Stellar Heli Skiing Location

Stellar Heli Skiing is located in British Columbia Canada, the home of exceptional heli skiing. The terrain of Stellar Heliskiing is situated in both the Selkirk and Purcell Mountains in the Kootenays, the powder mecca of British Columbia. The base is in the lovely little town of Kaslo on the western shoreline of Kootenay Lake, and the meeting point is the Kaslo Hotel at 430 Front Street. Kaslo is about 70km northeast of the town of Nelson (and 22km north of Ainsworth Hot Spring).

Nearby Cat Skiing

Stellar is 39km south of the tiny settlement of Meadow Creek, which is home to Selkirk Snowcat Skiing and White Grizzly Cat Skiing but good luck trying to get into either of those cat ski operations. Retallack Cat Skiing is across the road from some of the Stellar terrain in New Denver, and it too is usually booked out.

Gateway Airports

Stellar Heliskiing is about 4hour north of Spokane International Airport in Washington State. If you fly into Spokane, you can warm up at any of the Selkirk Powder Triangle locations.

Kaslo is 4:40 hours east of Kelowna International Airport. You could do a few warm-up days of cat skiing at Monashee Powdercats on the way.

Kaslo is 110km northeast of Castlegar Airport (un-affectionately called Cancelgar) but this airport is often plagued by flight cancellations.

You can look at options for car rentals here or make an enquiry regarding other transport options or driving directions.

Snow

The region is world renowned for the dry powder snow, and the mountains at the north end of Kootenay Lake have consistently cold temperatures. The terrain reaches up to 10,000 feet in elevation, further contributing to the high quality snow. The snow gods are also generous when it comes to snow volume, with upwards of 18 metres (60ft) of snow each year.

Terrain

Stellar Heliskiing has a huge number of runs to choose from in the Selkirks and Purcells, with access to 320 square kilometres (32,000 hectares or approximately 80,000 acres) of tenure. All this space and you only have to share it with a small number of skiers/snowboarders (maximum 12-24 guests at a time).

Stellar also has it in spades when it comes to terrain diversity, with glaciers, big mountain slopes, and old growth forests. Runs are 1,500 to 4,000 foot descents, and intermediate (in off-piste conditions) up to expert skiers and boarders are catered for.

Guides, Helicopters & Safety

SHS Guides & Helicopters
Your safety is the first priority at Stellar Heliskiing. All of their expert CSGA/ACMG certified guides and pilots are well trained to manage the risks of backcountry skiing and travel to ensure the highest level of safety for your visit. There are no greater than four guests to each guide.

The helicopter service provider has an outstanding reputation for safety and client enjoyment. High Terrain’s pilots are highly capable and specially trained in the local mountain environment. The helicopters used are A-Star Eurocopters which carry four guests and one guide at a time.

Orientation/Safety
Stellar Heliskiing follows a comprehensive snow and avalanche management system which includes procedures for collecting weather and snow information, evaluating snowpack stability, assessing hazards in the terrain, and determining an appropriate skiing program tailored to on-the-ground conditions and the needs of its clients.

Small Groups
Stellar focuses on full service and unforgettable experiences for small groups in incredible terrain. For the ultimate in enjoyment and safety, Stellar offers a group ratio of one guide to a maximum of four guests. The A-Star helicopter is fast and powerful, allowing us the speed and agility to get into more elaborate terrain and provide your guide the ability to choose from many different run styles to suit the specific needs and desires of each group.

Stellar Heliskiing Booking Terms & Conditions

Booking Policies

Due to the nature of this vacation, commitments must be made well in advance of your package beginning with us. We require a deposit of 25% of your multi day package or single day package, which must be received by Stellar Heliskiing within 10 days of confirmation of your reservation. All payments are payable to Stellar Heliskiing.

Payment of the balance is due November 1. Reservations may be cancelled without notice to the guest if full payment has not been received by Stellar Heliskiing on the due date. For bookings made after Nov 1 full package price is due at time of booking. Payments can be made by Visa, MasterCard, AMEX, cash, bank wire or cheque.

Cancellations

If you have to cancel your reservation, we require written notification by registered mail. Cancellations made before Oct 31 are refundable less a 4% fee. Cancellations made after Nov 1 are NON-REFUNDABLE and will be retained by Stellar Heliskiing. If the cancelled reservation can be re-sold to another guest that assumes the contractual obligations, and only if the cancelled space is still available, a change of reservation fee of $250 will apply. Stellar Heliskiing reserves the right to cancel any package at any time. FULL REFUNDS will be given if this is the situation.

Vertical Guarantee

All of our multi-day programs include unlimited vertical but sometimes mother nature doesn’t always cooperate! As a result, we guarantee a minimum of 3,000 metres per day. We offer a metre refund if you are unable to meet the vertical guarantee based on poor weather or mechanical breakdown. We do not give refunds based on a lack of physical fitness or a willingness on your part to return early. Or if you are instructed to stop skiing because we (in our sole discretion) determine that you are not physically fit or able, no refund will be provided, even if the run minimum is not met for other reasons.

