Misplaced Pages

#870129

88-447: Panorama was founded in 1962 by Fritz Zehnder of Invermere and Guy Messerli of Switzerland , and some friends. The original facilities consisted of a warming hut, parking lot, and single rope tow , running on a V8 , which ran transported users up the bottom of a ski run now known as "Old Timer". The area took its name from a nearby hiking area called the "Panorama Plateau". In 1964, a platter , purchased from nearby Sunshine Village ,

176-611: A Ramsar-designated site. Located in the Rocky Mountain Trench , Invermere is 17.5 kilometres (10.9 mi) from Kootenay National Park , and is near the Purcell Wilderness Conservancy . Invermere's climate is characterized by warm summers and cool winters. The Rocky Mountains to the east shield Invermere from the Arctic air in winter, although extreme cold spells do occur on occasion. Spring arrives earlier than on

264-764: A "pulse gondola", was installed a for use as a people mover. In 2001, in bounds backcountry style terrain was added, named Taynton Bowl. In 2003, the Horizon double chair and Champagne T-Bar were replaced by the Champagne Express, and the Summit T-Bar was replaced by the Summit Quad. In 2008, the Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup returned to the resort with Giant Slalom and Slalom. Over the years, various real estate developments and accommodation facilities were added to

352-577: A Poma triple chairlift from the closed Pikes Peak ski area in Colorado. Although not as high as Seventh Heaven, this lift opened up Whistler Mountain's alpine terrain, and allowed access to the Harmony Bowl area. The new terrain made Whistler the largest alpine ski area in North America. Skiers could buy a Blackcomb pass, a Whistler pass, or a Dual Mountain pass. Locals loved when tourists would ask "Where

440-491: A conference centre in 1985. They expanded the ski hill, with the construction of the current Toby and Sunbird Chairs in 1980, snowmaking facilities in 1983, and Champagne T-Bar in 1984. The T-Bar was built, in part, to facilitate hosting the World Cup in 1985 . In 1988, the original wooden T-Bar was replaced by the current Mile 1 Express quad chair. In 1993, the hill was purchased by Intrawest . Intrawest brought fresh capital to

528-497: A direct connection between the Roundhouse on Whistler and Rendezvous on Blackcomb. Peak-to-Peak opened for the first time on December 12, 2008, but low snowfall meant it was rockbound at the time. The first summer operation day was June 6, 2009. As Whistler Blackcomb continued to win awards – eight consecutive by 2000 – the resort formed the basis of a renewed Olympics bid, this time for the 2010 Winter Olympics . Calgary also bid for

616-463: A double chairlift to the alpine tree line (the Red Chair), and two T-bars, all provided by GMD Mueller . In addition, a day lodge was constructed and six ski runs cut into the hill. Whistler officially opened for skiing for the first time on January 15, 1966. The new mountain won instant acclaim for its vertical drop, good snow conditions, and huge alpine area. The only problem at the time was the road, it

704-627: A high-speed quad. The original Peak Chair was renamed Franz's Chair and moved parallel to Big Red with a return station approximately halfway up Big Red's lift line. Franz's runs primarily in early and late season, when lower altitudes are not well covered. In 1999, the Black Chair was replaced with a high speed quad, the Garbanzo Express, running on a longer alignment starting next to the Whistler Village Gondola's midstation that eliminated

792-730: A lift of its kind in the world at 3.02 km (1.88 mi) while also having the highest ground clearance for a lift of its kind, 436 m (1,430 ft) above the valley floor. Whistler Village, which is part of the Resort Municipality of Whistler, a geo-political entity not directly associated with the resort company's operation, is situated at the base of the Whistler Mountain Village Gondola and Blackcomb Excalibur Gondola. The village incorporates community services, shops, entertainment venues, restaurants, bars, hotels, condominiums and vacation properties. The village

880-627: A major build-out on Whistler. Following a deadly accident on Quicksilver in December 1995, all three of Whistler's Yan high speed quads were replaced. A new Creekside Gondola was constructed by Poma for the 1996-1997 season to replace Quicksilver. In 1997, Doppelmayr constructed new high speed quads to replace the Redline and Greenline chairs, respectively named the Big Red Express and Emerald Express. These lifts received new terminals and chairs, but reused

968-462: A narrow gravel road from Vancouver. Electricity arrived the same year with the installation of a substation along the lines from Bridge River . Everything was in place, and the Alta area became a hive of development. GODA made a bid for the 1972 Winter Olympics , but Banff won again and eventually lost to Japan. By the fall of 1965 the ski area featured a four-person gondola to the mountain's mid-station,

