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Articles in Category: Powder Skiing

The latest news from the catskiing / snowcat industry.  Where to ski, who has snow, whats happening.  We also post reviews of the latest gear, skis, and some general interest stuff.  Be sure to check for last minute deals to make your winter vacation the best.

Oh How You Tease us SWS!

Teaser today, short film coming on October 9th, 2012

This very quick teaser hit the web today and it is 19 seconds of pure deep powder awesome! Selkirk Wilderness has The Sherpas out last season to shoot a short film about life at their operation. We were there and the snow was insane. We had a super deep couple of days catskiing up there and some great apres ski time as well.

For now, enjoy the trailer, but check back on Tuesday October 9th for the entire film.

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The Icebreaker Kodiak Jacket – Water Resistant RealFleece

This oughta make the sheep jealous!

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Icebreaker Kodiak Hood RealFleece

We are huge fans of Icebreaker Pure Merino here at Catskiing Canada. We have been using the ultimate no-stink garments for years and are happy to report that their technology has made our road trips much more pleasant. Over the past few seasons, Icebreaker has been adding more and more fashion pieces into their line up to attract the mainstream shopper, but they haven't gone slack on the technology.

Enter the new nanotechnology Kodiak Hood. That's right, nanotechnology. It makes me think of robots, computers and eventually the Terminator. But Icebreaker has taken nanotechnology and applied it to their RealFleece line of clothing. What nanotechnology does when combined with Icebreaker RealFleece is make a garment that is warm, dry, and now water-resistant. Water-Resistant wool eh? I can't wait to tell my grandma and see the look on her face.

We have only had the Kodiak Hood for a few weeks now and it has been an incredibly warm Fall here in western Canada, but we can tell you this: it is a very striking looking jacket. It has very clean cut lines, a shaped hood, and shaped-sleeved cuffs for better feel around the wrists. Couple the nanotechnology with the RealFleece and Icebreaker's famous quality and you have yourself a jacket you can rely on to be dependable and stylish. It truly is a remarkable piece of clothing.

If you are in BC, try the Icebreaker Kodiak Hood and the rest of the nanotechnology RealFleece line up at your local Icebreaker dealer. One of our favorites is Freshair.ca

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25 Years of Island Lake Catskiing - True Pioneers

The first in a series of webisodes celebrating 25 years of powder catskiing

Island Lake Catskiing has been around 25 years this season and they are celebrating that with a series of webisodes showing their history. This first one has true legends of skiing and snowboarding talking about their affection for Island Lake. Scot Schmidt and Craig Kelly are personal ski and board heroes of mine. I still have my posters of Scot Schmidt rolled up in the closet from when I was a teen. I aspired to ski where these guys skied and Island Lake was the place.

Now 25 years later, Island Lake Catskiing is still going strong delivering powder dreams to people from all over the world. They grew from a time when no one really knew about catskiing to a time where people are saving up for that dream powder vacation. Thanks for inspiring us all Island Lake Catskiing, Scot Schmidt, Craig Kelly and the rest of the people lived their dream and made Island Lake what it is today. 

Enjoy the video and stay tuned for more.

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Big Red Cats 2012 Video Edit

Some epic footage from another epic season at BRC.

Big Red Catskiing has put this edit together showcasing some of the Kootenay Powder action from last season. And what a season it was! Kieren and Paula had some time on their hands (which is rare!) and decided to become video editors along with all the other hats they wear! This video is a complitation of clips from video crews from Rip Curl, Mike Douglas/Salomon, Steve Omischl, Head Snowboards, Peak Productions and us here at Catskiing Canada.

Watching it a few times got me stoked about the coming season at Big Red Cats. Especially now that they have been building new roads, glading some tree areas and have recently taken delivery to 2 more Pisten Bully snow cats. BRC now has 4 full time ski cats with a 5th cat as a back up along with another cat for road building. This means that they can run up to 4 groups at a time this season with a back up. Amazing!

Now, you might think 'Hey, 4 snow cats operating in one area...won't it be busy?' and that is a valid question to ask. However, we were up at Big Red Cats last season with 4 cats running and we didn't see any other catskiing group the entire day. The terrain at Big Red is so big - 19,300 acres and growing - that there is enough room for everyone. Plus, Big Red Cats offers seperate trips based on your skill level so each cat has a group that is at the same level you are at. Intermediate, Advanced, Expert and Uber Expert!

Below are a few images of the new snow cats and the excavator hard at work this Fall.

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New Terrain Announced at Valhalla Powdercats

Be one of the first to ski the Caribou Bowl

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There is new terrain coming for this season at Valhalla Powdercats. They have been hard at work this summer and have almost doubled their total skiable acres. Tyler and his crew have been planning this expansion for some time now and this season it will become a reality. They have creating access to some incredible new big mountain terrain in an area they have named The Caribou Bowl.

In the words of Valhalla Powdercats owner Patric:  "it's so much new terrain  - it's RIDICULOUS!"

These quality lines are North and East aspects of high alpine slopes, which means more dry, untracked pow for you all winter long. Check out their availability and be one of the first to shred the new terrain!

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Enter to WIN 2 Days of Catskiing

Plus a bunch of other awesome stuff from Outdoor Research and Icebreaker

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Win a 2 day trip for 2 to the catskiing destination OF YOUR CHOICE. Click on the icons below to read about each one, and choose a location that would create the ulitmate adventure for you. TWO sidecountry ski jackets from our friends at Outdoor Research. TWO sets of the ultimate base layers from Icebreaker Pure Merino. And if that is not enough, we are also setting the winner up with TWO pairs of gloves from Outdoor Research as well. So you can see why we called this the GREAT Catskiing give away right?

Choose your trip from one of our participating Catskiing Operators:

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CLICK HERE TO ENTER and to fill out your information and a short questionnaire and be entered in this totally awesome contest.

Click here for FULL CONTEST DETAILS

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The New Sony Action Cam - Will it Replace your GoPro?

Sony jumps into the POV camera market with the Sony Action Cam

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You might think that GoPro and Contour have the market locked as far as POV action cams go. But then Sony wades onto the scene with the new Sony Action Cam. They are hoping to build on their reputation as a premier consumer camera manufacture with quality builds and lenses to gain a foothold. And they just might get a chunk.

The Sony Action Cam boasts Full 1080p HD video with 4X HD slow motion. It comes complete with its version of a rugged waterproof case (to 197ft apparently). You have to buy all the extra mounts separately just as you do with GoPro and Contour.

Where Sony hopes to differ is with it's Carl Zeiss lens technology. This is one area where GoPro and Contour lags a little. The consistency of the shots and video colours and quality is not quite there. Hopefully the Sony Action Cam can provide consistent output in varying lighting conditions.

Anyways, long story short: The Sony Action Cam is 'Coming Soon', it is going to start at $199 and will no doubt be seen on the slopes this winter. Stay tuned for a full review once we get our hands on one.

Here is a little teaser video:

United Airlines now flying into Kelowna BC from LAX

Great news for ski travelers from the US

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Before United Airlines actually starts flying into Kelowna International Airport (YLW) an additional flight has been added.

Bolstered by higher than expected early bookings on the new daily Los Angeles (LAX) flight scheduled to begin Dec. 19, United Airlines is now adding a second seasonal Saturday flight to operate Jan. 5 to April 6, 2013.

"The inbound ski industry as well as outbound holiday travelers, will see this as very good news," says Jenelle Hynes, YLW marketing and media relations. "This additional Saturday flight has been specifically timed to link YLW to Sydney and Melbourne, Australia and Auckland, New Zealand."

Daily service on United Airlines Express between LAX and YLW  was announced on July 10, 2012.