Metre Refund

Refunds given for “down days” due to poor weather or mechanical breakdown will be limited, a $150.00 administration fee will apply. There is no refund if you choose not to participate in any activity, because of physical fitness, rider ability or choose to return to the staging area early. Refunds will be based on a minimum of 3,000 metres per day. This minimum guarantee is cumulative for multi day trips.

Travel Insurance

Emergency Medical (including Helicopter Ambulance/Evacuation to hospital) Insurance is included as part of your package. This coverage will only be in place while you are our guest at Stellar Heliskiing.

No one ever plans to need medical care while away; but if you do experience misadventures on your vacation, Emergency Medical Coverage can cover ambulance, hospitalization, surgery, prescriptions, emergency transportation home and more. All claims require you to be seen by a physician. We also recommend personal insurance to cover loss of baggage, skis, etc due to airlines or unforeseen accidents. Your homeowners insurance may not be enough. Make sure your insurance covers you while you are in Canada. No refunds are given due to illness or injury. Stellar reserves the right to resell the seat or fill it with a staff member or partner. In the case of either, no reimbursement will be given to the guest.

Trip Cancellation/Interruption

We understand that occasionally events occur that prevent you from joining us for your vacation. Life is full of surprises and so is travel! You can’t predict a missed flight connection, job loss, death of a family member or your own early season ski injury. When an unexpected event prevents you from travelling, Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption reimburses travel costs if your trip is cancelled before you leave or disrupted after it has begun.

To avoid any financial hardship that an unexpected cancellation or interruption could cause, we strongly recommend purchasing Trip Cancellation/Interruption to protect your trip investment. Trip Cancellation/Interruption costs about 5% of your trip cost and it’s worth the peace of mind! 

Liability Waiver

In spite of all safety precautions, accidents can happen. This is part of the intrinsic risk of backcountry skiing. Before we can invite you to explore our terrain with us, you must sign our liability waiver acknowledging that you understand and accept the risks involved with heli skiing. Please review our digital waiver and feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

Powderhounds Review of Stellar Heli Skiing

We were staying in Nelson (to go to Whitewater and go cat skiing) and as we departed, it was raining. Considering the yucky weather, we thought our chances of a fly day with Stellar Heliskiing were pretty slim, but as we drove an hour to Kaslo and into the fridge towards the northern end of the lake, the temperatures dropped a little. It still looked rather hit and miss as we drove NE near Retallack to the staging area, but somehow or another, Jason and his crew managed to pull it off and get us out for the day. 20cm of fresh snow made it pretty sweet too!

All day the guides and heli pilot were maneuvering around the clouds and wind, making the miracle of a fly day possible. We mostly skied the highly renowned trees of the region, which varied significantly from nice spacing in amongst old growth trees to tighter trees with lovely corridors, and Jason has done a little glading at the exits to some of the runs, so the flow was really nice.

The weather factors contributed to us only doing pretty short runs because the heli couldn’t get too high. Due to weather plus group make-up we only did 3,350m (11,000ft) vertical for the day, which is within the realm of expected limited vert package (3,000 to 5,500 vertical metres). Thankfully quantity wasn’t a big priority because the quality was superb. We only saw one tiny fraction of the Stellar terrain and we were impressed! We had a phenomenal day and the stoke levels were still really high during après-ski drinks at the Kaslo Hotel!

Pros

• Stellar Heliskiing offers single day and various length multi-day heli trips, so it provides plenty of flexibility to choose what suits.
• The location is ideal to have some warm-up skiing at Whitewater ski resort and/or a nearby cat ski operation (if you book the cat skiing a long way in advance).
• It’s a small operation, so the experience is delightfully boutique.
• Small group heli skiing is the ultimate and increases safety considerations along with terrain choice and freshies. The small heli is agile to get to the best spots.
• Stellar is owner operated and the highly experienced Jason and his team ensure there is attention to detail with respect to safety and other operational considerations.
• Down days are minimal so they can usually get you out skiing despite what Mother Nature throws at them.
• Like many other BC heli skiing outfits, there is a huge variety of terrain on offer and the snow quality and quantity are superb. There is a good reason that a few snowcat skiing operations have set up shop in the region, and naturally with the heli skiing, the upper elevations of the terrain are much higher.
• Stellar Heliskiing is somewhat of a newcomer to the BC heli skiing industry, and it’s relatively unknown because it’s not based near a big trendy ski town, so you have a decent chance of getting a spot without booking 5 years in advance.

Con

• Kaslo isn’t situated close to any major (reliable) airports so it takes a while to get there, although the same can be said for many BC heli ski outfits.

Pro or Con Depending on Your Perspective

• Stellar Heli Skiing is not based at a remote backcountry lodge if that’s what you’re looking for, although staying in Kaslo would be pretty nice. The town location also makes day heli skiing possible, and arrival/departure logistics much easier.

You can check out our heli ski ratings to see how Stellar Heliskiing fares against other operations.

Further Information & Bookings

Click here to reserve the trip of your life!