SECTION 10

#1732852047871

1056-712: A new ski resort. He met with the COA and convinced them to look further north in the London Mountain area, "And they were impressed." Encouraged by their positive reviews, Wilhelmsen organized the Garibaldi Olympic Development Association (GODA) to make a formal bid. At this time there was no road, no electricity, and no piped water or sewer in Alta Lake. Their bid for the Olympics was unsurprisingly rejected, and

1144-659: A population density of 364.4/km (943.7/sq mi) in 2021. According to the 2021 census , religious groups in Invermere included: The annual Invermere MusicFest takes place on the Pynelogs greenspace for one weekend every August. The two-day Festival attracts hundreds of people each day and delivers a high caliber of Canadian and international musical talent, including The Dead South and Lindi Ortega in 2018. The Columbia Valley Rockies play in Invermere. Former New York Islanders and University of Denver goaltender Wade Dubielewicz

1232-647: A row. The gravel road was paved to Whistler in 1966, and on to Pemberton in 1969. The Blue and Green chairlifts were added in 1970, providing access to additional terrain. In 1972 these were joined by the Olive and Orange chairlifts. A parallel lift to the Green Chair to alleviate crowds came in 1974, and the Little Red Chair came in 1978. The Roundhouse, an on-mountain lodge and restaurant, was completed in 1980. This new lodge provided respite for cold skiers who had survived

1320-462: A site on Diamond Head just north of Squamish , which was already developed to the extent of a single chairlift. However, they concluded that the area simply couldn't be developed properly, "it just wasn't the right terrain for a world-class resort." Franz Wilhelmsen, a local businessman who had married into the Seagram family , had already come to the same conclusions when he had been scouting areas for

1408-451: A vast area of intermediate-difficulty terrain to the left of Solar Coaster and below Jersey Cream that was previously neglected and under-utilized, because skiers who traveled those slopes frequently had to go all the way to the bottom of the mountain, which was over-skied and icy. This competition had driven development of the two mountains at a rate no other resorts could come close to matching. In 1992, Snow Country Magazine voted Whistler

1496-430: A well known developer, to help them. Schaeffler proved as enthusiastic about London Mountain as COA and GODA had been. Schaeffler returned and wrote a good feasibility study about the Alta area, which had no mining claims. From 1962 to 1965 Garibaldi Lifts raised funds and began development of the ski area on the south side of the mountain. The government agreed that they would set aside a 56-acre (230,000 m ) plot at

1584-589: Is 5th behind Revelstoke , Whistler Blackcomb , Jackson Hole , and Kicking Horse . At the bottom of the ski hill there is a resort with lodging, restaurants, retail shops, and the Panorama Springs Pools complex. There is also the Panorama Nordic Centre with approximately 20.5 km of trail for classic and skating and 6.6 km for classic only. Approximately 4 km from the Nordic center there

1672-454: Is 675 m (2,215 ft) above sea level, and is located 137 km (85 mi) from Vancouver International Airport . The valley area between Whistler and Blackcomb was first surveyed and documented in 1858 by Hudson's Bay men looking for an alternate route into the Cariboo area further north. Although little-used at the time, the route would later become one of the many paths used during

1760-481: Is Dual Mountain?" In 1986, Blackcomb's assets and real estate rights were bought by fledgling real estate developer Intrawest . Intrawest was an early developer of timeshare listings, and saw the potential in developing the ski resort with condominium assets as a timeshare destination. Intrawest immediately carried out massive upgrades on Blackcomb. They started by moving the Seventh Heaven T-Bar across

1848-450: Is a separate commercial operation which provides aerotowing services and glider rides to the general public. The local area is also a popular destination for other non-motorized forms of flying including hang-gliding and paragliding . There are designated launch sites at nearby Mount Swansea. The Valley is host to the biggest outdoor bonspiel in Canada every January. The spiel is held on

SECTION 20

#1732852047871

1936-613: Is located 74 kilometres (46 mi) south of Invermere and can be accessed from the Whiteswan Forestry Road. Ram Creek Warm Springs, a less visited and cooler natural spring, can also be accessed along the same route. Invermere is home to one newspaper, the Columbia Valley Pioneer . On July 1, 2017, the "Pioneer" (founded in 2004) and the Invermere Valley Echo (founded in 1956) merged to one paper retaining

