# 2013 trip to BC, Fernie, Panorama, Whitefish



## Justin (Jun 2, 2010)

haven't heard much good about pano, fernie is steep, and castle is close to fernie and supposed to be quite good as well. 

I think castle is 45 min from fernie.

my wife went to whitefish this year and said it was a cool place, a bit more mellow then fernie based on her description but would probably be good for your group, lots of untouched pow from what i understand.


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

While Fernie has lots of off-piste bowl and tree boarding, it also has a fair bit of groomed easier stuff. You want to watch the weather though because it can get rain. You're probably fairly safe in Feb.

It's one of the resorts on my season pass and I hit it about 10 days this year.

Heard nothing but good things about Castle. I think it's also on the way from Whitefish to Fernie. Would make a good stopover.

Haven't actually heard that much positive about Panorama, but I haven't been myself so probably not the best guy to ask. If you're making the trip to Panorama it may be worth driving a little further up the highway to Kicking Horse. If you drive from Fernie to either of those resorts, make sure you leave time to drive into Whiteswan Lake Provincial Park, to the Lussier hot springs. They're free, right in the side of the river, and the view driving in is nothing short of epic (and I rarely use that word). Truly one of the top 5 things to do in South Eastern BC...

Have fun and plan some off days cause Fernie's bowls can kill your legs!!!


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## gstboy (May 1, 2012)

Thanks for the advice. I was going back and forth between either staying at Whitefish or Fernie but Fernie seems to be a little more centrally located to other mountain resorts and flying into Calgary is cheaper than flying into Montana. Never heard of Castle so might have to check it out as well. We were thinking Panorama because of the heliskiing they have but if Kicking horse is not that far away we may just skip it and go there. How is the drive from Fernie to Kicking Horse or even Revelstoke?


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

gstboy said:


> Thanks for the advice. I was going back and forth between either staying at Whitefish or Fernie but Fernie seems to be a little more centrally located to other mountain resorts and flying into Calgary is cheaper than flying into Montana. Never heard of Castle so might have to check it out as well. We were thinking Panorama because of the heliskiing they have but if Kicking horse is not that far away we may just skip it and go there. How is the drive from Fernie to Kicking Horse or even Revelstoke?


There are MANY options for cat/heli skiing around here. Check out Island Lake Lodge near Fernie, and there's a startup 1 hr from Calgary on the old Fortress Mountain. Much cheaper than the other options as far as I know. KPOW Fortress Mountain Cat Skiing | KPOW - Fortress Mountain CAT Skiiing

Fernie to Kicking Horse is roughly 4 hr or so, 337 km on mostly 90-100 km/h zone stuff. However the roads in the winter can be anywhere from great to horrible. Don't think there are any mountain passes that could be closed on that route though so you should be safe for that.

Depending on how long you're staying, you may want to check out a season pass option. RCR has a sale on a pass that covers Fernie and Kicking horse and I think it's $989 or so. Only worth it if you're going to do 14+ days at the two resorts. Otherwise mid-season you can get RCR ski more cards which will give you lift ticket discounts.

Revelstoke is 4:30 or so from calgary, Fernie 3:00, Kicking Horse 3:00 or so... A killer trip would be to do the loop: Fly into Calgary on day, drive to Pincher Creek and wake up the next morning and hit Castle Mountain. At the end of the day drive to Fernie and stay there for a few days, one evening head up to Kicking Horse (stopping at the hot springs about half way!). Stay at kicking horse a couple days. It's 1:15 or so from Kicking Horse to Lake Louise, so hit up the lake on the last day heading back into Calgary. Stay in Canmore or Banff that night and wake up the next morning to cat boarding at KPOW... The longest leg of that trip would be Fernie to KH.


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## bcasey (Jan 19, 2011)

Panorama helicopter would be alright... but if you are going to be resort riding.. keep driving and go to kicking horse.
My suggestion would be to fly into Calgary and if you are driving to Fernie in the AM.. get out of Calgary by at least 6am and you should get to fernie in good time. Pending on your time and budget, hit the h
eli in panorama and then relax in the hotsprings @ radium afterwards. Finish your drive to kicking horse and ride there. If you want to cut the panorama heli out then skip that and get to KH and ride there after fernie and then get to Revelstoke if possible. 
Enjoy.


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## gstboy (May 1, 2012)

Thanks for all the good information guys!

I am probably going to be travelling with a fairly large group with a couple of families as well with kids about 5-8. We will probably have to stay in one place and then hop around from there. We are going to be there most likely from Feb 16 to the 24th so about 7 days worth of boarding if we don't stop around to smell the roses.

Tentatively I'm thinking the first couple of days at Fernie, go down to Whitefish for a day, the next day hit up catskiing with Great Northern Powder Guides near Whitefish, then possibly check out Castle the next day and if up to it may just take a drive out to Kicking Horse and if time permits check out the hot springs you guys are talking about.

I'm excited already!. Thanks for all the help and suggestions guys. Let me know if there's anything else we should hit up. I'll probably be resurrecting this thread before leaving if I get any more ideas about places.


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