Rush hour in Fernie in January

Have you ever been so cold that your eyelashes freeze? The wind is so cold on your face it makes your eyes water – and they try to freeze too. Your vision is framed by a haze of wispy frozen hair and when you wiggle your nostrils the crunch of frozen nose hair is almost tickly.

Welcome to Fernie mid January. It’s day two of our two-week stay, a clear blue sky day (with a bit of jetlag haziness throw in) and we’re waiting for the bus to the resort.

Two locals have already told us to wrap up warm and there’s an distinct lack of people at the bus stop.

Minus 34? Nothings going to keep us snow-deprived Brits from the mountain.

I don’t think I saw balaclavas in Vogue’s list of must-have clothing for 2008. But if the magazine’s editor had been in Fernie today, she would have launched a pull-out section in homage to face-saving wonder.

Wrapped up – without an inch of skin facing the elements – we’re ready to go.

We’ve got a guide for the morning to show us the mountain. Natalie, an instructor and guide, takes us up the Timber Bowl Express chair for some warm-up runs. There’s not another person on the lift in front or behind us. She tells us that locals and seasonaires love January – good snow and quiet slopes.

We cruise down sunny pistes – the soft corduroy as yet untouched by others today. I expected rock-hard icy conditions but the snow is lovely. Catching a lift back up I spot five skiers on one slope – must be rush hour.

A warmer day in January!

We find a few more people thawing out when we head to the Lost Boys café at the top of the Timber chair. Great cookies, muffins and hot drinks fuel us up for a few more runs.

Natalie takes us down the Currie Bowl and Heartland – a favourite with snowboarders as the trail is lined with natural hits and jumps. Freestylers have to make the most of the natural terrain here - RCR isn’t building kickers in its resorts this winter.

There is a rail park though with a range of hits that are regularly changed. To ride the park you need to sign a waiver and buy a $5 ticket (redeemable against food and drink purchases in mountain cafes and restaurants).

Fernie resort is really split into two areas. There are bowls, pistes and the White Pass lift accessed by the Timber chair. The right side of the terrain is accessible by the Elk Chair or (as Natalie shows us) a traverse from the top of the beginner’s Deer chair. There are several more lifts and a wide range of terrain in that area too, accessed by the Bear Chair and the Boomerang.

The mountain consists of 30% beginner, 40% intermediate and 30% expert terrain. There are a few green runs – really fun ones at that - but those still finding their legs might get bored after a few days on these. There are plenty of runs where you can drop off the greens on to blues to build up your confidence.

One noticeable thing about the run grading in Canada is that there’s no equivalent of the ‘red’ runs that Europe has and beginners might find some of the pitches on the blues a little steep. But there’s nothing too horrific so it’s a good mountain to try out some steeper stuff.

Snowboarders looking for varied terrain will be in heaven. Steeps, trees, off piste powder – there’s a ton of it and it's easy to get to and easy to get out of.

There are free orientation tours at 9.30am and 1pm every day to help you get your bearings and pick up few pointers from a local on the best places to go. Private guides are also available for hire.

Head to Europe any time from Christmas onwards and you’ll face busy pistes and queues – regardless of what day of the week you go. But no such afflictions affect us in Fernie mid-January. The locals and seasonaires are clearly hiding in the house, watching Simpsons reruns and waiting for the next powder dump.

Mid-week the queues (even on a powder day) were non-existent

True, it is many many degrees below zero but when you only get a couple of weeks on the mountain a year, you want to make the most of it. So piling on a few more layers to enjoy empty slopes and miniscule lift lines is a minor inconvenience.

Even though there hasn’t been snow for a few days we do manage a few powder turns. There’s a face lift above Lizard Bowl and it’d been closed for a few days. Although it wasn’t running, ski patrol opened the area and some fit folk trudged to the top to get some freshies in. We only heard about their runs that night so first thing the next morning we prepared ourselves for the hike.

Even with a bootpack track it was knackering – ever few steps we had to stop, pretending to take in the view but really to take a few desperate breaths. With screaming calves, we collapsed in a heap at the top to catch our breath before hitting the slow but fun powder for a easy turns.

We’re ready for some proper powder now and we are about to get it in abundance.

A fresh 40cms overnight on Saturday/Sunday brings the seasonaires, Calgary weekenders and locals, bleary-eyed after Australia Day, back onto the mountain. There are even queues (tiny by European standards though, nothing more than a couple of minutes) – but it’s all worth it for some play time in the fluffy stuff, even if it is tracked out in uber-quick time.