2024-507: Is served by 15 lifts; 2 gondolas, 6 high-speed quads, 1 fixed-grip triple and 7 surface lifts (1 T-Bar and 5 carpet lifts), as well as the end-station for the Peak 2 Peak. Blackcomb is the location of the world-famous "Couloir Extreme" run, which is one of the top ten steep in-bound runs in the world, according to Skiing Magazine . Originally called the Saudan Couloir by local skiers even before it

2112-574: Is the Hale Hut. It is also home to Greywolf golf course , which winds along the Toby Creek Canyon. The only way to access Panorama is via a road from the town of Invermere , located approximately 18 km (11 mi) away. [REDACTED] Media related to Panorama Mountain Village at Wikimedia Commons Invermere Invermere is a community in eastern British Columbia , Canada, near

2200-545: Is the largest ski resort in North America and has the greatest uphill lift capacity. It features the Peak 2 Peak Gondola for moving between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains at the top. With its capacity, Whistler Blackcomb is a busy ski resort, often surpassing two million visitors a year. Whistler was originally conceived as part of a bid to win the 1968 Winter Olympics . Although the bid failed, construction started anyway and

2288-416: Is the northern ridge, on the left when viewed from the village. It has a lift-serviced elevation of 2,240 metres (7,350 feet) at the top of the 7th Heaven chair – Blackcomb Mountain itself is higher at 2,440 meters (8,010 feet), but unlike Whistler, the peak is not lift-served. Blackcomb has a higher skiable vertical, at 1,565 meters (5,135 feet), but less in-bound skiing area at 3,414 acres (1,382 ha). It

2376-655: The Columbia Valley Pioneer designation. The "Pioneer" serves the Columbia Valley region, from Spillimacheen in the north to Canal Flats in the south and is published once a week, every Thursday. 50°30′30″N 116°1′49″W  /  50.50833°N 116.03028°W  / 50.50833; -116.03028  ( Invermere ) Whistler Blackcomb Whistler Blackcomb is a ski resort located in Whistler, British Columbia , Canada. By many measures, it

2464-749: The Fortress Mountain Resort in Alberta, won the contest. A new company, Fortress Mountain Resorts, was formed with a 50–50 partnership between Aspen and the Business Development Bank of Canada . The new competition, paid for partially by tax dollars, was not initially appreciated by Whistler. Initial development of the mountain included four triple chairlifts (later named Cruiser, Stoker, Catskinner and Fitzsimmons) and one double chairlift, all supplied by Lift Engineering (Yan Lifts). The double chair

2552-680: The Garibaldi Provincial Park , and joined the Whistler city council. The Blackcomb area was currently zoned for logging, but Raine and Greene successfully lobbied the government to remove the zoning and allow development as a ski area. In 1977 the Municipality hired Sutcliffe Griggs Moodie Development Consultants to design a layout for Whistler Village's development. However, their design was considered too conventional and allowed too much car traffic. Raine recommended Eldon Beck, who had been

2640-640: The Trans-Canada Highway . Invermere is also 37 kilometres (23 mi) north of Fairmont Hot Springs , 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Canal Flats , 128 kilometres (80 mi) north of Fort Steele , 130 kilometres (81 mi) north of Kimberley , and 144 kilometres (89 mi) north of the hub of Cranbrook and the Crowsnest Highway . Invermere is situated within the Columbia River Wetlands, North America's largest intact wetland and

2728-582: The "Horizon Chair", was installed. in 1975. The Horizon ran roughly three quarters along the path of the current Champagne Express lift. In 1978, Panorama was purchased from Panorama Ski Hill Company by Calgary based Alan Graham and Cascade Development Group. With more available capital, Graham funded more facilities at the base of the hill the construction of the Toby Creek Lodge, in 1979, the Horsethief Lodge, Pine Inn, and tennis facilities, in 1982, and

Panorama Mountain Resort - Misplaced Pages Continue

2816-611: The BC real estate firm that developed Blackcomb, purchased Whistler in 1997 and fully merged operations in 2003. Whistler Blackcomb was the centrepiece of a renewed bid on the part of nearby Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics , which they won in July 2003. Whistler Blackcomb hosted the alpine skiing events , including the men's and women's Olympic and Paralympic alpine skiing disciplines of downhill , Super-G , slalom , giant slalom and super combined . In contrast with Cypress Mountain—which hosted

2904-593: The Canadian bid was given to Calgary , who came in a close second place to Grenoble . Undaunted, Wilhelmsen decided to press ahead with development of a resort. In 1962 the Garibaldi Lifts Limited was formed with Franz Wilhelmsen as president. It had two main objectives, to finance and supervise required land/business studies, and to erect and operate ski lifts on London Mountain. The company had little experience in ski operations, so they hired Willy Schaeffler ,

