Returning to Red Mountain Ski Resort was ski down memory lane

 by Keith and Heather Nicol

Michael on top of Granite Mtn

   In late February, 2018 my son and I took a road trip along the Powder Highway to check out Red Mountain and do some cat skiing at Valhalla Powdercats. It had been roughly 50 years since I had skied at Red Mountain and it certainly has changed. When we skied there in 1968 there was a single chair running up Red Mountain and a double extending to the top of Granite Mountain.  There was also a poma lift on the Red Mountain side.  We were there the winter that Nancy Greene won Olympic Gold and Silver at the Grenoble Olympics in 1968 and since Nancy’s home mountain was Red Mountain there was a buzz in the air. There was also a World Cup race in the spring of 1968 at Red Mountain and I recall Jean Claude Killy arrived in a helicopter took his runs and then took off again. Nancy Greene won the Giant Slalom race at Red Mountain before 7000 cheering fans and this was the first World Cup race to be held in Canada!!

Michael checking out the powder on the T bar slope

   Fast forward to the winter of 2018 and it was time to take a return trip to Red Mountain and show my son Michael where we used to ski 50 years ago on wooden skis with screw edges with bear trap non releasable bindings. When we arrived on Saturday, Feb 24 it was sunny and the lift lines were stretched out well before the chairlifts started turning.  We arrived just after 9:00 am and after getting our tickets we opted for the shortest lift line which was at the T bar. That turned out to be a good choice since we had several runs through nice powder snow that had fallen in the last 48 hours. All with no lineups!  After 4 laps on the t-bars we noted that the lift line for the Red Mountain chairlift had diminished so we did several runs on it before turning our attention to Granite and Grey Mountain. There are now 4 ski lifts on this side – 3 on Granite Mountain and 1 on Grey Mountain which was a big change from 50 years ago. We found the snow less deep on this side and mostly skied out and after a few runs here exploring this area we returned to Red Mountain and took a final few runs down the face of Red. This is where the Giant Slalom was set that Nancy Greene raced on and it certainly has not gotten any less challenging.  I can`t imagine skiing it in the equipment of the day back in 1968. We had a post ski beer in ``Rafters`` which has been named one of the best ski bars in Canada by Ski Canada Magazine.  There is a ton of terrain at Red Mountain and we plan to check more of it out on our next visit. For more information see: http://www.redresort.com/   

We found the best snow in the T bar slope

A day with Valhalla Powder Cats reminded us what powder skiing is all about

by Keith and Heather Nicol

Michael (left) and Keith in front of the cat

     On February 25, 2018 son Michael and I had booked a day with Valhalla Powdercats located at South Slocan near Castlegar in B.C.’s  West Kootenays.  We arrived at 7:30 am at their base station where we picked up our avi gear, signed waivers and met our guides for the day. By 8:00 am 24 skiers plus guides were heading out in the Valhalla “Superbus” for the 45 minute drive to the staging area where we boarded 2 snowcats for our day in the rugged Selkirk Mountains.  Thirty minutes later we were outside doing avalanche drills so that we could do a self rescue if necessary. Our head guide for the day was Josh Slootweg who did a fine job of telling what to do at the top of each run and mentioned that any us that wanted a “sportier line” could veer left or right of his tracks to get some air or drop down a steeper slope . Since most of our group were dentists from Bellingham, Washington in their 60’s those “sportier lines” remanded intact!  Our tail guide was Keegan Murphy and he stayed back to help anyone who had lost a ski or accidently made it in to a tree well. “Tree wells are places to avoid and rarely a day goes by that we don’t get someone out so stay with your buddy and don’t lose sight of them when we ski the trees”.  Good advice.

Michel sends up a cloud of powder

     Over all we did 9 runs with typical vertical drops of around 1000-1200 feet. Most of our runs were on north facing runs where the snow was amazingly deep and the terrain steep. This combination meant that we often had to pull to one side to let the loose snow avalanches carry on past us.  The snow on these north slopes was typically knee to waist deep which keep our speed down on the steep slopes. Both Michael and I couldn’t remember when we last skied snow this light and deep. Amazing! 

Da Bench gave us the longest run of the day

 At one point we ventured on to a south facing slope and were immediately into a just buried sun crust which challenged our skiing. “Stick to the trees” Josh told us “although the open slopes are inviting they tend to have the worst crust”. More good advice!  Our longest run of the day was while we had lunch in the cat and it proved to be a real winner in terms of snow. Da Bench offered up 2600 feet of vertical and a great variety of terrain.  One of our favourite runs was Rapture to Barracuda slide path where we had close to 1800 feet of great snow.  Here is a video of some our day- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDRNq8YPI4M   Thanks to Josh and Keegan for a great day and for more information check out: https://www.valhallapow.com/   

Keith enjoying the deepest snow he has skied in years.