Come Monday the ‘crowds’ have gone again and we have the place to ourselves once more. With another 30cm to 40cm of snow falling every night for the next few days we have the powder week from heaven.

After a big snowfall not all areas of the resort open straight away. Many of the runs are overshadowed by steep faces above the tree line and the resort has to blast these to prevent avalanches.

It’s not a problem though – the resort is so quiet there’s fresh to be had for most of the mornings on the lowest and easiest to reach runs so there’s no need to stray too far from the base while you get your powder legs in gear.

Thursday afternoon we hear a whisper in the ever-shorting chairlift queue that Currie Bowl is open. We scurry to the top of the Bear Chair to find about 30 snowboarders and a few skiers strapping in, ready to hit the fresh snow.

”123 and Down Right only!” shows a ski patroller. “No Concussion!” She is, in fact, referring to a set of chutes which are still out of bounds, and not a head injury.

We hoon down the fluffy powder listening to the whoops and yelps of those around us enjoying the fresh conditions too.

The most epic powder session of the week takes place when Lizard Bowl opens late on Friday morning – our last day. It had been shut since the storm started several days earlier and there was waist deep snow in the bowl. Last time I took this run it was a wide traverse with several cruisy, rolling blue runs.

Stopping for a rest while hiking out of the waist-deep fresh

Now there was a board-wide, knee-high track cut by the few who had braved the run already. To drop into the bowl you could either use one of the paths already cut into the edge, or you could sink up to your ladybits into the snow to forge your own path.

Several cartwheels and a thrilling straightlining session down the bowl, I’m on the ridge at the bottom, out of breath, looking up at the slope. It’s carnage.

We could see 19 bodies buried in various ways, trying to get themselves back on their feet. Some are so tired they’ve resorted to sledging or swimming out of the snow, belly down on the snowboard like a surfer padding into the waves.

It was hilarious to watch but exhausting for those trying to get moving again. The first aid patrollers were lapping the cat track at the bottom of the bowl – I wasn’t surprised.

A few more knee-quivering runs we are totally knackered and head to the cosy bar and leather sofas of the Lizard Creek Lodge for some celebratory burgers.

We finish the day off with a few cruisy runs down Fernie’s fun blues and greens and sigh quietly as we queue for the bus, wishing we could clone the fantastic snow conditions and inject them into Europe's resorts.

A lady I met on a chairlift one day told me she’d come to Fernie for a few months back in 1982 and just didn’t want to leave. It’s that kind of place.

Ask anyone who has done a season there and they’ll tell you that the small-town, friendly atmosphere where anyone can become a local is what makes it such a great place to spend a winter – or ten.

Hearing these tales and spending a few days in town it’s easy to find yourself browsing the Fernie Real Estate magazine, dreaming about a new life if you could afford that $1.75 million timber home. Time to hit the lottery counter again this weekend then.

GETTING AROUND

Fernie Alpine Resort is about three miles up the road from downtown Fernie. There’s a shuttle bus that does the rounds downtown every half hour during the day costing $3 or $25 for ten tickets. In the evening there’s the ‘Loonie shuttle’ which costs (obviously) a dollar to get between the two areas. Look out for the bus driver with the massive beard – we think he’s the reincarnation of the Griz – the legendary mountain man who apparently summons the resort’s epic snowfall by shooting his musket into the sky.

GETT

The Griz and his lookalike bus driver (pic: Pete Calsen)

ING THERE

You can fly to Calgary, Cranbrook, Kalispell and bus and shuttle services are available from both airports. It takes just over three hours to get there from Calgary (if the weather is good), an hour and a half from Cranbrook and two hours from Kalispell.

ACCOMMODATION

Inghams and Crystal in both offer package holidays from the UK including flights to Calgary, transfers and lodging in good accommodation such as Park Place Lodge or the Best Western downtown.

Packages from the US and Canada can also be arranged through SkiFernie.com

If you’re on a tight budget try the Same Sun Hostel or the Raging Elk or if you fancy some home comforts give Wendy a ring and see if there are any rooms at Snow Valley Lodge – a heritage home which houses snowboarders for a week to a season and anything inbetween.

On the mountain there are also a large number of apartments for rent ranging from modest studios to massive swank pad timber homes. These can be booked through a range of rental agencies.