2992-410: The Canadian entry, as their equipment from the 1988 Winter Olympics was already in place and allowed them to offer a low-cost bid, as did Quebec City , which lost the 2002 bid. Calgary was eliminated in close voting on November 21, 1998, and Vancouver-Whistler won the second round of voting on December 3. In IOC voting Pyeongchang, South Korea won the initial round, which eliminated Salzburg , but in

3080-641: The Gold Rush at the turn of the century. Known as the Pemberton Trail , the route followed a path similar to the Sea-to-Sky Highway , leading past the Whistler area to the present day town of Pemberton . In the 1860s British Naval surveyors named the mountain "London Mountain," but it soon garnered the nickname "Whistler" because of the shrill whistle made by the Western Hoary Marmots who lived among

3168-467: The Horseshoe Bar & Grill for dinner. The cook was Alex Philip from Maine, and Millar invited Philip to join him for dinner. Millar was a storyteller, and during the conversations that followed, he invited Philip to visit the Alta area. Alex and his wife Myrtle visited what was then known as Summit Lake several times over the next few years, and in 1913 they purchased 10 acres (40,000 m ) of land on

3256-624: The Number One Ski Resort in North America. Similar No. 1 rankings quickly followed from other major magazines, and between 1992 and 2000 it won No. 1 ranking from one of the major magazines every year. In 1996, it became the only resort in history to be simultaneously named No. 1 by Snow Country , SKI and Skiing magazines. In 1997, the Whistler Mountain Ski Corporation was also bought out by Intrawest . Like their expansion on Blackcomb, Intrawest immediately started

3344-631: The Rainbow Lumber Company on Alta Lake. The fur trade remained for some time, later supplanted by a mink and marten farm. Jimmy Fitzsimmons ran a prospecting support company, which led to mining surveys up Fitzsimmons Valley. The shafts can still be found on the Singing Pass trail. In 1960 the Canadian Olympic Association visited the west coast looking for potential sites for a future 1968 Winter Olympics . They initially looked at

3432-590: The Taynton Bowl area, and two additional lifts in and around the Sun Bowl area, named Hopeful Creek and Sun Bowl chairs. The ski resort is of above average size for North America, with 2,975 acres (12.04 km) of skiable lift-served terrain. This places it somewhere in the top ten in terms of area. It also has one of the largest vertical drops in North America, at 4,265 feet (1,300 m). In terms of continuously skiable vertical drop, with 1,300 metres (4,300 ft) it

3520-651: The Whistler Hostel until it was closed in 2010 when the association (now Hosteling International) opened a new, larger hostel. The original building is still standing today, home to the point artists centre and the Whistler sailing club. Cecilia and John Mansell moved to Alta Lake in 1945 and built the Hillcrest Lodge near today's Lakeside Park on Alta Lake. They sold it in 1965 to the Mason Family and others who operated it as Mount Whistler Lodge for skiers. The main lodge

3608-639: The Whistler Village Land Company who would oversee all development of the new Whistler Village. In 1977 the provincial government named Al Raine the Provincial Ski Area Co-ordinator, in charge of expanding BC's skiing capabilities. Raine was previously National Coach for the Canadian Women's Ski Team, and was married to famous Canadian skier Nancy Greene . Raine saw the potential in developing Blackcomb Mountain , then part of

Panorama Mountain Resort - Misplaced Pages Continue

3696-546: The Whistler municipality to develop the town centre. The first sod for the village was turned on August 18, 1978, by first Mayor Pat Carleton. By 1979 many amenities were in place, including Municipal Hall, Fire Hall, Health Care Centre, and Elementary School. Phase 1 expansion included 11 parcels in the modern Village Square area, including the Whistler Conference Centre, a variety of hotels, restaurants, grocery store, hardware store, etc. An enormous underground garage

3784-476: The base of the mountain for Garibaldi Lifts to buy, and agreed to bring the highway to the base of the mountain if they could raise enough money. By 1965 they had reached their goal of raising $ 800,000 and started planning for development. However, they were not happy with the name, and on August 27, 1965, London Mountain officially became Whistler Mountain. By 1965 the Provincial Government had completed