 

Looking for spawning herring on Denman Island

by Keith and Heather Nicol

Heather looking for herring action at Fillongley Park

Saturday, March 3 dawned sunny and calm – a rarity this winter in the Comox Valley.  We knew that this is herring season so we decided to head to Denman Island to check it out. Denman Island is a short 10 minute ferry ride so once we had made the decision to go , we quickly made a lunch, checked the ferry schedule and made the 11:00 am ferry with 15 minutes to spare. We had heard that the area around Fillongley Park was a good spot to view the frenzy that comes when the herring spawn.  Gulls, eagles, seals and sea lions all take advantage of this huge natural buffet that lasts for a short time in late February and early March.  The herring spawn in such large numbers that they colour the water green with the milt from the males. In fact the Hornby and Denman Island Visitor Guide for 2016-17 features an aerial view of this amazing natural phenomenon on their front cover. When we arrived at Fillongley Park we could see lots of gulls offshore and the distinctive barking of sea lions but when we went to the tide line we saw no spawn in the water. Perhaps they were just getting ready. 

Overlooking Chrome Island Lighthouse from our lunch spot

 From there we headed for Boyle Point Provincial Park to do our favourite hike on Denman Island which leads to an elevated view of Chrome Island Lighthouse. Along the way the road winds along the water and we kept our eye out for bird and sea lion activity just offshore but unfortunately didn’t see anything. The trail is easy walking and is about 1 km (one way) so is doable by a wide range of people.  We saw about 15 people doing the trail including a couple of families and the real highlight was looking down on an eagle’s nest at the trail’s end. Two eagles were in the tree (three at times) and since the terrain is steep you can virtually look right down into the nest. There were several photographers snapping picture after picture. With the March sun beating down and we had a perfect lunch seated on a bench overlooking Chrome Island Lighthouse.  Idyllic!  The view of the eagle’s nest is easy to find since you simply take a side trail to the right for 10 or so meters after you reach the end of the trail. Bring binoculars and a camera! If readers do see evidence of the 2018 herring run in the Comox area let us through the comments section below. It should be any day now. 

The lower eagle in the middle is on the next

Snorkeling with Green Sea Turtles in Maui

by Keith and Heather Nicol

       Maui offers a variety of snorkeling opportunities and on a recent trip we had a chance to swim with Green Sea Turtles.  We were based in Kihei so most of the places we explored were near this location. Green Sea Turtles that we saw ranged in size from 60 cm to over a meter is size. Although these turtles are awkward on land they are remarkably graceful in the water. The ones we saw swam slowly although apparently can swim over 50 km/hr when they have to. They can also hold their breath for up long periods of time and if resting it may be along as 6-7 hours. These turtles come to shore sporadically to rest and to lay their eggs. 

Green Sea Turtles make for a memorable snorkeling experience

     We had the most success along the shore between Polo Beach and Wailea Beach.  You can base yourself on either beach and by swimming along the rocky shore between these 2 beaches you may have the luck that we did by seeing several large Green Sea Turtles just off shore. Be aware of waves and wind along this shore since once you commit to this swim there are no easy exits since the shore line is rough with jagged lava along the entire route.  We also saw commercial snorkeling vessels using this area so this suggests this area is particularly good for viewing these turtles. 

We had the most luck spotting turtles near Wailea Beach

   We also had luck seeing turtles at Mokapu-Ulua Beach and this area would suit snorkelers with less experience since the reefs are much closer to the beach. In all cases remember that these turtles are endangered and they should not be touched or harassed. If you don’t snorkel you can often see turtles hauled out on the beach at Ho’okipa Park in the late afternoon. Snorkeling with turtles was certainly one of big highlights of our recent trip to Maui. For a video of swimming with turtles click: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmzYpoOV3Qk

Turtles hauled out at Ko'okipa Beach Park

On Line Instruction - A new way to improve any aspect of your cross country skiing

By Keith and Heather Nicol

      The best way to learn a sport is to have individual instruction by someone who has been trained to look for areas of improvement and then come up with drill or exercises to build the skills that are lacking.  I usually teach cross country skiing at a few different areas in B.C. in the winter but through my you tube channel  (https://www.youtube.com/user/k2nicol) get a number of requests for feedback on people’s skiing. These skiers live in various places in North America and beyond, often where they may not have regular access to good ski instruction. 

Want to glide longer when striding?

Improve your skating

     Often with lessons or clinics, skiers are presented with a variety of techniques that they try to learn in a short period of time. Usually change is slow and unless the skier comes back periodically for lessons through the winter they will invariably revert to their original ski errors once they leave the lesson.  Even if they practice the areas they need to improve , without guided feedback they often won’t know if they are improving or not. 

     With my new on line instructional programme the skier shoots video (using their smart phone or tablet) of the techniques that they would like to improve and then emails these to me for analysis. I review the video and provide video drills and other written feedback for how they can improve. A week or 2 later after more practice they send off some more examples of their skiing for more feedback. Then gradually over time they can begin to improve their skiing through this on line programme of feedback throughout the ski season. If you are interested in learning various aspects of cross country skiing from classic to skating to downhill technique including telemark skiing – contact Keith Nicol for information on how to sign up for this on line ski programme  and current pricing at k2nicol@gmail.com  Keith Nicol holds Canada's highest ranking in both as a cross country and telemark instructor and has taught 1000's of skiers since 1985. He has taught at Supercamp at Silver Star Ski Resort and Sovereign Lake in BC's  Interior for many years and also represented Canada at 4 Interski events.He was the CANSI Technical Board member for the Atlantic Provinces for many years.

Improve your ability on corners and hills