Shhh – Why Sun Peaks Remains North America’s Best Kept Secret
A 75-year old grandmother hasn't skied since a knee injury while skiing in France in the mid-'90s. Her 60-ish adventure-driven husband loves bumps and the trees. One 5-year old grandson is just getting his skis under him, his ten-year-old brother already keen to chase their sixteen-year-old sibling as he rips down the blacks and bumps on his snowboard. Their mother, once a confident blue skier, has grown tentative due to fewer skier days and parenthood. The boys’ dad likes to bounce between the black and blues, while obsessing that everyone is content. Like so many other mixed-ability groups, they’ve discovered Sun Peaks is their mutual happy place.
So declares Nancy Greene, Olympic gold medalist and Director of Skiing. As anyone who has skied in her shadow will tell you, former Senator Greene can be counted on for plenty of verbal gems to complement her killer turns. There is no exclusive arrangement with a high price tag attached to talk and ski with Nancy, Canada’s Female Athlete of the 20th Century. She leads whoever shows up at 1 pm at the top of the Sunburst Chair to ski for an hour, her passion for the alpine matched only by her desire to teach ski technique to anyone and everyone. It’s hard to imagine Wayne Gretzky, Nancy’s male Athlete of the 20th Century counterpart, t, showing up to play shinny (pick-up) hockey with strangers every afternoon. But if Nancy’s in town, she skis with folks.
Sun Peaks is full of these surprises, beginning with the terrain itself. Ask a serious skier to name the largest ski area in Canada and they’ll quickly say Whistler, but ask about the second largest and you’ll either hear Lake Louise or silence. Wrong – with 4,270 skiable acres, Sun Peaks lays claim to #2 in Canada and 7th overall in North America. Spread across Mt. Morrisey, Sundance and Mt. Tod, 137 trails have been carved out of the forest. Speaking of trees, there are 19 gladed areas here. 13 lifts carry us up, up and away and yes, most days are beautiful – Sun Peaks glistens beneath more than 2,000 hours of annual sunshine, the resort’s moniker much more than a simple branding exercise.
A great family ski hill includes black runs as much as green runs."
Sun Peaks definitely shines brightly compared with many of its brethren in other ways, both on-mountain and off the piste. To start, the entire resort is ski in-ski out, a virtue, like flying business class, that we don’t appreciate until we’ve done it but then, once we’ve sampled the ease of transit, we never wish to go back to coach, or a snowy parking lot, again.
Convenience to the trail would top the list of assets at many ski resorts, but Sun Peaks also takes access to extraordinary levels in two other realms. Finding a ski area that satisfies every family member or level of skier in a group can prove challenging but locating a hill where mixed-abilities can actually ski together is downright impossible. Either the “beginner-intermediate” areas put more aggressive skiers to sleep or worse, the advanced areas are tucked high away from the “easy” stuff like the Grinch poised outside his cabin sneering down at Whoville.
Sun Peaks offers that rare pleasure to ski diverse terrain within a snowball’s throw of each other, a blissful opportunity to share parallel play on runs of different experience levels and then rejoin more or less at the same time to upload again. Truth be told, intermediate and advanced skiers will likely do a couple of laps off Mt. Tod’s Sunburst Express down Blazer, Broadway or thru the Cruiser Glades before newish skiers and riders make it down Cahillty and 5 Mile. Still there’s nothing more joyful than hooking up with the whole gang at the same starting point. Plenty of “shared” terrain options can be found on Mt. Morrisey and Sundance as well.
Sun Peaks abounds with other post-ski activities too, from sleigh rides behind a team of Belgian draft horses to dog sleds and snowmobile tours, fat-tire biking and Cat Trax groomer rides, a chance to jump inside the cab of a snowcat and watch these expert plowmen and women ply their trade. The Alpine Fondue & Starlight Descent entreats us to a midmountain dinner followed by a nighttime ski or ride down the hill, an awesome special occasion event for those thirteen years and older. You can also flip the night into day with the awesome “Fresh Tracks” program where you ski first and eat afterward.
On Piste
Off-Piste Pleasures
A Village for All Ages
Access here spreads out in another special way because après ski encompasses all ages too, a differentiator that adds fodder to why Sun Peaks is North America’s best family ski resort. The village has been designed in such a way that teens and tweens can explore on their own free of any worry that they’ll get lost or caught up in some uncomfortable situation. As important as family time is during a ski vacation, there is arguably nothing cooler than a little independence to sip hot chocolate in a big ceramic mug at Café Soleil with just your friends. Naturally, there are more than enough great spots to settle into a jug of local ale, some poutine and adult company.
Sun Peaks Dine Around
If ski, then sup is more your thing, not to worry. The allure of the Sun Peaks lifestyle, a small municipality boasting social services and supreme adventure, has led to much less restaurant turnover than at most resorts. Step into pasta at Bella Italia, plan your pub night at Bottoms or enjoy 100% Canadian beef during a more intimate evening at the Steakhouse at Sun Peaks. The Voyageur Bistro is not to be missed, a Vancouver-worthy kitchen serving distinctively Canadian cuisine – think bison and bannock – in a setting symbolic of the “True North.” The lodging options are just as diverse.
It’s hard to imagine in this day of corporate takeovers in the resort world that the 7th largest ski area in North America remains gloriously independent. Sun Peaks is that sort of place. Located literally at the end of the road, once you arrive you’ll discover no need to drive anywhere again, perhaps forever. Don’t forget to link through this entire Sun Peaks section to learn about every inch of alpine Eldorado.