SnowSeekers.ca correspondents Chris Tobias and Kevin Prisiak have embarked on a 10-day, 6-resort tour across Western Canada in search of epic powder courtesy of Acura. They'll be blogging throughout their trip, right here at SnowSeekers.ca/acura-road-trip
KEVIN PRISIAK
Day 3 of 10. Wow. What a day, on so many levels!
Creeping out of my delightfully comfortable bed in my great room in the Lake Louise Inn at 6 am, I noticed the car covered in snow. I could barely get a wink of sleep in after that. The Lake Louise Inn is a great hotel, with awesome facilities that include a pool, hot tubs, a steam room, a nice little gift shop, and three different places to eat. would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to stay in Lake Louise, be it a couple of snowboarders looking for a place super close to the mountain, or a family hoping to see some bears in the summertime.
My addiction to coffee was satisfied by the delicious Starbucks coffee served at the Lake Louise Inn, then a quick stop to say farewell (aka check out) to the awesome front desk staff at the Lake Louise Inn, and we were good to go. Off to the hill. Lake Louise reported 26c m of fresh snow overnight! YES!
Upon our arrival at the hill, our guide for the day, Mike Moynihan, met us, and I think he was more anxious to get riding than we were…which says a lot. It was 8.30 am, a nice 30 minutes before the general public is allowed up. Fresh tracks! Smooth, creamy, delicious...some of the best snow I have ever been able to ride, and I have been riding religiously for about a decade.
First tracks for all
 Photo courtesy of Chris Tobias |
Mike was telling us how if you have a craving to get on the hill before everyone else, you can book a “First Tracks – Locals Favourite” lesson (max 2 people). With Mike as our guide for the day, we took on Lake Louise full bore. After the warm-up run Mike realized that he did not have to hold back, and we were taken on an awesome adventure to some of Lake Louise’s best powder stashes.
By 11:30 we had already done 9 runs (that we could remember). After a stop to rest our legs and fill our bellies at the Temple Lodge on the backside of the mountain, it was back to a great day with tons of great pow in the trees, open bowls full of knee-deep snow to cruise through, and one wicked terrain park. I cannot honestly write about the mountain at Lake Louise without mentioning the park. The features of the park are nearly endless, with something for everyone, beginner to pro: a boardercross track, jumps of all sizes, rails, and boxes. It might just be the best terrain park in the Rockies. Sadly (actually gladly), we only did one run through the park, as the powder was just too awesome!
An enjoyable day at Lake Louise is a gross understatement. Mike saw us off after a delicious après appetizer and beverage at the Great Bear Lounge at the base.
With destination number two under our belts, we hit the road once again. Revelstoke is the next foray into powder bliss (hopefully).
Surprise! Unbeknownst to us, Highway number 1 was closed from Golden to Revelstoke. Sure wasn’t expecting that. Talking to a truck driver from Moose Jaw, I found out the highway had been closed since the day before at 6 pm. More investigation of the situation revealed that the road might be opened up at 7 pm—a 3 hour delay for us—but at least there was a chance of the road opening. After waiting for what seemed like 2 large Americanos, the road to Revelstoke was cleared and we were on our way once again.
A check-in at the Sandman Inn in Revelstoke, and I am ready for mountain number 3 on the list of 6!