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Shred legendary Powder King for #pkallday pow, simple northern chill
Powder King Mountain Resort, BC — For local snowboarder Cody Harder, riding Powder King hits different from central and southern ski resorts in Western Canada. It's about returning to simplicity.
"There is no hustle here," Harder explains, "Just no lift lines and powder for weeks."
Over the past 15 years or so writing about this Northern ski mecca known for its regal powder status, I've had six or seven days on its slopes.
Two of six of those days were out of this world, chalking up to be some of my best days on snow EVER. Knee-deep pow, waking up to a car looking like a phat mogul.
HIT PLAY for a taste of #PKallday
Their slogan "PK all day" truly lives up to the suggestion given any snow seeker simply wakes up to some of BC's best donuts or a delicious eggs benny at Cafe 97 (just three minutes up the road at Azouzetta Lake Lodge), then time to rip mass pow lines, après, and perhaps a round of crib before bed; to simply rinse & repeat.
Powder King is a place where you connect with people, not devices, as this past SnowSeekers story shares. Getting here is easy as it's straight as an arrow north of Kamloops.
Photo:
Ember Harper-Fedirko
Drive the Pine Pass to Powder King, and roll up to epic powder.
"The biggest difference in driving through the north is that it's simple, the roads are straight, less curves then in the south, with wide mountain passes that are way less intense," explains Horsefly, BC-based shredder Sebastian Sullivan.
Powder King is located within the Pine Pass, along Highway 97 north heading towards Dawson Creek and the Alberta border to Grande Prairie.
hit the road to ski and ride Powder King now
Ski and ridge legendary Powder King and stick around for a few days of epic shredding... just like the powder
"The Pine Pass is beautiful," explains Ember Harper, the #skinorthbc photographer for this assignment. "And the Pass has lots of pullouts, where you can get out, stretch the legs and have a chill with an impressive view."
Photo:
Ember Harper-Fedirko
A view of the snowy Pine Pass, from up above at Powder King.
On our drive to produce this story, we saw a bunch of deer, two moose and a barn owl. “There is so much wildlife up here,” says Harper, “next to the views, the chance to see a moose or other wildlife keeps it interesting.”
Since its 1985 launch, Powder King has grown through its almost 40 years of operation. The new daylodge completed in fall 2023 is home to a pub, restaurant, snow school, and rental shop. Adjacent to the daylodge, the hostel offers a place for weary shredders to bed down for the night.
Photo:
Ember Harper-Fedirko
Powder King's new daylodge delivers all the amenities, including excellent pub fare to fill pow hungry bellies.
And down the road about five minutes sits their Azouzetta Lake Lodge. This lodge is where you will find those donuts people drive hours to score a bite of.
Top tips for Powder King Mountain Resort
1. Get to the donuts early and avoid sell-outs "You'll be fighting your mother over the Boston Cream," exclaims Mackenzie BC based Harder.
Trust us, there is a reason that Cafe 97 has to make 300 to 600 donuts a day at any time of year.
Photo:
Ember Harper-Fedirko
Azouzetta serves up fresh baked doughnuts to fuel your day.
2. A solid playlist: traveling to Powder King will take you about eight hours from either Kamloops or Edmonton or two hours from Prince George.
How to get there is simple:
- Highway 97 North from Kamloops: "You can't miss it," says Sullivan, "it's straight North and directly off the highway right just past the town of Mackenzie turn off."
- Highway 43 North from Edmonton into Highway 97 S at the AB/BC border.
3. Stay at the Azouzetta (book here) so you can possibly score some of your sickest powder turns, fueled by donuts that could even still be warm!
When you go
There are two sections to Powder King, the upper—which can include a rad summit hike—or the lower section.
We had an inversion in effect where it was 10 degrees warmer in the upper section; so we stayed high and stayed warmer.
Be sure & hit the "Black Forest" section of the resort, this is where you will find powder the longest, even a week or two after the last snowfall.
Photo:
Ember Harper-Fedirko
The Black Forest preserves powder for days, and even weeks.
Stay at Powder King's Azouzetta Lake Lodge and request a cabin (you don't lose on the bunkhouse option either) .
Photo:
Ember Harper-Fedirko
With digs like these at Azouzetta Lake lodge, there's nothing quite like getting snowed in at Powder King.
In summer this lodge turns into a lake front oasis, which include a campground, making the perfect basecamp to go dinosaur hunting up the road at Tumbler Ridge, per this ZenSeekers coverage.
Wildlife and driving safety Add some deer whistles on your car; one of the best parts of the drive is that there is tons of wildlife, but safety first. (Score some for $5 or $10 at Canadian Tire.)
Extend your trip Connect Powder King with Jasper's Marmot Basin, or as in this #skinorthbc suggested itinerary, Quesnel's Troll Resort.
Keep it straight and keep it simple, book with Powder King today, step back in time where instead of clicking on with tech, click into a destination for powder hounds.
Share Let us know what you find on your Powder King adventures, be sure and include the #skinorthbc hashtag within your posts so we might feature you on SnowSeekers social media channels.
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