# Selkirk Tangiers Heli Ski



## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

Hi All,

Some mates and I are pretty keen to cram in a day of Heli Skiing (boarding) when we are in Revelstoke next year. None of us has done this before and are pretty pumped for it.

Has anyone here used this company before? The reason i ask is because they do two packages, 3 runs is roughly $850, 5 runs is about $950. The person who i've been speaking to there says we should stick with the 3 run package because we've never been Heli Skiing before. To me, 3 runs for an entire day doesn't sound too appealing. I don't want to be standing around having cups of coffees and chats for hours on end between runs. Or am i missing something, are the runs really that big?

On the other hand, i don't want to be the guy in the 5 run package that is holding everyone up cause we keep getting bogged down.

I'm reasonably competent. No problems on black runs, and can hold my own on double black runs, and am reasonably fit, but intend on improving that further before we go.

Any advice as to weather or not we would be ok with the bigger package?


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

Are you confident riding deep powder? I know I wouldn't think twice about booking for the 5 run package. Even that sounds pretty light. How much vertical are they saying you are going to get? 

You are going to be riding "wild snow", not resort terrain on a powder day. It will be snow that has seen minimal human impact. Of course weather and such has a huge effect on how the layers under the powder (which you'll hopefully have) are set up. It can be anything from fairly solid to almost non supportable as soon as you get out of your bindings. 

Can you and your buddies just book the 5 run package for your group only. Helicopters don't carry a ton of people? 

Also, do they have an option to buy extra runs? 

The Selkirks are a world class range no doubt. Should be a fun experience.


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## brownSnow (Jan 7, 2009)

part of our group went with Selkirk heli 2 years ago when we were in Revy. Unfortunately the day they went out visibility was bad and they weren't able to go as high up as they would have liked (blue bird days in Revelstoke are far and few between). They each paid about $850 and all the guys that went came back smiling ear to ear as the experience was awesome and it was a first time for each of them in a heli. 

If you're looking for more runs per day at about 1/2 the cost checkout K3 cat skiing and Mustang Powder. We rode with K3 last year for $450 a day and it was absolutely amazing. Great guides and terrain! A VERY full day riding untracked snow. By the end of the day we were wiped out tired.

p.s. - don't bother even considering the Cat operation at the resort, where they take you is completely hike-able (and well worth the hike to save the coin)


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## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

Thanks, 

Na never really ridden deep, deep powder, but have had a couple of powder days at resorts here (Aus) and when I was in Canada last year. I don't remember having any major issues or not being able to keep up with the other guys.

Yeah Cat Skiing sounds like much better value but i really want to do the heli skiing for the experience, but i'm not going to go out on a day with crap vis.:dunno:


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

Crap visibility just means they are not going to take you into the alpine. You'll be riding at tree line and below. Where visibility should not be a problem. Without trees, heli's can't tell where the ground is, which can be a bad thing if you are in one. 

The cat operators out of Selkirks are legendary. Both Mustang and K3 are well known. The terrain they access is as good as any heli. You might want to reconsider.


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## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

And much cheaper too I'm guessing? I'll check it out, thanks


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

Like BrownSnow said, about 1/2 the cost and twice the vertical...


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## chupacabraman (Jul 30, 2009)

I live in Revelstoke. Selkirk Tangiers is a good option. They have a massive tenure (1/2 million acres i think) and have been doing it a long time. Plus convenient being right from the resorts base. Competitive prices too. I prefer cat skiing. Just as much vert, wayyy cheaper, and always seems a little more close knit and ready to rip-n-shred vs heli which seems to include more sightseeing, longer breaker, and often mellower terrain.
Mustang is one of the best cat ski operators out there. I'd like to get a group together for the Steep Chutes program sometime but it's expensive. They have incredible terrain and a ton of snow (almost all them do). Some of the other better ones include Great Northern, Retallack, Chatter Creek, Monashee Powder, Selkirk Wilderness. Many other really good ones such as Valhalla, Island Lake. K3, Red, RMR, probably not quite as good. My personal recommendation is Valhalla. I've been to a few and Valhalla has the best shredding-to-cost ratio.
Whether you choose cat or heli, most operators don't do single day trips (although a few of them do). Many have 3-5-7 days packages.
Try to get a 2-day trip. This way you save a bit, and being that you don't need to re-do your beacon training the second day, you get a couple more runs  If you can get a large enough group together, try to rent the complete snowcat/helicopter. Same abilities, the right terrain, super fun, cheaper. This is the ticket. No matter which you choose you will have a blast I will guarantee that!
When are you going? Often there are "shoulder season rates" (generally before Jan.15 and after Mar.15) If you are lucky enough to snag a day just on the outside of those dates then you are SET! Think 2nd week of Jan & 3rd week of March as the two best cat-heli skiing weeks of the season IMO.
http://canadaheliandcatski.com/
http://www.catskiing.ca


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## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

chupacabraman said:


> I live in Revelstoke. Selkirk Tangiers is a good option. They have a massive tenure (1/2 million acres i think) and have been doing it a long time. Plus convenient being right from the resorts base. Competitive prices too. I prefer cat skiing. Just as much vert, wayyy cheaper, and always seems a little more close knit and ready to rip-n-shred vs heli which seems to include more sightseeing, longer breaker, and often mellower terrain.
> Mustang is one of the best cat ski operators out there. I'd like to get a group together for the Steep Chutes program sometime but it's expensive. They have incredible terrain and a ton of snow (almost all them do). Some of the other better ones include Great Northern, Retallack, Chatter Creek, Monashee Powder, Selkirk Wilderness. Many other really good ones such as Valhalla, Island Lake. K3, Red, RMR, probably not quite as good. My personal recommendation is Valhalla. I've been to a few and Valhalla has the best shredding-to-cost ratio.
> Whether you choose cat or heli, most operators don't do single day trips (although a few of them do). Many have 3-5-7 days packages.
> Try to get a 2-day trip. This way you save a bit, and being that you don't need to re-do your beacon training the second day, you get a couple more runs  If you can get a large enough group together, try to rent the complete snowcat/helicopter. Same abilities, the right terrain, super fun, cheaper. This is the ticket. No matter which you choose you will have a blast I will guarantee that!
> ...


Thanks for your advice! Spoke to the other guys. Looks like we'll give the heli skiing a miss and go for cat skiing instead. It's just too expensive. All those options look pretty good. I'm sure none of them would be crap.

Am going to be based in banff most of feb, then heading to whistler late month. So pretty much anytime in feb we can do.


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## chupacabraman (Jul 30, 2009)

In that case I would consider K-Pow, Chatter Creek, RMR, Mustang, K3 (that's in order east to west between Kananaskis and Sicamous along hwy1)
Mustang and Chatter creek are top notch, but pricey and only multi-day. The others do aingle days (probably in the 300-400 range per person).
There is also cat skiiing near Whistler bur I do not know much about it.


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