Cat Skiing
Cat Skiing BC Canada Reviews
Cat skiing in BC is paradise for powderhounds. With all that fresh powder to sniff out and face shots galore, a powderhound’s tail will definitely be wagging if they go cat skiing in Canada.
Many avid skiers and boarders around the world don’t know what
cat skiing is, but the Canadians certainly do, and for them “knowledge is powder”!
What is Cat Skiing?
Cats or snowcats are large grooming style machines that transport about 14 skiers and snowboarders up to backcountry areas in a purpose built cabin. Whilst skiers and snowboarders are guided down fresh powder runs, the cat makes its way back to the bottom to pick them up to take them on the next run. Most cat ski operators have exclusive access to a large ski area that’s big enough to ensure riders always have fresh tracks – awesome!
Benefits of Cat Skiing BC
Cat skiing offers an opportunity to get away from the congestion and crowds at the ski resorts. “There are no friends on a powder day” is a common saying, but when you go cat skiing there is no powder panic and no need to use your elbows to get fresh lines. Freshies are almost guaranteed, and you only have to share the powder with a small group. Of course another huge benefit of cat skiing is that there are no mogul runs and definitely no unruly lift queues.
Snowcat skiing has some similarities to
heli skiing, with one of the main differences being that it’s much cheaper. Heli skiing also has grounded days where the helicopter can’t fly due to the weather. Thankfully snowcats can still go out in snow storms, and when the powder is falling is when you most want to be out there skiing.
The only downside to cat skiing is that it’s very easy to develop an addiction to powder. You have been warned!
Where is Cat Skiing in Canada?
Cat-skiing was pioneered in the Kootenay Rockies over 25 years ago, and British Columbia Canada continues to be the home of cat skiing.
The British Columbia Interior is infamous for cat skiing within mountain ranges such as the Rockies, Monashees, Selkirks, Purcells and Valhallas. The cat skiing areas in these mountains are renowned for receiving large quantities of light dry powder with phenomenal annual snowfalls of 12-18 metres. Pack your snorkel!
Due to the legendary snowfall, the area in the south-east corner of British Columbia has been called the Powder Triangle. There’s a bit of debate as to how far the triangle extends, but it includes the areas near Nelson, Rossland, Fernie, Meadow Creek, Revelstoke and Golden.
The Nelson region has the greatest concentration of operations, and these include
Wildhorse Cat Skiing,
Valhalla Powdercats and
Retallack Catskiing.
Big Red Cats near Rossland is also in the vicinity of Nelson, and Meadow Creek about 1:45 hours north of Nelson has a few cat ski operators including the infamous
Selkirk Wilderness Skiing (the inventors of cat skiing).
The
Fernie area in the southeast corner of BC has three companies: Powder Cowboy;
Island Lake Lodge; and
Fernie Wilderness Adventures.
The Golden and Revelstoke regions have various operators including
Mustang Powder and the
Revelstoke cat skiing operation at
Revelstoke ski resort. There are also a couple of cat ski operations near
Whistler in western BC, and
Skeena Cat Skiing is located in northern BC.
See our
Canada cat skiing stats comparison for an overview of the locations of cat ski operations in BC.
Safety
The discipline of cat skiing is not without risks considering that it occurs in the remote backcountry. Avalanches are one of the primary hazard concerns and the operations put various strategies in place to lessen the risk.
The industry is highly regulated in Canada so the emphasis on safety is much higher than with cat skiing in other parts of the world. BC has very high standards in relation to avalanche mitigation strategies and the safety briefings provided, and all operators provide highly qualified lead and tail guides to accompany the cat skiing group.
Types of Canada Cat Skiing
The most common format of cat skiing in Canada is that of multi-day trips that range from 2 to 7 days. The packages include all meals, and accommodation is provided in an exclusive remote lodge. Commonly these wilderness lodges can be only be accessed by snowcat or helicopter. An example is
Selkirk Wilderness Skiing.
Some multi-day operators also provide day skiing on a stand-by arrangement if space is available.
Island Lake Lodge,
Mustang Powder and
Retallack Catskiing fall into this category.
Other operators offer the option of either overnight packages or single day skiing without having to go on stand-by (e.g.
Wildhorse Cat Skiing,
Big Red Cats).