3872-611: The basis of similar Tyrolian -inspired developments at their expanding series of resorts, as well as other resorts that hired Intrawest to build similar developments on their behalf. In 2010, Intrawest sold off much of its 75% interest in Whistler Blackcomb Resort via a public share offering. In August 2016, the American company Vail Resorts bought Whistler Blackcomb Holdings for $ 1.39 billion. Nippon Cable 's minority interest in Whistler Blackcomb Resort has continued throughout

3960-499: The border of Alberta . It is the hub of the Columbia Valley between Golden to the north and Cranbrook to the south. Invermere sits on the northwest shore of Windermere Lake and is a popular summer destination for visitors and second home owners from Edmonton and Calgary . Invermere is located 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) south of Radium , and 104 kilometres (65 mi) south of Golden and 102 kilometres (63 mi) from

4048-645: The carpet lifts to the chair lift. In 2017 and 2019, new terrain was added in the Taynton Bowl area, currently serviced by a 13 passenger snowcat called "Monster X". Panorama is also frequented in the fall by race teams from around North America, including the Canadian Alpine and Para Alpine ski teams. In 2015 Panorama Hosted the Para Alpine World Championships. In the Panorama Master Plan, there are plans to have another lift built in

4136-431: The entrance to Blackcomb Glacier. The overall lift capacity, 65,507 skiers per hour, is the greatest in North America. Before 2008 the only connection between the two mountains was via the village. The opening of the Peak 2 Peak Gondola on 12 December 2008 connected the two mountains at approximately 1,800 m (5,900 ft). The lift has a total length of 4.4 km (2.7 mi) and the longest unsupported span for

4224-542: The freestyle skiing and all snowboard events, and was plagued with a lack of fresh, natural snow during the Olympics—Whistler Blackcomb had the second-highest snowfall on record with 1,432 cm (over 14 metres) by the end of the 2009-10 season. Over the next decade, Intrawest expanded by purchasing additional ski resorts across North America, before expanding into golf and other resorts as well. Whistler Village, widely recognized for its livable design, formed

4312-499: The frozen Windermere Lake . The curling club is also host to many leagues and bonspiels throughout the season. Hot springs are numerous in the area, with the major developed ones being Fairmont and Radium Hot Springs ; the latter is located inside Kootenay National Park . Less developed 'wilderness' hot springs can be found in the southern Columbia Valley, in Whiteswan Lake Provincial Park . Lussier Hot Springs

4400-451: The games eventually went to Denver , Colorado. In a stunning turn of events, Denver turned down the games after winning the bidding. The games were then offered to the other North American entry, Vancouver/Garibaldi, but political turmoil due to the recent change in government led to their bid being withdrawn as well, and in desperation the IOC returned the games to Innsbruck for a second time in

4488-601: The gondola itself. It was the second lift with the Fitszimmons name, the original lift being a triple chairlift replaced by Stage 1 of the Excalibur Gondola in 1994. Starting in 2000, Intrawest started redeveloping the Creekside area with new village layout. Throughout, Intrawest also extensively developed the summertime attractions, notably golf and mountain biking . Today, Whistler Blackcomb averages 2 million visitors during

SECTION 50

#1732852047871

4576-417: The larger Green River, which forms a floodplain running north–south just to the west of the village area. The Sea-to-Sky Highway runs along the Green River valley. The ski runs generally run northwest towards the village area, or into the valley area between the two ridges. A small number of runs are located on the south side of the Whistler ridge, where they run to the Creekside Base area, some distance south of

4664-407: The largest ski area in North America at 8,171 acres (33 km ). Either mountain alone would be in the top-five in terms of size. The mountains are accessed via four gondolas and one high-speed eight pack: Blackcomb Excalibur Gondola, Whistler Mountain Village Gondola, and Fitzsimmons Express in the village; the Blackcomb Gondola in Blackcomb Base/Upper Village; and the Whistler Creekside Gondola to

4752-415: The lift opened on November 24, 1988. In 1990 Whistler began upgrading its aging fleet of fixed grip chairlifts with the addition of its first high-speed quad chairlift . The Green Chair Express, which replaced the two Green Chairs, was built by Lift Engineering (Yan), and substantially cut long lift queues in the Green area of the mountain. A year later, Whistler Mountain replaced three double chairlifts and

4840-419: The long ride up on the Red Chair. In 1974 the provincial New Democratic Party of British Columbia was interested in developing tourism and took a number of steps affecting Whistler. At the time, the Alta Lake area was overdeveloped, so the government instituted a development freeze while they studied the problem. The only solution was to continue development in another location. They quickly decided to focus on

