Warren Miller Holds Court at Castle Mountain
By Quintin Winks (2006)Castle is as counter-culture as the roots of snowboarding and a haven of steep and deep. Now, it's blossoming. Just the right mix for a Warren Miller film.
In the spring of 2006, the legendary ski and snowboard moviemaker's film crew came to Castle Mountain to see what the rumours were about. What they found was a gravel car park, two chairlifts and incredible terrain.
While the mega-resorts boast of high-speed quads and organic options at the mid-mountain restaurant, Castle fires up its two double chairs and gives riders access to some of the deepest snow and gnarliest terrain in Western Canada.
But you’d be forgiven for never having heard of it.
Without a huge corporate marketing machine, it attracts riders mostly by word of mouth. The result is an often-vacant parking lot, especially midweek, and fresh tracks long after the last storm.
Go for Powder
“Once I was up there my jaw just dropped,” says Willi Vogl, president of Warren Miller Entertainment Canada. “The fall lines, the steepness…if you're a freerider, you can't miss this place. I can’t emphasize enough that if you’re into powder, this is the place to go.”
Castle Mountain is tucked into the southwest corner of Alberta, two and a half hours southwest of the international gateway city of Calgary, which means it gets the same epic snow dumps that hammer British Columbia’s southern mountain ranges. In February 2006, Castle got nearly 1.5 metres (4.5 feet) of snow in less than a week.
When the snow’s that good, the chutes and cliff bands come alive as hard-core boarders and skiers throw down huge air.
Given the mountain’s underground status among snowsport enthusiasts, it is perhaps fitting that just one T-bar and a pair of rustic double chairs accesses it all. Where big resorts would likely waste no time in installing high-speed lifts, Andrew Rusynyk, Castle's director of marketing and snowsports, sees the limited capacity as a blessing in disguise.
“There may be occasional lineups, but people still get fresh tracks at 3:30 p.m.,” he says.
The promise of fresh tracks all day long, coupled with the cheapest lift tickets around-about $50 ($44 U.S.) a day, makes Castle the mountain of choice for those in the know.
But even on the busiest day in the mountain’s history, when some 4,000 people came to ski and ride, the lineups were only about 10 minutes long, says Pete Hodgson, an 18 year-old resident who built a gap jump for the Warren Miller crew.
“Castle is a pretty sick hill,” he continues. “It’s about the steeps and how everyone talks it up. They come down for the weekend and for the rest of the week they’re like ‘yeah, Castle was sick.’ Everyone talks about it.”
In an effort to make the great snow more accessible to families and beginners, Castle is undergoing an expansion through the summer of 2006. By next season a new triple chair will provide access to neighbouring Mount Haig, on which the Warren Miller crew logged a first descent.
“We've already cut the runs and cleared the debris,” says Rusynyk.
“The runs we cut are all novice and intermediate terrain and it still gives us 1,000 acres (404 hectares) for cat-skiing and boarding. For the backcountry riders, it gets them much closer to the steeps.”
Alberta’s Only Ski-in Ski-Out Ski Resort
Castle is Alberta’s only ski mountain outside a national park. Unencumbered by park restrictions, the mountain has room to grow into a cat-skiing, snow making and possibly heli-hiking Mecca during the summer. There will also be 40 new townhouses and fourplexes ready for the 2006/07 season.
“We will have the only privately-owned, ski-in, ski-out residences in Alberta,” says Rusynyk.
“What we’re trying to do is take this mountain that's customized to skiing and boarding enthusiasts and make it so they can come here more often with the wife and family and the less experienced buddy,” he continues.
For those just coming for the night, or perhaps for the week, Castle also has a new hotel and hostel. The rooms are immaculate, bright and comfortable. The T-Bar pub across the parking rightfully boasts of serving some of the best mouthwatering thin-crust pizza this side of the Rocky Mountains. The staff is known for being friendly.
Castle the “Little Jewel of the South”
“We're not presenting Castle as one of those big resorts,” says Klaus Roth, Travel Alberta Portfolio Manager, Americas. “This is a little jewel of the south. We are convinced this is the right resort for the international skier who is looking for new and exciting places to ski.”
David Basterrechea is a professional snowboarder from Idaho whose clothing sponsor asked him to ride at Castle for the Warren Miller film. Basterrechea says he's never been to Castle before, or even heard of it, but admits he’s impressed.
“Castle fits more in the realm of Fernie and Mt. Baker (in Washington State), the kind of places that hard-core people go to ride powder,” he says. “The people here are great. They’re super nice, down to earth and you can tell they love to ski. And I like the take-your-shoes-off policy at the hotel. It's just like home.”
The combination of positive atmosphere, warm and friendly locals and no-nonsense skiing also resonated with Willi Vogl and his film crew.
“It's probably one of the most unique areas I've been since I was a little kid,” says Vogl. “This is a real local family mountain. No glitz, great accommodations and unbelievable food.”
