{"id":16479,"date":"2016-09-30T10:16:18","date_gmt":"2016-09-30T16:16:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kickinghorseresort.com\/?p=16479"},"modified":"2016-10-12T14:26:03","modified_gmt":"2016-10-12T20:26:03","slug":"american-values-land-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kickinghorseresort.com\/blog\/american-values-land-canada\/","title":{"rendered":"American Values in the land of Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"

If Americans have a cultural stereotype about Canada<\/strong><\/em>, it\u2019s that we\u2019re a land of ice and snow inhabited by \u201cEskimos\u201d and policed by red-coated Mounties on horseback. (The Mounties drive in police cars and they have the same tools as cops in America\u2026 and the Eskimos, well, they are actually called Inuit, and live much closer to the North Pole).<\/p>\n

But Canadians certainly do celebrate winter, and of course, skiing and snowboarding. Our resorts \u2013 though perhaps not quite as familiar or accessible as Vail or Tahoe \u2014 compare favourably in every way. Whistler, of course, is the most widely-known\u2014the resort hosted the 2010 Winter Games alpine skiing events\u2014and it\u2019s continuously ranked highly amongst the (mostly) American readers in SKI Magazine\u2019s annual resort poll. And Banff\/Lake Louise are on the radar map\u2014though most Americans (like Canadians) visit there in the summer months.<\/p>\n

Resorts of the Canadian Rockies believes that the best discoveries in skiing are the unexpected ones\u2014and, like siblings, their three resorts\u2014namely, Fernie Alpine Resort<\/a>, Kimberley Alpine Resort<\/a>, and Kicking Horse Mountain Resort<\/a>\u2014offer a rootsy, authentic Canadian ambiance that makes each of them worth visiting\u2014even on one trip.<\/p>\n

Perched above a historic mining town that still relies on nearby natural resources, FERNIE ALPINE RESORT is all about powder and adventure. Poking skyward like a giant baseball mitt, the rugged Lizard range hauls in over 35 feet of legendary Rocky Mountain fluff annually and attracts freeriders from all over the world. If you\u2019re lucky, you\u2019ll be in town during the raucous Griz Days celebration that celebrates the mythic mountain man who makes it snow. Independent \u201cnon-chain\u201d stores and restaurants \u00a0thrive in the red-brick building main street of historic Fernie, once named the \u201cCoolest Town in North America\u201d by Rolling Stone<\/em> magazine. Indeed, many Americans who visit here comment on how much it\u2019s \u201clike Telluride or Aspen used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Legendary Terrain at Fernie Alpine Resort<\/p><\/div>\n

KICKING HORSE MOUNTAIN RESORT west of Golden is a true \u201cbig mountain\u201d experience, with 1,260 metres (4,133 feet) of vertical\u2014fourth-highest in North America. Compared by those in the know to American resorts like Jackson Hole and Squaw Valley, Kicking Horse\u00a0boasts 121 runs, four alpine bowls and 85 inbound chutes spread across 2,800+ acres of skiable terrain. No stay at Kicking Horse is complete without a visit to Canada\u2019s most elevated restaurant: Eagle\u2019s Eye Restaurant, a mountain-top, fine-dining experience. Four mountain ranges come together to create a mountain panorama that\u2019s second to none.<\/p>\n

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Big Mountain Experience at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort<\/p><\/div>\n

Nestled in the majestic Purcell Mountains in BC\u2019s southeastern corner, KIMBERLEY ALPINE RESORT receives more hours of sunshine than any other resort in the province. Its 80 runs range from open glades to gentle cruisers to thigh-burning bump runs. Dive into the Easter Bowl on the mountain’s backside or enjoy Kimberley’s front side cruising.\u00a0 Kimberley even offers Canada\u2019s longest night skiing\/riding terrain. Stay slope-side and ski from your door in the morning or enjoy the charming Bavarian-themed town just down the hill. Kimberley compares favourably to the family friendly vibe found at Snowmass, Keystone, or The Canyons\u2014with a superb ski school and perhaps the most high-value vacation packages in North America.<\/p>\n

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Sunny Kimberley Alpine Resort<\/p><\/div>\n

Thanks to Canada\u2019s devalued currency, Americans considering a ski vacation north of the 49th<\/sup> parallel receive a thirty percent discount, before they even start shopping for the best deals of lifts, accommodation, and lessons. \u00a0\u201cOur close proximity to the United States means that Fernie and Kimberley have always had visits from keen skiers in border states\u2014folks who live in Whitefish, Kalispell, Sandpoint, and Spokane,\u201d says \u201cPowder Matt\u201d Mosteller, spokesperson for the Resorts of the Canadian Rockies. \u00a0Holidays at Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year\u2019s, Martin Luther King Day, President\u2019s Week and even Easter attract skiers and riders from a wider net, including Seattle, the Bay Area, Los Angeles and even major Midwestern and eastern cities.<\/p>\n

And there are a few other differences. \u00a0Take money, for example. Canadians use the same dollars and cents system that Americans have, but your wallet won\u2019t be budging with one-dollar bills if you ask for change for a five. Canadians have \u201cloonie\u201d and \u201ctoonie\u201d one-dollar and two dollar coins. Different denominations of dollars ($5, $10, $20, $50 and $100) are in different colours (and some words, such as \u2018colour\u2019 have an extra \u2018u\u2019 in them \u2013 don\u2019t ask.) Gas (and all liquids) are priced in liters – $1.20 per liter equals about $4.00 per gallon of gasoline.<\/p>\n

Snow depth is measured in centimeters (doesn\u2019t\u00a0 \u201cthirty centimeters\u201d sound deeper than \u201celeven inches\u201d?). And the outside temperature is in degrees Celsius. Don\u2019t freak out if the temperature is minus 5, that\u2019s only 23 degrees Fahrenheit, perfect skiing temperature.<\/p>\n

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Oddly, some things are the same. If you ask the bartender for a pint of beer, he\u2019ll pour you a 12 ounce glass. And if you need anything else, just ask! To dispel another myth\u2014not all of us speak French, (and we actually say \u2018a-bout\u2019, not \u2018a-boot).\u2019<\/p>\n

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Welcome to Canada, partner. Your powder is waiting.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Words: Steven Threndyle<\/em>
\nPhotos: Raven Eye Photography, Vince Mo, Brooke Wilson, Abbydell Photography<\/em><\/p>\n

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