, looks pretty inviting if you ask me.

      Sea to Sky Gondola



      When the Sea to Sky Gondola unloads its first passengers on Friday (May 16), it is opening the doors to a new world of outdoor recreation possibilities. And it’s all about access.

      “In about two hours you could be ski touring,” professional ski photographer Reuben Krabbe said. 

      Besides Duffey Lake Provincial Park, the top of the gondola is one of the few backcountry spots in the province that can be reached by foot in such a short time period, he said. 

      In March, Krabbe ventured up the gondola to check out the skiing opportunities firsthand. There is logging road access to the area, but it’s often gated off. Until now, the only way in was by four-by-four or snowmobile and the route wasn’t conducive to either. The opening of the gondola makes the powder slopes a skier’s dream, he noted.

      “There are no other user groups heading up in that direction,” Krabbe said. “You are fully alone when you do get up there.”

      Sea to Sky Gondola

      The skiing offered in the alpine and sub-alpine areas, including terrain around Sky Pilot Mountain and Goat Ridge, range from climbs requiring crampons to traverses that would please one’s 70-year-old grandparents, Krabbe said. The area’s diversity makes it a great place for training in forecasting avalanches, he added. 

      In the warmer months, climbers and mountain bikers will explore the new area. It’s all about access, said Charlie Harrison, vice president of the Squamish Access Society.

      Harrison has rock climbed for the past decade. Over that time, the sport’s popularity has dramatically increased in Squamish. 

      The vast majority of climbers that visit Squamish for the weekend aren’t scaling the Stawamus Chief. As a result, most entry points to moderate climbing routes have lineups of people waiting for their turns. Squamish is always in need of more beginner climbs, Harrison said. 

      “As soon as stuff gets put up that is relatively easy, it is jam -packed,” he said. 

      The gondola offers access to a wide range of climbing opportunities, from slab to sports. Just 200 metres above the top station of Sea to Sky Gondola is Ultraviolet Cliff. Its climbing routes were first developed in the 1980s, but the rock’s location remained relatively inaccessible. There are eight establish routes on the rock, ranging from 12 to 16 metres. 

      By 2015, the gondola’s operators aim to have a mountain biking trail system in place, with an endurance ride ending in Britannia Beach. The area will expand a network that’s already catching riders’ attention worldwide, Squamish Off-Road Cycling Association (SORCA) president Jeff Cooke said. 

      The style of riding in Squamish is very different from what goes on in Whistler’s mountain bike park, and the Sea to Sky Gondola adds to the network of forested trails with perfect mountain biking terrain.

      “I think it will open up a lot of epic rides,” Cooke said.

      Trail running will also enjoy a boost. The first trail race on the pathways surrounding the gondola, the Skyline Ridge Run, will correspond with the summer solstice on June 21. Organized by Challenge by Choice, race distances of 10 and 21 kilometres will start at the top of the gondola


      Article from Squamishchief .com


    • H
      2014-10-14 17:55:13

      Anyone got any ideas of the routes and lines that will actually be available? I was looking to find/create some maps of my own (planning trips). I know it will be the first season, but I cannot find anything (besides what's already available for Elfin Lakes)

    We built this backcountry skiing community for you, the passionate skier, and hope you enjoy the hard work we put into all the reviews, routes, videos and posts we create. It’s been free from day one but that doesn’t mean it’s not a valuable resource. If you enjoy this web site and value the content we create for you, then please support Backountry Skiing Canada by donating today. Thank you!

    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

    Copyright © 2021-22 Backcountry Skiing Canada. All Rights Reserved. 

    Website by: FROLIX DESIGN