Related: Burnt Knob, Revelstoke: The Perfect Macpherson Slidepaths

Report from January 7, 2026

On a foggy, cold January morning, Freddy and I rolled into the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club parking lot. The dream: spend the day slashing powder turns down Fuzzy and Burnt Knob. We followed the Main Loop Trail, generally aiming for another very popular ski touring zone, the Macpherson Fingers. After 20 minutes of easy progress, we branched off the groomed trail on an unnamed skid road, traversing the east face of Mt Macpherson.

We marched up the skid road, carving a deep trail in more than 60cm of fresh powder. The hard work was only beginning. Thankfully, someone had already set a trail a few days ago, leaving a barely noticeable depression in the snow. Looking across the valley, the frosted slopes of Mt. Mackenzie (Revelstoke Mountain Resort) glistened in the sunlight as the rays pierced through the clouds. The valley fog was obscuring the town of Revelstoke. What a stunning sight!

After 3km along the gently graded ski road, we veered right and followed the south bank of Wells Creek. A narrow band of clearings led us through the dense forest into the old-growth above. At last, we could set a “guide’s” uptrack, minimizing direction changes and accelerating our uphill travel. Since we had received more than 60cm of snow in 48 hours, the uptrack looked more so like a trench than a trail.

We navigated up the big timber, utilizing natural features such as tree wells and flat-topped pillows to complete our switchbacks. Concerned about a persistent weak layer of hazardous surface hoar, we stayed away from the open, sheltered slopes right below Burnt Knob. They seemed like ideal surface hoar farms where the persistent slab problem would be found.

We continued up the forested slope to an obvious col delineating the two minor summits. We then headed north towards Fuzzy Knob, contouring past Wells Creek. While the ascent from the creek to the knob was quite short, the deep snow impeded our progress. We laughed at how ridiculous it was to break trail through the very deep snow. After much effort, we crested the hill and completed our transition at a relaxed pace, slowly recharging our exhausted batteries.

The descent was an absolute treat. We slid into the short, steep pitches right off the knob. At every turn, the unusually light snow was kissing our faces. Faceshot after faceshot, it was exhilarating. We made our way down the mature forest, effortlessly weaving through the sparse timber. Given the large quantity of new snow, we carefully planned our descent to maximize our falline skiing. Traversing was simply not an option in those deep powder conditions. At about 1050m, we traversed back to the upper end of the string of clearings we had initially ascended. Battling trenchy powder and nasty alders, punching that traverse wasn’t easy.

After such a wicked lap, we couldn’t just head home. The amazing snow conditions called for another lap, especially after spending much effort laying our uptrack. We slapped the rugs on and headed for Burnt Knob. There’s no denying it’s a step-up from our previous lap. The Burnt Knob descent takes you through two large slidepath and forces you down a convoluted system of gullies, pillows and steep, eroded slopes. Having assessed the avalanche conditions on our previous lap by ski cutting steep, unsupported features, Burnt Knob seemed like an acceptable risk at the time.

As expected, the descent from Burnt Knob was excellent. There’s nothing better than skiing a 500-meter slidepath filled with champagne powder. See the instragram reel below for a pretty good summary of the ski conditions.

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A post shared by Olivier Denis-Larocque (@theuptrack)

Route Info

4-5 h	1050m	13 km	650-1685 m

The post Fuzzy Knob, Revelstoke: Shredding Through The Big Timber appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Christiana Glades: Skiing The Old Growth

Report from February 16, 2025

Tom, Steph, Kaitlin and I started the day at the Bostock Parking Lot, ensuring our winter-restricted permits were visible on the car’s dash. We navigated past the refrozen, plowed snowbank that leads to the Bostock Trailhead. After two weeks with little precipitation during Rogers Pass’ busiest month, the trail was in rough shape. The cut bank was packed with snow, creating a slippery track, slanted towards the rugged slope leading into Bostock Creek. Nonetheless, the walk through the old-growth forest was pleasant and progress was darn fast. We crossed the tracked-out McGill Main Chutes exit.

After a quick water break, we started the ascent up a narrow shoulder leading to Wolverine Ridge. Tree branches, pine needles and old man’s beard (moss) were scattered over the old snow after a bout of strong arctic winds. I broke trail through rotten faceted snow, barely supporting my weight. Progress was slow and demanding but we finally linked up to an existing uptrack, as suggested by Kaitlin. The refrozen track was much more supportive and expedited the ascent.

To be honest, I wasn’t too confident we would find good snow as I was breaking trail from the valley bottom. A firm sun crust on steeper pitches covered the surface while the preserved snow was littered with tree bombs and blown-over branches.

However, things improved dramatically as we climbed the shoulder. As we gained the treeline, we heard several “whumpfs”, perhaps a buried surface layer letting its presence known. By then, I had abandoned the refrozen track, slippery and way too aggressive and was setting a gradual, “guide’s” uptrack through sparse trees and open slopes, making sure to avoid the steeper, south-facing features.

We stopped as the trees led into an alpine ridge, Wolverine Ridge. The open slopes above were visibly wind-scoured by the NW winds and would offer terrible skiing. After discussing our options, we decided to transition behind a small thicket of trees, sheltering the group from the cold, icy wind. We opted to ski the upper part of the shoulder with patches of open terrain, basically reversing our uptrack.

The mellower upper slopes offered great skiing in boot-deep powder. The incline was too shallow to be affected by solar exposure at this time of the year. Given the “whumpfs”, evidence of buried surface hoar sitting on a sun crust, I steered the group away from the steep south-facing slopes. Once we were below the hazardous feature, I veered skier’s left into a patch of sparse glades. Battling with a variable sun crust in a few spots, we linked the mellower forested clearings and made our way down the valley, where the snow was surprisingly good.

