With skiing constantly gaining popularity over the last several decades, it has become harder and harder for hardcore skiers to gain access to runs that aren’t over crowded and over groomed. The advent of heliskiing however has opened up a whole new world of untouched and unspoiled ski runs for the most ambitious of skiers to tackle. Heliskiing runs are carefully selected by the tour groups and resorts that offer them in order to ensure skier safety; however, they still offer some of the longest runs around in open, untouched powder, which is a skier’s paradise.
There is heliskiing offered all over the world now, including Canada, Alaska, the continental United States, the Himalayas and central Europe, including the Swiss Alps. Heliskiing is all about getting to ski runs that are off the beaten path, without having to equip oneself with a full setup for mountain adventure ski hiking, which can be quite a bit more than the average skier is ready to tackle.
In most areas that offer heliskiing, it is required to hire a guide to accompany your party. This is because of the inherent dangers of back country skiing. The mountains can be a dangerous place and it is vital to know where you are going. This helps skiers avoid any cliffs or crevasses that can be present on the mountains, as well as avoiding potential avalanche zones.
For many, the appeal of heliskiing is all about the challenge. You can find extremely challenging tree runs, as well as snow that is much more difficult to tackle than the finely groomed snow that is probably present on the lower portions of the mountain. This challenge is a large part of what appeals to people, as well as a much longer run in proportion to the time it takes you to reach the summit.
Whistler Blackcomb resort in British Columbia, Canada, is one of the largest ski resorts in the world and has a popular heliski touring component. This is a great location to go to if you’re looking to break into or try heliskiing for the first time. Spend a few days getting your ski legs back underneath you on any of Whistler’s 200 or more ski runs and, once you’re comfortable, try for something a bit more exciting and a bit more challenging - go on a heliskiing adventure!
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This entry was posted on Friday, August 1st, 2008 at 1:44 am and is filed under Fun. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
August 13th, 2008 at 12:56 am
Very cool pictures! I went skiing in Colorado this year and it was amazing. I would love to heliski.