Darren and I drove to Keefer Lake after two days of skiing at Silver Star for a four day cat ski tour. We were a little unsure of what to expect conditions wise due to the unseasonable weather this year but driving up the logging road to the lodge felt like a return to winter. The main lodge itself is extremely nice and well appointed. Very nice finishes with a full bar, common area and dining area on the main level. The lower level of the main lodge has a drying room for the guests staying in the main lodge as well as a game room (pool, darts and foosball), massage rooms, outdoor hot tub and sauna. The second floor of the main lodge is guest rooms. Darren and I had accommodations in the second lodge which is about 30 meters from the main lodge. The guests in each lodge ski together in their respective snow cats. All of the rooms are equipped with ensuite bathrooms which is quite a nice touch.
The outside of the main lodge on the 11th prior to the first day of skiing.
My ensuite bathroom.
My private room.
We had excellent skiing conditions on day 1. There were some bumpy sections on runouts due to wet slab avalanches that triggered during the unusually warm weather a few weeks before our arrival and some suboptimal conditions approaching the runouts but most of the vertical was very good.
Before dropping in to our second run which was very nice snow and fairly steep. On the third run we skied the line across the ridge behind us above the cliff band in the slot between the trees.
The entrance to the third run of day one.
The outdoor apres area.
I enjoyed a Rusty Nail by the fire between apres and dinner.
On day 2 we again had some excellent skiing but only in the upper elevations. The longer runs down to lower cat tracks were survival skiing in either very crusty or icy snow often in steep treed terrain. The professional photographer joined us on the second and fourth day, the two photos below were taken by him.
Apres on day 2 included a traditional Swiss winter delicacy, Raclette!
I was very skeptical that we would get good skiing after the second day because of the conditions on lower elevations and temperature on day 2 but it turned cold and the third and fourth day ended up being the best snow quality of the entire trip. Although I somehow managed to not get any actual ski photos on day 3 so the following are all from day 4.
Darren and I waiting for guide instructions.
Excellent tree skiing on day 4.
One of the best lines of the day in the glades.
Keefer was a very well run operation and the hospitality is top notch. I'll give a list of my pros and cons below.
Pros
The outside of the main lodge on the 11th prior to the first day of skiing.
My ensuite bathroom.
My private room.
We had excellent skiing conditions on day 1. There were some bumpy sections on runouts due to wet slab avalanches that triggered during the unusually warm weather a few weeks before our arrival and some suboptimal conditions approaching the runouts but most of the vertical was very good.
Before dropping in to our second run which was very nice snow and fairly steep. On the third run we skied the line across the ridge behind us above the cliff band in the slot between the trees.
The entrance to the third run of day one.
The outdoor apres area.
I enjoyed a Rusty Nail by the fire between apres and dinner.
On day 2 we again had some excellent skiing but only in the upper elevations. The longer runs down to lower cat tracks were survival skiing in either very crusty or icy snow often in steep treed terrain. The professional photographer joined us on the second and fourth day, the two photos below were taken by him.
Apres on day 2 included a traditional Swiss winter delicacy, Raclette!
I was very skeptical that we would get good skiing after the second day because of the conditions on lower elevations and temperature on day 2 but it turned cold and the third and fourth day ended up being the best snow quality of the entire trip. Although I somehow managed to not get any actual ski photos on day 3 so the following are all from day 4.
Darren and I waiting for guide instructions.
Excellent tree skiing on day 4.
One of the best lines of the day in the glades.
Keefer was a very well run operation and the hospitality is top notch. I'll give a list of my pros and cons below.
Pros
- Very nice lodge with full amenities.
- Excellent food and very accommodating of special requests.
- Friendly, attentive staff.
- Extremely comfortable snowcat with lots of options for lunch, snacks, etc. (even including a free end of day beer).
- Great tree skiing with nice run length and continuity.
- Guides found us mostly great skiing even in a difficult snow year.
- Not much above tree line terrain which isn't a huge drawback for me as I like tree skiing but I also enjoy some variety when conditions allow.
- Dinners are a long affair for my taste (~2 hours) with too much time between courses for my liking.
- Very heavy emphasis on alcohol/food pairing (there is a sommelier onsite). I enjoy a drink or two but I don't want 2-3 types of wine and a dessert cocktail with my meals on top of apres and cocktail hour.
- The guide instructions weren't as good as other operations I've visited in the past. Myself and four other guests got separated from the main group and ended up a few hundred meters down the cat track after taking the wrong route in a terrain fork where we followed tracks from a previous run. Even looking back on it now I don't see how I would have been able to choose correctly given the instructions at the top of the run.
- A 15% gratuity was automatically added to the closing tab which felt fairly high (~C$300/day) and also somewhat pushy to be presented with that already on the receipt with the bar tab. I adjusted it down to C$190/day in line with what I've seen given as guidance from other operators (C$125-C$200/day).