 Ski Jasper Alberta News
Silver Star and Big White 2005/06 Season
Silver Woods
Silver Woods is a fantastic area, increasing the front side terrain by 54%. It’s perfect for families, with five intermediate runs, two advanced runs, and a beginner run, loads of glade “tree islands,” all serviced by an express quad lift.
The northwest facing slopes of Silver Woods overlook the majestic Monashee Mountains and the Vance Creek side of Silver Star. The new Silver Woods lift tops-out on the Roller Coaster Trail, which has been extended to 130 meters (429 feet) below the base of the Comet Express. The new express quad lift is 340 meters (1,200 feet) in length, and whisks skiers and boarders to the top in less than five minutes. From the top of the lift you will be able to return back to the village or to your accommodation in the Knoll area.
The ski experience in Silver Woods is amazing. Thick, full, pine trees covered in a fresh layer of dry, Okanagan powder snow line the runs. The five intermediate runs are wide, long rolling cruisers that have been summer groomed and smoothed to perfection making it ideal for early-season skiing. Silver Star’s Olympic-caliber grooming team buffs the slopes each night with state-of-the-art Bombardier snowcats.
If you like to ski through the trees in the forest, the glade skiing experience in Silver Woods is exceptional. The skilled trail building crew hand selected which pine trees in all five glade areas were to remain standing. It was based on the size, age and position of the tree on the fall line; to make for the best glade skiing you could ever imagine.
Snowbird Lodge
Also new this season is the luxurious Snowbird Lodge. This five-star accommodation is located at the end of the village closest to the slopes. Each of the well-appointed 54 units is decorated with rich cherry wood cabinets and granite counter tops; heated tile floors refine the experience. Snowbird Lodge has some of the most stunning views on the mountain.
TELUS Park
Silver Star’s TELUS Park offers something for all riders and skiers: from small lanes with fat boxes to learn to slide on and mini-hits to learn how to catch your first air, to our large park lane with kinked rails. For our advanced riders, TELUS Park features long boxes and killer s-rails coupled with large hits.
New at Big White
As Big White continues to grow, so does the infrastructure on-mountain. The summer grooming program continues with a concentration on the Gem Lake area and in TELUS Park. The six new runs at Gem Lake are being worked over. There is an extensive slope upgrade program for the entire Gem Lake area. At least 300,000 cubic meters of organic fill (that’s 30,000 rock-truck loads), are currently being moved onto a number of runs in the Gem Lake are including Blue Saphire, Black Out, Kalinas Rainbow, Blue Ribbon, Black Jack, and more. This will greatly improve the early season conditions in Gem Lake. A 65,000,000 gallon lake has been created to store more water for early-season snow making in TELUS Park. That means that snow features in the terrain park and the super-pipe will open earlier with more snow. TELUS Park will also see some slope maintenance and continued tweaks of the features in the park.
Season pass holders will appreciate the new 350-spot parking lot adjacent to the Black Forest Express Lift; and we’re making it easier for families to get from their accommodation to the Village and Happy Valley at night with over 1,130 meters (3,700 feet) of lit paths being built. There are two new paths; the first leading from Sundance Resort to the White Crystal Inn and the other lit path leading from the village center down to Happy Valley area.
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