Whistler has it all for the 2010 Winter Olympics
12:00 AM CST on Sunday, December 28, 2008
By CLAIRE WALTER / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News
WHISTLER, British Columbia – About 50 years ago, four Vancouver businessmen had what could be considered a dream of Olympian proportions. They envisioned the sleepy summer resort region that is now Whistler as the site for a future Winter Olympic Games.
Photos by DAN LEETH/Special Contributor
Catch Olympic fever this winter at Whistler, which is 70 miles north of Vancouver, British Columbia. This might have seemed pie-in-the-sky dreaming, because the area had no road, electricity or sewer system (those came in 1962), let alone ski lifts (those came three years later).
Now, the dream has come true beyond those businessmen's wildest imaginings.
The megaresort will host most of the skiing and sledding events for the 2010 Winter Olympics (Feb. 12-28). All the facilities are in place and open to the public. Visitors can catch the fever watching the world's greatest winter sports stars compete in pre-Olympic events that are mandatory for testing venues before the Games begin.
What's there
Whistler is the catch-all name for a huge year-round resort community in the snow-rich Coast Mountains. Three village centers wrap partway around two gigantic mountains, Whistler Mountain and Blackcomb, with the deep cleft carved by Fitzsimmons Creek between them. Each has a base-to-summit vertical of more than 5,000 feet, two of North America's greatest. The Olympic runs have been marked with special symbols, so you can earn bragging rights by skiing them all ahead of the competitions.
Until this winter, for all practical purposes, people would decide which mountain to ski or ride on any given day. That is all changed with the debut of the stunning Peak2Peak gondola that connects two midmountain stations that are 2.33 crow-flight miles apart. Twenty-eight 28-passenger cabins cross the valley at more than 1,400 feet above Fitzsimmons Creek. The 1.8-mile unsupported span between towers is the world's longest. The ride itself is a thrill, worth doing in its own right.
Skiers and snowboarders no longer have to choose between Whistler or Blackcomb every day. Peak2Peak makes it easy to ski Whistler and Blackcomb without returning to the village.
The two mountains' enormous 5,000-plus-foot verticals mean that temperature, precipitation and slope conditions vary between the base and summit elevations.
Trails cut through the heavily forested lower mountains rely on snowmaking, even as cloud-light snow falls frequently into a dozen lift-served high alpine bowls and snowfields near the summits. In between are miles of cruising runs, mogul fields, tame beginner slopes and a flock of terrain parks and pipes for snowboarders. Blackcomb Mountain is crowned by a lift-served glacier open for summer skiing.
Cross-country skiers ply 18 miles of groomed, trackset trails, and snowshoers hike through miles of high-mountain trails (ride a gondola up) or routes through the forest on guided excursions or independently. Whistler also is the jumping-off point for heli-skiing in the glorious backcountry.
Beyond the slopes
Guests can enjoy a full winter vacation without ever stepping onto skis or strapping on a snowboard. On the mild side are spa treatments, galleries and shops with an international flair and excursions to view the eagles that winter along the area.
Whistler Bungee, Ziptrek Ecotours and various snowmobile tour operators cater to adrenaline-rush seekers. The Whistler Sliding Centre, site of the Olympic bobsled and luge events, is open for not-to-be-missed inspection of the icy speed track.
When the sun sets and the lifts close, Whistler Village in particular continues to sparkle with restaurants of all flavors, from simple spots dishing up family fare and comfort food to sophisticated culinary palaces preparing dishes from Europe and Asia. Difficult as it is to visualize when deep snow blankets the surrounding mountains, British Columbia's distinctive cuisine is based on local produce, local wine and, of course, seafood from nearby Pacific waters.
Upscale and international, Whistler has upgraded for the Olympics. The scenic but twisting Sea to Sky Highway from Vancouver to Squamish on the coast is being widened and somewhat tamed, and new and renovated accommodations are legion.
Whistler now boasts large, luxurious hotels such as the Fairmont Chateau and the Pan Pacific Village Centre, and also fine boutique properties such as the Adara Hotel and the First Tracks Lodge. Economy lodging has been harder to find since Whistler caught Olympic fever.
The bottom line is that skiers, snowboarders, thrill-seekers and those who enjoy the mountain environment are benefiting from the fulfillment of that dream of those Vancouver businessmen, and they will continue to do so long after the Olympic flame is extinguished.
Claire Walter is a freelance writer in Colorado.
Whistler stats
Lifts: four gondolas, 13 high-speed quad chairlifts, five triples, one double, 16 surface
Hourly capacity: 65,507
Trails: 200-plus and 12 alpine bowls (20 percent easier, 55 percent more difficult, 25 percent most difficult)
Terrain parks and pipes: five terrain parks, two pipes
Vertical: Whistler, 5,020 feet; Blackcomb, 5,280 feet
Longest runs: seven miles (one on each mountain)
Skiable acres: 8,171
Average snowfall: 402 inches
2008-09 season: Nov. 27 (both mountains) to April 26 (Whistler) and June 14 (Blackcomb)
When you go
Getting there
Whistler is 70 miles north of Vancouver, British Columbia. Drive time is about two hours. Perimeter Whistler Express runs airport-resort motorcoach transfers.
Best package deal
The Ski Free, Stay Free deal includes one night's free lodging and a fourth day of free lifts on packages of five or more nights. Book by Jan. 15 for use this ski season. Rates start at $98 per night per person. Contact: 1-888-403-4727;
www.whistlerblackcomb.com (click on "Accommodations"). The Web site also includes last-minute lodging deals.
Skiing information
For Whistler and Blackcomb mountains: 1-866-218-9690;
www.whistlerblackcomb.com.Fantastic ski lifts
Whistler's Peak2Peak gondola isn't the world's only gee-whiz ski lift. Here are five more engineering marvels that skiers ride:
• Aiguille du Midi cable car, Chamonix, France – The upper stage of the two-stage cable car climbs nearly 5,000 vertical feet between towers and passes so close to the cliff face that those standing by the window feel as if they could reach out and touch the rock.
• Galzigbahn, St. Anton, Austria – This Arlberg resort boasts one of the world's 20 Funitels: large gondola cabins carried by dual cables for stability. The Galzigbahn has a Ferris wheel mechanism at the bottom to elevate the cabins from ground level to the main cables.
• Metro Alpin, Saas-Fee, Switzerland – This underground funicular railway leads nearly two miles from the village of Saas-Fee to a glacier-crowned ski mountain.
• QuickSilver Super6, Breckenridge, Colo. – This was the first double-loading six-passenger chairlift in the U.S. Two lines feed into the boarding area, with the loaded chairs feeding alternately onto the main cable. The first is in Val Thorens, France.
• Rotair, Engelberg, Switzerland – The round cable car cabins make a 360-degree revolution every time they travel from midmountain to the summit of the Titlis.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/..._1228tra.ART.State.Edition1.4aad912.html
Linear Mode
