WHISTLER, B.C. -- We're standing at the bottom of Flute Bowl, Whistler Mountain's newly patrolled and controlled backcountry, waiting for the rest of our crew. Suddenly we see three snowboarders drop in over a cornice on a far corner of the ridge top and carve snaking, powder-tossing patterns almost straight down the mountain.
Immediately I'm thinking, what a brilliant line! There are no tracks up there, even though it's two weeks since the last big snow. How did those suckers find that line?
By Greg Johnston | January 20, 2005
Rather than becoming dormant in winter, many of British Columbia's small towns and villages ramp up the excitement. If winter adventures -- both soft- and hard-core-- quicken your pulse, here are a few possibilities:
Clearwater
By Judi Lees | January 20, 2005
Hike of the Week
Forest Service Road No. 4832 is part of the complex web of roads and spurs near Mount Margaret and Rampart Ridge, east of Snoqualmie Pass. These multiple-use roads are accessed from the Gold Creek Sno-park and are open to skiers, hikers, snowshoers and snowmobiles. The sno-park is a popular one; if you go on a weekend, you'll need an early start for any measure of solitude.
By Karen Sykes | January 20, 2005
HEATHER MEADOWS, Whatcom County — An oft-heard adage goes that if you can walk, then you can snowshoe.
Well, on a recent snowshoe outing with Whatcom County Parks and Recreation Department, another snowshoe-related one occurred to me. Something along the lines of: If you can fall on snowshoes, then you're pretty much guaranteed a truckload of laughs.
By Mike McQuaide | January 20, 2005
Location: Auburn.
Length: About a half mile.
Level of difficulty: Flat-to-gentle grass and dirt trails.
Setting: Set on land purchased by King County in 1966, this pleasant multi-use park offers large grassy meadows and a trail along the northeast shore of Five Mile Lake. In the southeastern part of the park, trails lead up to a forested knoll with a fort-like structure that overlooks the lake and its fringing marshes.
By Cathy McDonald | January 20, 2005
