Banff 2023

Banff 2023 In Review

Sixteen members of the Pacific Ski Club and their sister club, the Victoria Alpine Ski Club, either drove up in their shared rides or flew into Calgary International Airport and caught transportation to Banff.  My group, Dave, Trevor and I, left on February 4^th and stayed overnight in Revelstoke.  We arrived at the Banff Aspen Lodge on Sunday, February 5^th for our seven night stay.

Banff, and its three ski areas, Sunshine Village, Lake Louise, and Norquay, had little in the way of a snow base until the week before we arrived.  On the 4^th, they had some 7cm of new and it snowed all the way up and overnight.  As a result, we had more than 20cm of new when we hit Sunshine Village on Monday.  More snow fell that night with almost 8 cm of new lay on  the ground in Banff in addition to the rest.  The mountains received more.  The skiers at Lake Louise told us the conditions on our arrival were some of the best all year.

Many in our group skied five or six days, but I took Wednesday off to enjoy Banff and the beautiful town in the Rocky Mountains.  In fact, Marie, Trevor, Irene and Olimpia came just to enjoy the seven days in Banff without strapping any boards on.  Magnificent!  There were walks along the Bow River, to and from the iced-over waterfalls; hikes up to the Sulfur Mountain base and then the gondola ride to the top; trips to the hot pools in Banff; the massive Banff Hotel; the oldest museum in Canada, and many great restaurants and bars.

Speaking of bars, St. James Gate, the Rose & Crown, and the Royal Canadian Legion were just a few we visited on a few occasions.  Magpie & Stumps still has its great décor and sumptuous Mexican food, the Tea House had a great selection of local brews, Masala’s and the Indian Curry House had curries

to die for, Iain celebrated his birthday at the Old Spaghetti Factory, Grizzly’s Steak House has a wide variety of meats to offer, and the Ticino Swiss/Italian Restaurant was a new twist on European food, all worth visiting with friends.

Our hotel, the Banff Aspen Lodge, has the best location on Banff Avenue.  The bus picks us up next door for the free trip to the ski hills, and we are only one block away from the beginning of the town’s centre.  We had both outdoor hot tubs running, the steam room was on, and some of the ladies found that the hotel also offers laundry faculties.  All of our rooms were the Premium Rooms meaning we had tables and chairs, a balcony, a small fridge and most had two bedrooms with two queen size beds, two sinks to brush teeth and wash, and a large bathroom.  Couples had a king size bed and a second room as a living room or party room.  With the fantastic breakfasts which ran from 6:30 am until 10 am, the free ski storage lockers, and the free, heated underground parking, this was a ski trip no one should have missed.

In fact, we had so much fun that most skiers demanded that we see if we can get back into the same location next year.

Our executive had a short meeting and we have already approached the management with our dates for the 2024 Banff ski trip.  We will only book ten (10) rooms.  Check us out regularly—do not miss Banff 24’

 

We enjoy having fun with friends; we offer the lowest prices possible to our members and the members of our sister club.  You MUST be a member to book onto any our our combines ski trips.  No exceptions!