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| New Snow | 0 cm | 7 Day Snow | 25 cm | Snowbase | 137 cm |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine Temp | 0 °C | Valley Temp | +1 °C | Conditions | Soft / Medium Packed |
Another great day skiing soft snow in the sun. Perfect visibility, so good times all round ! It was a bit windy at times / in certain places, but that is looking for something to complain about. Once again I was on Blackcomb, and probably will be tomorrow (intend to hit up some photo ops in Lakeside Bowl – 7th Heaven). Nevertheless, I park in Creekside, so I have to ski down Whistler mountain at the end of each day, and today the Lower Dave Murray Downhill was super nice ’slush’. So, perfect cold snow in the alpine, and fun slush at the bottom (obviously a few hard packed places in between) but still, a little bit of everything good !
Blackcomb Glacier - Rob
For those people who think that Whistler is busy (I have had a few heated discussions lately regarding this), you should be here now. I have been skiing straight onto EVERY single chair the last two days. It is so much fun to be able to ski around 7000 acres or so, and not be bothered by other people. This is not an ‘unusual’ event, as Whistler can be very quiet at times. Sure, public holidays / long weekends / holidays periods are busy, probably a little too busy in reality. Other times of the year however (like now – Winter Pride Gay Ski Week), you have two mountains that can accommodate 20,000 skiers per day, and you have them all to yourself (so to speak). I don’t know exact numbers (but if I think about it I will ask) but there was probably no more than 3000 skiers on both mountains.
The Blowhole - Rob
Blackcomb Glacier - Sarah
As usual the snow in the forecast is getting ‘pushed back’ and now it appears like a little accumulation during the weekend, and hopefully a decent dump or two next week……
I’ve been noticing the trend of the snow forecast pushback as well. I was pretty excited earlier this week to see heavy snow forecasted for early in the week but now it looks like we’ll probably miss the best of it (we arrive sunday and leave friday). Any chance the mountain stays in good shape for a bit of our stay?
The weather puchpacks have been driving me insane as well.
Totally agree on the crowds, last year the second week of Febriary was totally quiet, looking for the same this year.
Great job with this site Greg…. very informative. My family of 4 is heading to Whistler for the first time from Feb 14th through the 17th (should be big crowds but that’s the only time we could get away).
Quick question: We are all intermediate skill level (3 on skis and 1 snowboarder). Do you recommend that we try the Blackcomb Glacier before we leave or is that more for experts?
Sorry about my spelling in my earlier post, I should pay a bit more attention!
Greg, thanks for the regular updates – quick question: what is open? Are pretty much all runs a go? Any steeps still shut down for avy concerns?
And Chris – there’s nothing scary about Blackcomb glacier – it’s like a giant blue run. It’s my mom’s favourite run anywhere.
Thanks Paul, that’s what I was hoping to hear. I’ve heard so much about it from this site (plus Greg’s pictures) that I already feel like it’s my favorite.
oh my god! those are incredible deals. And there’s free shipping.
http://www.whiskeymilitia.com/
That’s a sick site as well, but the problem is that it’s American and shipping to Canada is a bit of a cruddy deal.
Charlie, the snow quality is pretty good right now (we just need a deeper base) and it looks like we are in for light flurries for the next few days. While you probably wont get a big powder day (although if one of these systems stalls, or is bigger than expected we might get a decent dump), I think this weekend will be good skiing. You will be in luck for some of the best skiing so far this season !
Patrick, I often recommend this time of year to people who ask ‘When is the best time to visit Whistler’ as the mountains are normally in great shape, and there are little to no lift lines.
Chris, I highly recommend the Blackcomb Glacier to anyone who is comfortable on a ‘blue’ run. The main area or ‘run’ back there is classified as ‘blue’ but is a pretty easy one. You can find some steep blacks and double blacks, but you have to go find them – the main way down is wide open and super fun! – especially on a powder day.
Paul, thanks for answering Chris’s question – as for the steep terrain, I believe everything is open except for the areas that are always ‘closed’. That being said, some of the steeps are in pretty bare condition – so lots of rocks. The snow is currently pretty good, soft enough to feel comfortable about getting an edge – but the rocks !! I went and checked out ‘The Cirque’ today on Whistler, intending to do it. The entrance looks the same as normal, a bit side-slippy down to a choke point – normally the choke point is decent enough for me to navigate, but today it looked like ( I didn’t actually go down to find out) it was super steep, super narrow and a bit of a rock band – so I chickened out… I did ski Upper McConkeys today a few times, and thought it was awesome.
Nick, yeah those ski deals (and some other stuff they have) are super good deals. I have skied both the ski I mention in particular and love them both (on groomers) – off piste I prefer other types of skis. The Volkl for $400 including shipping is sick ! I wish I had a US address (and some money).
Thanks for the feedback Greg. Sounds like you’re having fun! My wife and kids have only minimal knowledge of Whistler and I’m trying not to over-hype anything to them (not easy). I think they are going to be in awe when we get there in a week and a half.
They will definitely be in awe. I don’t know how you could visit Whistler and not be…it has something for everyone! You guys will love it