4928-803: The lower mountain triple chairlifts. Stoker was replaced with a high speed quad in a longer alignment known as the Excelerator Express, while Fitzsimmons and Cruiser were replaced with the two-stage Excalibur Gondola, running from Whistler Village to the base of Excelerator with a mid-station near the top of the former Fitzsimmons lift. The second is dubbed by some as the "gondola to nowhere" since it does not connect with any restaurant or access additional terrain. However, in combination with Excelerator, it allowed rapid access to Blackcomb for Whistler Village traffic, who previously had to take three or four chairlifts to Rendezvous (Fitzsimmons, Stoker, Cruiser, and Jersey Cream, with 3 of those being slower chairs; or Fitzsimmons, Wizard and Solar Coaster). Excelerator also opened up

5016-561: The main Whistler Village. Whistler Mountain is the basis of the southern of the two ridges, on the right when looking at the Whistler-Blackcomb ski area from Whistler Village. It has a summit elevation of 2,184 meters (7,165 feet). The total vertical drop is 1,530 meters (5,020 feet) and 4,757 acres (1,925 ha) skiable inbound terrain. Whistler is served by a total of 19 lifts; 2 gondolas, 5 high-speed detachable quad chair lifts, 4 high-speed detachable sixpack chair lifts, 2 fixed grip triple chair lifts, 1 T-bar (called T-bars but parallel T-Bar

5104-461: The most popular west coast resort for 30 years. The Philips operated the Lodge until 1948 when they sold it to Alec and Audrey Greenwood. The main Lodge burnt down in 1977, but today the area has been preserved as Rainbow Park. The Philips both remained in the valley until their deaths. Alex died in 1968 at the age of 86, and Myrtle died in 1986 at the age of 95. Following the successful launch of Rainbow Lodge, several other tourist resorts set up in

5192-431: The need for guests skiing this terrain to ride the Olympic Chair. The Fitzsimmons Express was added in 2000, following the line of the long-gone Village Chair and roughly paralleling the lower part of the gondola. The top of Fitzsimmons and the bottom of Garbanzo are co-located in the Village Gondola Olympic station area, providing extra lift capacity from the Whistler Village to the top of the mid-mountain zone in addition to

5280-429: The new village, Whistler added three Yan triple chairlifts for the same season; the Village, Olympic, and Black Chairs which met up with the top of the Orange chair at the top of the men's downhill course. Whistler's original base at Alta Lake began to be referred to as Whistler Creek, or Creekside, after the creek that runs through the area. Throughout the 1980s the two ski areas competed strongly for ticket sales among

5368-438: The northwest corner of Alta Lake for $ 700. By 1914, the Philip's Rainbow Lodge fishing resort was completed with four bedrooms, a large living/dining area and a kitchen. The resort was named for the Rainbow trout that were the main attraction of the resort. That same year, the Pacific Great Eastern Railway (PGE) reached the lake, from Squamish . Executives of the PGE suggested the Lodge host fishermen from Vancouver, which

SECTION 60

#1732852047871

5456-407: The original Creekside gondola with two high-speed quad chairlifts , the Quicksilver Express and Redline Express lifts, also built by Lift Engineering . In 1994, the Blue Chair was removed and replaced with a Poma high speed quad named the Harmony Express, providing access to Little Whistler Peak. In 1994, Blackcomb made what would be its last major lift expansion until 2018 with the replacement of

5544-434: The ownership changes, by way of ownership of a 25% interest of the Whistler and Blackcomb partnerships. The ski areas at Whistler and Blackcomb are situated on two ridge-lines running roughly northwest to southeast. The two are separated by a deep valley with Fitzsimmons Creek running along the valley floor. The main base area at Whistler Village is located on the northwest end of this valley, where Fitzsimmons Creek flows into

5632-442: The prairies to the east of the Rocky Mountains. Although warm, summers are variable, with weather alternating between hot, dry spells and cool, showery periods. In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada , Invermere had a population of 3,917 living in 1,660 of its 2,238 total private dwellings, a change of 15.5% from its 2016 population of 3,391. With a land area of 10.75 km (4.15 sq mi), it had

5720-401: The predecessor lifts' towers. The original Roundhouse was demolished and a new lodge built in its place. Around this time Intrawest began marketing the two mountains as one large ski area under the name "Whistler-Blackcomb". On April 20, 1999, Whistler Blackcomb became the first North American ski resort to top 2 million skier visits in one season. 1998 saw the replacement of the Peak Chair with