Another category is operators that only offer single day cat skiing. Of course you can go cat skiing more than one day, but accommodation is not included in the package. Examples include
Revelstoke Cat Skiing,
Valhalla Powdercats and
Powder Mountain near Whistler.
Single day trips typically cost about CA$400 per day in high season, with significant discounts in low season or on stand-by. Multi-day packages that include accommodation and meals cost anywhere from CA$450 to $900 per day depending upon the degree of luxury.
Ability Level Required
Some operators can accommodate strong intermediate riders up to experts, and if the operation has multiple snowcats, there’s a higher likelihood that you’ll be grouped with other riders of a similar ability. A couple of companies only cater to the expert rider, with terrain that has mandatory drop-offs and tight steep trees. Double check the type of terrain on offer prior to booking because you might think you’re an expert until you compare yourself to some of the Canadian locals!
Our
Canada cat skiing stats comparison provides an overview of the type of package on offer for each company and the ability level each caters to.
Where is the Best Cat Skiing in Canada?
When choosing the best cat skiing operation for your next snow holiday, everyone has different factors that are important in the decision making process. For some the choice is largely based on location, but for others it may be about the quality of the tree skiing, the amount of expert terrain, the emphasis on safety, or value for money. To help you choose the best cat ski experience for you, we have provided ratings on various operations in Canada and broken the ratings into various determinants including the most important factor of all….the powder! See our
Powderhounds cat ski and heli skiing ratings for more information.
For more detail, see our reviews of various cat skiing operations.
Go Powder Cat Skiing
In 2007 a large survey of cat skiing and heli skiing was commissioned in BC Canada. The survey results speak volumes – 98% of first time cat skiers indicated that they plan to go
cat skiing again. Once experienced, forever addicted!
Cat Skiing BC Listings
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Selkirk Wilderness Skiing - Meadow Creek
Where cat skiing began in 1975. SWS has over 35 years to refine its operation to what it is today; nothing short of what could be the ultimate cat skiing adventure in the world!
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Wildhorse Cat Skiing - Ymir (Nelson)
Do the wild-thing and go cat skiing with Wildhorse - yeehaa!!! Located in Ymir only 20 minutes from Nelson. Alpine bowls and naturally gladed trees.; not to mention the dry & abundant Kootenay powder.
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Valhalla Cat Skiing - Nelson
Terrific terrain with alpine bowls, chutes, cliffs, drop-offs and some terrific gladed tree runs. Located near Nelson. Go for a day or book an entire week.
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Retallack Cat Skiing - Nelson
This is cat skiing for the hard-core experienced skier & boarder; intermediates need not apply! Very steep terrain & tight trees. However if you are up to it, the riding is awesome and the POW is deep; very deep!!
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Fernie Wilderness Adventures (FWA)
FWA has some spectacular terrain with steeps, tight trees, cliffs and natural obstacles to huck-off. But don't let that scare you; it is also well suited to intermediate skiers & boarders.
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Island Lake Catskiing - Fernie
Cat skiing at its finest! Luxury cats, luxury lodges and beautifully gladed runs. Don't leave your wife at home for this one; it is very cruisy skiing in deep powder and deluxe all the way.
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Revelstoke Cat Skiing
Located at Revelstoke resort. Steep alpine bowls and steep tight trees. Huge annual snowfall of deep dry powder. Caters well for advanced and strong intermediate skiers & boarders.
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Big Red Cats - Red Mountain (Rossland)
18,500 acres to choose your next turn! You definitely won't ski all that POW in a day so make sure you book at least 3. BRCs have terrain to suit all levels.
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Mustang Powder - Revelstoke
Located near Revelstoke in the Monashee 's amongst some of BC 's best skiing terrain. Mustang Powder boasts a massive 18 meter (60 feet) annual snowfall. Pack your snorkle!
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Cat Ski Tours
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Powder Safari | 4 Days Cat + 2 Days Resort
Can't decide whether to go out cat skiing with Big Red Cats or Valhalla Powdercats? Then do 2 days with each of them with this combined tour PLUS ski Red Mountain and/or Whitewater.
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Catski Intro Tour | 3 days & 3 Nights
This tour is specifically designed for skiers & boarders who have never been cat skiing before or who have never skied deep powder before. Includes 3 nights lodgng & all meals. 2 dates only so be quick!
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