10 centimeters of fresh isn’t much, but following a bone dry January and February, the snow report was welcome during a March 2010 trip to K3 Cat Ski in Revelstoke, British Columbia. At least we’d be getting a taste of powder.
K3 Cat Ski (formerly Monashee Mountain Cats) is a young company, completing its third year of operation for the 2009-2010 season. However, the owners and their buddies have been enjoying the terrain for a long time before establishing the cat ski operation, and they can already bring you to a wealth of jaw dropping vistas and grin- inducing descents.
The operating area is about 30 minutes west of Revelstoke and 15 minutes east of Sicamous. K3 is the name of the mountain where the deeds went down for our visit, but it’s just a portion of the 33,000 acres (51 square miles!) ultimately available for skiing and boarding. Such an amount of area is just huge for a cat ski operation, and there’s vast potential for expansion over what is already being ridden. At K3’s alpine summit, I asked Rod, one of three owners and an avid splitboarder, how far out into the distance the tenured area extended.
“See that pyramid-shaped mountain?” Rod asks, pointing.
“The one about halfway to the horizon?” I respond.
“No, at the horizon. We go out to that.” Whoa. Gazing down at the range of peaks and valleys before us, the possibilities for sweet lines are endless. To help make the most out of all of that terrain, K3 plans to build a backcountry lodge which will include multi-day cat skiing straight from the doorstep, as well as an expansive touring area with ski-to huts. When it reaches full potential, K3 Cat Ski may very well give you the best chance of hitting untracked line after untracked line, even months after the last storm. Regardless of future expansion plans, though, it already dwarfs many other cat skiing operations.
Presently, guests have the option of single and two-day standby skiing, or springing for a two or three-day skiing package with a stay at the Best Western Sicamous Inn. Guests staying at the Inn can take an après-ski soak in the indoor or outdoor hot tubs before heading down the street for dinner at Moose Mulligan’s. There’s also a couple of fast food joints right next door if the late night munchies strike following intake of your favorite BC herbal delicacy. Included for all guests is one of the best on-cat lunches we’ve had to date, including gourmet sandwiches and cookies from a local eatery.
If day skiing, either get yourself to the Sicamous Inn by about 7:30AM or hop on the free shuttle from K3’s office in Revelstoke. You can also be picked up at the Skyline Esso truck stop about 43km west of Revy on Highway #1. Be there by 8:15AM.
The ride to the operating area in K3’s crew cab pickups includes a climb up a nice switchback, setting the stage for the day. The snow and your excitement build as you reach the cat staging area. Following the usual avalanche safety orientation, guests hop into a cat and the climb continues. A new cat is on the way for the 2011/2012 season, for a total of three cats; two for guests and one for backup and road building.
Over three days at K3 we spent a lot of time in a 6,000-acre area named South Park, a burnt forest which is the aftermath of a wildfire a few years back. Blackened conifer trunks remain standing tall, but the branches are burned and bare, leading to incredible sight lines and a somewhat surreal descent though the hulks. Possibilities for great lines in South Park are endless, with roughly 30-foot spacing between most trees, and rollers and the occasional pillow to pop.
And then the classic Revelstoke trees. Steep and tight, with the bottom dropping out from under you on each turn. If you’ve never experienced this type of skiing, you’re in for a treat. This is definitely some of the steepest tree skiing out there. It’s damn impressive to watch your guide effortlessly zip through the trees, and somewhat humbling as you try to match his efforts. If you’re not into that kind of thing, that’s OK too. The guides will make sure to get you on something you are comfortable with, which may include….
Those beautiful alpine bowls and steeps. Or a more mellow tree line. Or a quick 500-vertical foot headwall descent just begging for some huge, arching turns. Or a short spine feature reminiscent of an Alaskan line you just saw in a ski flick. Over our three days with K3, we got a taste of each of these elements, including a good amount of powder where the scant 10cm had piled up. The thousands of acres that are already being skied put the op right up there with the best in the world, with much more good to come.
When considering the terrain, the unlimited potential when the backcountry lodge and touring area are established, the renowned interior BC fluff, and very friendly owners and staff, K3 Cat Ski is quickly becoming THE must-ski cat destination in North America. A run down South Park floating through waist-deep fresh is the stuff dreams are made of. Go to K3 Cat Ski. You won’t be disappointed.
Photos by Lisa Gover.
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