5808-437: The primary designer at Vail , celebrated for its layout. Beck's designs included a pedestrian Main Street Village Stroll and an elevated covered walkway system, limiting all vehicles to the outside of the developed area. To this day the village retains this basic design in spite of dramatic expansions, and has won worldwide acclaim in architecture circles. In January 1978, 53 acres (210,000 m ) of crown land were given to

5896-402: The resort opened for the first time in January 1966. Blackcomb Mountain, originally a separate entity, opened for business in December 1980. The two resorts underwent a period of intense rivalry through the 1980s and 1990s, with constant upgrades and improvements that were unseen at other resorts. By the mid-1990s, the area was repeatedly named the best resort in many skiing magazines. Intrawest ,

5984-412: The ridge to the Horstman Glacier, still running up to the peak, and supplemented it with the Showcase T-Bar to service Blackcomb Glacier. Doppelmayr replaced Seventh Heaven in its original alignment with a high-speed quad chairlift , and built two additional high-speed quads, Wizard and Solar Coaster, which cut the ride time from the base area to Rendezvous from 45 minutes to 15. The Rendezvous Restaurant

6072-439: The rocks. Four lakes paralleled the route of Trail, the highest then being known as Summit Lake. However, there was another Summit Lake in BC, and in 1910 the name was changed to its current form, Alta Lake. One of the first permanent residents in the Alta Lake area was trapper John Millar, who set up a cabin next to the trail just south of the base of the mountain. During a trip to sell furs in Vancouver in 1911, Millar stopped at

6160-414: The ski hill. A T-Bar was constructed to the summit immediately, opening up 200 acres of double black diamond terrain called the "Extreme Dream Zone". In 1997, Intrawest unveiled a master plan for the development of the resort, which included expansion of snowmaking, skiable area, the base village, and construction of the current Greywolf Golf Course. That year, the original A-Frame lodge was replaced. In 1999,

6248-407: The ski season, but another 2.5 during the summer. Whistler Blackcomb's 2006/2007 season saw Doppelmayr construct the Symphony Express, a high speed quad that begins towards the bottom of the Symphony Amphitheater and carries riders to the top of Piccolo. One of the original names suggested for this lift was Piccolo Express. A more ambitious upgrade was the Peak 2 Peak Gondola , opened to provide

6336-492: The south in the Creekside area. The primary skiing terrain starts about one-third up the mountains. Ski-outs to the valley are usually possible during the months of December through April. The mid- and upper- areas are serviced by 10 high-speed detachable chairs and 5 fixed-grip lifts made by Lift Engineering , Doppelmayr and Poma . Two T-bars service the Horstman Glacier and the Whistler alpine regions and take skiers to

6424-615: The table between Whistler and Blackcomb, about 4 km to the north of the existing facilities on Alta Lake. At that time this was the site of the Alta Lake dump, and the remains of a Volkswagen Van are still buried under the modern village. In 1975 the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) was formed, the first Resort Municipality in Canada and also the first place in British Columbia since Canadian prohibition where bars were allowed to be open on Sunday. The act also created

6512-618: The valley. Russell Anderson Jordan opened the Alta Lake Hotel which burned down in 1930, and replaced it with Jordan's Lodge on nearby Nita Lake. Bert and Agnes Harrop built Harrop's Point in the 1920s. This became the Cypress Lodge in 1945 under its then-owner Dick Fairhurst, who built new cabins and a main lodge in the early 1960s. In 1972 the property was purchased by the Canadian Youth Hostel Association and it remained

6600-492: The village visitors, which led to a rapid buildout of new lifts that opened new areas and improved ride times. In 1982, "Chair 6" (later rebranded Jersey Cream) opened in the Horstman Creek drainage on Blackcomb. Whistler cut new trails along the northern flank of the mountain. In 1983 Blackcomb acquired a used T-Bar from Fortress Mountain and installed it on a south-facing slope, in full view of Whistler Mountain. This 7th lift

6688-579: The village. In 2010, while Intrawest was under risk of foreclosure, a group of local private investors, called Panorama Mountain Village Inc, purchased Panorama Mountain Resort from Intrawest. In December 2014, the resort opened the Discovery Quad. The new chair goes from the learning area to the top of Stringer, a green run. It makes for a very natural and easy learning progression for people transferring from

6776-414: Was a dirt logging track, which was only plowed on Saturday, to the detriment of Friday travelers. With real infrastructure in place, in 1968 GODA made another bid for the 1976 Winter Olympics , and this time the joint Vancouver/Garibaldi won the Canadian nomination. However, in 1970 when Montreal won the voting for the 1976 Summer Olympics , Vancouver/Garibaldi was removed from further consideration and