EATING

On the mountain, eateries are clustered at the base. There’s the cafeteria at the daylodge, the Griz bar, Slopeside Deli (serving coffee and snacks) and Kesleys (serving burgers, pasta etc – just be prepared for a bit of a wait at peak times) as well as hotel restaurants and other diners a little more of a walk from the lifts.

The Blue Toque at the Arts Station (pic: Pete Calsen)

In town there’s a fantastic range of independent bars and restaurants. There are special deals on every night of the week. Our favourite is the $10 for two burrito special at the El Guapo Mexican diner in Edge of the World (where you can check out the snowboard store or ride the skate ramp while you wait for a table).

Service can be a bit hit and miss in some places (especially when there’s a large group of you) but we had fantastic meals and great service at the Corner Pocket, the Blue Toque, Sawai Thai and the Curry Bowl (so good we went twice!).

DRINKING

There plenty of pubs in Fernie – mainly grouped around the main street. There are often live bands, DJs and theme nights. There are snowboards up for grabs at ladies night every week at The Pub and a chance for anyone with some musical skills to join in at the jam session at the Royal.

Fernie also has its own brewery (which you can take a tour of) and there’s a wide range of Canadian beer and wines available at local shops, bars and restaurants.

BEYOND THE BOARD

If you want a day off or have a friend or partner who doesn’t ski or snowboard, there are plenty of things to do.

Obviously there are cafes and shops to check out on the hill and in town. The snowboard, food and gift shops are  mainly centred around the main street in downtown Fernie but there are a few smaller shops up on the hill.

There’s a pool, gym and cinema (with two for one tickets available every Tuesday).

The Fernie Ghostriders (pic: Pete Calsen)

A trip to watch the Fernie Ghostriders in action in the local hockey arena is also worth making time for. Meet the locals, cheer on the team, turn your tongue blue with a Slush Puppy and boo the opposition, whether they’re any good or not.

Off mountain activities also include snowmobiling, ice-fishing, wildlife viewing (deer, elk, moose, wolves, eagles and wild turkies), dog-sledding tours and snowshoeing tours by day and night.

If you’re feeling a bit achey there are plenty of places to have a massage. We enjoyed pamper sessions at the Lizard Creek Lodge spa – complete with fluffy robes and profiteroles. We didn’t want to leave!

STUFF FOR THE LITLE UNS

Day childcare is available for kids 19 months and above. Kids this young won’t spend all day on the hill but they’ll get a chance to try out skis and play in the snow play park under supervision. Snowboarding lessons are available for kids aged five and upwards.

The resort also holds supervised activity and craft nights for children aged 6 to 12 on Wednesday and Saturday evenings which include dinner – giving you a chance to get some quiet time.

For non-mountain days there are regular arts and crafts sessions for kids at the Arts Station. The Ready Paint Fire ceramic studio is also a fun place for bad weather days. Both kids and adults can get creative, painting a range of ceramics to take home and keep.

LESSONS AND COURSES

The resort offers a wide range of single and multi-day group and private lessons for all levels. Visit www.skifernie.com for full details of what’s available.

Taster sessions can be a good way to try out skiing and snowboarding for the first time – a single payment gets you rental, limited lift pass and a group lesson for $69 for a half day and $89 for a full day.

If you fancy something a bit different the resort also runs cross country skiing and telemark lessons and ‘Steep and Deep’ courses.

Female skiers there for an extended period will enjoy the You Go Girl course which offers a series of weekly half day group classes followed by a leisurely lunch at Lizard Creek (it's a seriously civilised way to improve your skills!).

You can also head to the resort for an two week improvers camp which includes instruction and coaching to develop your riding abilities. For women-only courses try Powder Girl and for mixed camps try Powder Trip or Non Stop Snowboard.

A Fernie Wilderness Adventures cat

BIG THRILLS

Fernie is a fantastic place to try out catboarding.  It’s much cheaper than heliboarding and gives you a chance to experience backcountry untracked powder in a small group.

Try Fernie Wilderness Adventures for a day trip and for longer experiences check out Island Lake Lodge or Powder Cowboy. Powder Cowboy also a couple of women-only trips each season, where even the cat drivers and guides are female.

INSTRUCTOR COURSES

Several companies offer the chance to develop your ski or snowboard instructor skills and take the exams that enable you to teach at resorts around the world.

The courses range in length from two to about 11 weeks and usually include good quality accommodation, meals, first aid training and avalanche awareness.

Try Powder Trip and Non Stop Snowboard.