BEERFEST ON THE MOVE
Mount Washington Alpine Resort is looking at moving the annual Beer Festival from Raven Lodge, due to the Lodge’s popularity. “We’re looking at a new venue for the Beer Fest. Raven is so popular for weddings, it’s booked for the weekend that we usually have Beer Fest,” General Manager Peter Gibson said. The Resort hosted 40 weddings this past spring and summer, with the bulk of them booked before March.
EAGLEVIEW BISTRO PATIO SLATED FOR SUMMER 2018
The Eagle View Bistro had a successful first winter, after opening in time for the 2016-17 winter season. Mount Washington has decided to hold off on building the Bistro’s outdoor patio, although the plans are all drawn up. They will look at building the patio next summer.
DON TAKES A SHARPE TURN TO THE INTERIOR
Don Sharpe, who left his post as Mount Washington Resort Director of Business Operations earlier this year, and his wife Chantal have moved to the Agassiz area of B.C. After 17 years at Mount Washington, Sharpe is now working with Holiday Trails Resort, which owns Manning Park as well as mobile home parks and waterslides on the way to Hope, B.C. Sharpe is now the Vice-President, Resort Operations and Marketing, for Holiday Trails Resorts and Manning Park Resort.
SHARPE FAMILY LEGACY LIVES ON
The Sharpe family may have moved on from Mount Washington, but their legacy lives on. Cassie and Darcy Sharpe, who both cut their teeth in their respective snowsports at Mount Washington, have both been invited to the ESPN Winter X Games in Aspen, Colo., Jan. 25 – 28, 2018.
SKI PATROL HONES THEIR SKILLS FOR 2017/18
The Mount Washington Ski Patrol Association took over Raven Lodge the first weekend of November for their pre-season skills weekend. Patrollers spent the day inside on the Saturday learning, practicing and assessing skills, then spent the Sunday outdoors in the snow, working on their outdoor skills.
INVESTORS GROUP SUPPORTS VISAS
Investors Group has donated $500 to the Vancouver Island Society for Adaptive Snowsports (VISAS) to help the non-profit organization introduce people with disabilities enjoy snowsports. One of their own employees, Chris Nagle,the division director of Investors Group, is an adaptive snowsports instructor with the Nordic division of VISAS.
During the winter weekends, Nagle volunteers his time to provide opportunities for people with disabilities to learn Nordic skiing. “It’s a chance to give back and share my love of skiing with the community,” says Nagle, as he explains what drives him to continue to volunteer his time for teaching adaptive snowsports. “It’s so rewarding seeing people get out on snow. We have many students who wouldn’t have that opportunity without this program.” Nagle explains.
VISAS runs Nordic lessons five days a week, and alpine lessons seven days a week throughout the winter season. Students have the opportunity to try sitskiing, downhill skiing, cross-country skiing or snowboarding.
Donations such as this $500 cheque are used to purchase equipment, maintain operations and to subsidize the costs for students to experience adaptive snowsports at Mount Washington.
ROYAL LEPAGE SNOW TO SURF SETS DATE FOR 2018 RACE
The first snow of the 2017-18 winter season had barely fallen and the Royal LePage Snow to Surf Relay announced it would stage the 36th running of Canada’s oldest multi-sport relay on April 29, 2018. Registrations for the event, which combine alpine and Nordic skiing, running, mountain biking, kayaking, road cycling and canoeing opened online on Dec. 1. Find out more at www.snowtosurf.com.
NEW GROUP SHELTER AT CROTEAU LAKE
A permanent group shelter at Croteau Lake in Strathcona Provincial Park will provide safe, dry, versatile activity space for larger groups and will complement a newly built group site, thanks to a $30,000 grant from Island Coastal Economic Trust.
The facility will be a hard-sided yurt with a metal roof to accommodate the park’s heavy winter snow loads, and will be large enough to provide shelter for group activities of up to 25 people – but not overnight accommodation at this time.
The Strathcona Wilderness Institute is driving the project (with help from BC Parks, Nyrstar Mine and community donors), which will cost $61,000 in total.
“Hiking – particularly in the backcountry – is a growing tourism market, and this yurt will make it easier and safer for groups and newer hikers to access the spectacular mountains, valleys and lakes in this part of Strathcona Provincial Park,” said Judy Norbury, Strathcona Wilderness Institute Society chairperson.
The group shelter, which complements the soon-to-be-built Croteau Lake group campsite, will help to increase the number of out-of-region visitors choosing Strathcona Park for all or part of their trip.
Data collected by the SWI over the past three years shows that more than one-third of visitors to the park’s Paradise Meadows Trailhead were from outside the Vancouver Island region, and those numbers are consistent with statistics from BC Parks, the Alpine Club of Canada and other backcountry operators.
The site was chosen due to its historic use as a lodge and campsite by pioneer Eugene Croteau in the early years of Strathcona Park.
Groups will be able to reserve the site, which should be ready for use by summer 2018.
To learn more about the construction of the yurt go to www.oneofakindcw.com/current-projects/alpine-yurt/