6864-515: Was born in Invermere. The longest ice skating trail in the world can be found on the Lake Windermere Whiteway . The naturally frozen trail measures 29.98 kilometres (18.63 mi). Invermere is a major centre for golf . The Invermere Airport is home to the non-profit Canadian Rockies Soaring Club. The club is active during the summer months, when it welcomes dozens of student pilots and private owners. The Invermere Soaring Centre

6952-625: Was built to support all of the buildings in the area, completed before any construction could start above it. The first hotel, the Blackcomb Lodge, anchors the Village Square area to this day. In 1978 a call for bids was issued to develop Blackcomb for skiing. The bidding to develop Blackcomb was contested by two companies, the Aspen Skiing Company , and the newly formed Blackcomb Skiing Enterprises (BSE). Aspen, having recently developed

7040-451: Was burnt in a fire practice by the fire department in 1986. There was some commercial use of the London Mountain area as well. Logging had been carried out for some time, but the arrival of the railway in 1914 made this much more profitable and for several years there were a few sizable mills and lumber operations: The Barrs at Parkhurst Mill on Green Lake (to the north), and the Gebharts with

7128-492: Was coined the Seventh Heaven T-Bar and gave access to high alpine and glaciated terrain. It also gave Blackcomb the highest lift-serviced vertical drop of any ski area in North America, with the top of the lift at 7,348 feet (2,240 m). Blackcomb promoted themselves as the "Mile High Mountain". Whistler responded in 1986 with the opening of the Peak Chair to the summit of Whistler Mountain at 7,160 feet (2,180 m), acquiring

7216-406: Was installed along the route of the current Mile 1 Express. In the early 70s, Panorama Ski Hill Company continued to grow and required more area to accommodate more skiers. To raise capital for expansion, utilities were installed for 75 lots, which were sold near the base of the hill for development to raise money for the hill. Using the funds that they earned from the lots, a new double chair, named

7304-482: Was installed on the lower Gear Jammer run where the tube park is located today and was used as a beginner chair at a reduced speed. This area was also the first area to get permanent underground snow making pipes supplying snow making guns up the south side of the run. At the time the lifts were referred to only by number. Blackcomb opened for skiing on December 6, 1980, along with the newly constructed village. To ensure guests could continue to easily access Whistler from

7392-408: Was installed to replace the rope tow. During these initial years, the ski hill was volunteer-run. In 1968, 12 local businessmen formed a group called Panorama Ski Hill Company Ltd to manage and grow the ski hill. A lodge, built in an A-Frame style, was built. In 1969, several slopes were cleared, the platter was moved to its present location as the current Silver Platter, and a mile-long wooden T-Bar

7480-549: Was now less than two days away (from three or more) via steamship to Squamish and then the PGE to Alta Lake. A standard rate of $ 2 for a week was applied, and the very first group arrived with 25 people. The resort was a hit. Millar left when the railway arrived, looking to get further away from civilization. Building followed demand, and over time the lodge grew to include an additional 45 buildings (cabins, tennis courts, general store, post office) and could accommodate 100 people. It became

7568-575: Was part of the ski area, the company eventually had to drop the name when extreme skier Sylvain Saudan complained about the unauthorised use of his name. The two previously separate ski areas of Whistler and Blackcomb were integrated into one operation in 1997 after Intrawest merged with Whistler Mountain Ski Corporation. Ticketing, pass, and access control systems for the two ski areas were fully integrated in 2003. Together, Whistler and Blackcomb form

7656-442: Was removed however towers and stations still mostly stand) and 7 carpet lifts. It also hosts the drive station for the Peak 2 Peak Gondola connecting it with Blackcomb mountain to the north. There are 4 on-hill restaurants, as well as a children's ski school. It is served by two base areas: Whistler Creek also known as creekside, the original base on its southwest flank, and Whistler Village on its northwest flank. Blackcomb Mountain

7744-537: Was renamed Base 2 and the moniker moved to the restaurant at the top of Solar Coaster and Catskinner. In response to Blackcomb Mountain's construction of three high-speed quads, Whistler Mountain undertook one of the biggest ski-lift construction projects ever realized in Canada at the time, the construction of the Whistler Express Gondola. Carrying passengers 1,157 m (3,796 ft) vertically and 5 km (3.1 mi) horizontally over 63 support towers,

#870129