Big Sky, MT – It didn’t take us long at Big Sky to ask ourselves, “Where is everybody?” It was a Sunday in February on a non-holiday weekend, with a brilliant blue sky and temps in the mid-30s. All the chairlifts were running and most of the trails were open. But at times it seemed…
Bromont (QC), Canada - I’ve gone on record many times to practically anyone who will listen that one of the most interesting winter vacation regions in the Northeast is Québec’s Eastern Townships. While the majority of skiers from this part of the continent – even those living a very short drive away in Vermont or…
Cordova, AK - I had first met Points North owner Kevin Quinn at the L.A. ski show a decade ago, and we shared a ship to Antarctica in 2011 along with some of his guides and several of his customers where he helped my friend Liz and gave her a powder lesson one afternoon. So…
West Yellowstone, MT - At one point while cross-country skiing in Yellowstone National Park last February, I paused to consider my position — and the bison that was lumbering toward me on the ski track. Since I was on skis, I technically had the right of way. But since the buffalo had about 2,000 pounds…
Ushuaia, Argentina - Antarctica is one of tourism’s final frontiers. The first tourist cruise to the frozen continent took place in 1969 but tourism remained rare there until the 1990’s. Nearly 7,000 tourists landed in Antarctica in 1992-93, growing to 13,900 in 1999-2000 and peaking at 33,000 in 2007-08, although economic conditions have limited tourist landings…
Meadow Creek (BC), Canada - It’s been years since I signed up with Ski Plus Tours for my first ski vacation in the British Columbia interior, a guided road trip in 1997. Lead guide Brad Karafil operated on a flexible schedule, allowing him to follow weather patterns and utilize personal contacts to choose resorts or…
Bend, OR - With over 3,000 skiable acres, 10 chairlifts (seven of which are high-speed detachable quads) and a vertical drop of 3,365 feet that follows all 360 degrees of a volcanic cone, Oregon’s Mount Bachelor is one of America’s largest ski resorts. By all rights it should be a world-class ski and snowboard destination,…
Niseko, Japan - In January I spent three days skiing in Japan’s Hakuba Valley, site of the 1998 Olympic alpine events, and eight more days on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, which over the past decade has attracted a growing number of powder skiers from all over the globe thanks to the world’s greatest…
Pincher Creek (AB), Canada – The most common form of a rhombus is of course referred to as a diamond, and Castle Mountain is a diamond in so many forms. Unlike the ski resorts located inside the National Parks of Alberta, Castle is instead in a remote narrow valley well south of Calgary and approaching…
Banff (AB), Canada – Mount Norquay is not at all what it seems. You look at the trail map and the ski area looks kind of small. You read the stats and see only 190 acres of terrain. I am here to tell you that all of it is just an illusion. This place skis…