Pleasantly surprised by the quality run we just skied, we stuck our skins and walked a little way down Bostock Creek to set us up for a speedy descent to the parking lot. We ripped the skins early on and favoured side-stepping through the short uphill sections so that we could ski down the rest of the trail. It worked out great! We were at the Bostock lot within 30-45 minutes!

Route Info

6-7 h	1300 m	15 km	980-2140 m

The post Wolverine Ridge: Exploring The Far Reaches of Bostock Pass appeared first on The Uptrack.

6. Puff Daddy

Puff Daddy, located on the Grizzly Shoulder, offers some of the best storm skiing in Rogers Pass. The route forms a large part of the east arm of Grizzly Mountain harbouring some of the best falline skiing of Rogers Pass, topped with endless pillow lines and quality tree skiing throughout. Right from the top, Puff Daddy gives you the choice of splitting off into three distinct gullies, some more technical than others, or going down the main face to the east. Given how convoluted the terrain is, it’s incredibly easy to stumble on unskiable cliffs and dangerous pillow fields. Moreover, the east slope is made up of large convex rolls that are prime avalanche terrain. It’s best to consider Puff Daddy when the avalanche hazard isn’t through the roof – hence why I only rank it at #6 on my list when it comes to storm skiing. On a good day, you can lap the 900m run twice since it’s so close to the Rogers Pass Discovery Center, aka the main parking lot.

5. Christiana Glades

Most folks overlook the Christiana Glades in favour of the popular McGill Shoulder. And, they are missing out! The Christiana Glades offers world-class, perfectly spaced-out tree skiing on a rather gentle grade. When the avalanche conditions are less than friendly (as they are often when it snows), it’s easy enough to carve out a conservative uptrack through the trees. Some people would see this run as overly boring but really it’s not. Thrill seekers can certainly seek out awesome pillow lines and natural booters. Keep in mind the Christiana Glades are located close to a Winter Prohibited Area.

4. Corbin Pass

Corbin Pass is a truly accessible ski touring destination, directly off Highway 1, at the western boundary of Glacier National Park (Rogers Pass). And it makes for awesome storm skiing when the conditions are right. Generally speaking, the zone starts at the low elevation of 900m, but the good skiing starts at 1100m and tops out at 2032m next to heli-skiing landing flags. You’ll need steady snowfall below that to fully enjoy this 1000-meter line. Where it truly shines: the cut block skiing. The route takes you through some previously clear-cut areas littered with stumpy booters and classic pillow lines. If you know where you’re going, you can access one of Selkirk Tangiers Heli Skiing‘s best ski lines. If you know, you know!

3. McGill Main Chutes

The McGill Main Chutes, located on the aptly named McGill Shoulder, is an absolute gem of the Bostock Area. It’s one of the finest storm skiing spots in Rogers Pass. The ascent follows the sheltered McGill Glades along the McGill Shoulder which offers a super conservative uptrack until you reach the treeline. It’s worth noting accessing the McGill Main Chutes involves crossing several active slidepaths, exposing your group to serious hazards. It must only be attempted during periods of decent stability. The reward: 800m of incredible avalanche path skiing topped with booters and flanked by some quality tree skiing. A word of advice, don’t blow past the Bostock Summer Trail. Otherwise, you’ll end up with rather wet skis in the Bostock Creek. It’s easy enough to miss it while you’re having the best time of your life!

2. Macdonald West Shoulder

The MacDonald West Shoulder, otherwise known as the NRC Slopes or Gully, tops many of my lists. Sure the ascent is nothing to write home about, but the skiing is of such quality for how easy it is to get up it. It’s manageable enough to do several laps in a day. Whether the avalanche conditions are awful or awesome, there’s something for every type of skier. During periods of great avalanche stability, you can carve huge powder turns in the large slidepath. And when things don’t look so great, you can ski the sparse trees into a sheltered portion of the slope. Start early if you plan on making a day out of it, the route has succumbed to its popularity, being right off the highway – the good lines usually get poached early on.

1. Grizzly Trees

Grizzly Trees is extremely popular… for good reason. It’s accessible, as close as it gets from the Discovery Center. It offers excellent fall-line skiing through open avalanche paths and nicely spaced trees. And, you can lap it twice (or even thrice) in a day or combine it with either Puff Daddy or Rogers Run. The uptrack takes you through some magical old-growth forest along the Grizzly Shoulder’s crest. It’s fairly exposed once you reach the treeline pitch topping out the ascent. While it’s quite busy during the high season, it’s possible to get the freshest of tracks with an early start. Hunting for the good lines, you’ll find plenty of pillows and deadfall booters across the slidepaths. Just remember that Grizzly Trees is classified as avalanche terrain and requires careful consideration when navigating its epic slopes. In the early and late seasons, watch out for the brutal alders patches at the base of the route.

So I’ve showcased a few routes summarizing some of the best storm skiing found at Rogers Pass. There are so many more quality options but I’ll leave it to you to seek them out. After all, I can’t reveal all my secrets. See you on the slopes!

The post Best Storm Skiing In Rogers Pass appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Grizzly Trees, Rogers Pass: Easy Access Powder Turns

Report from January 13, 2022

For Teddy Bear Trees, a late start is no problem. Our whole day got an early derailment when we found out through DriveBC that the Trans-Canada Highway was closed due to a vehicle accident. With a storm raging in the high mountains, warming temperatures, the avalanche hazard at 4-4-4 (High), and a late departure, we sat down at our local coffee shop and discussed our options. Due to recent avalanche closures of Winter Restricted Areas, our options narrowed down to one route: Teddy Bear Trees. It took a sketchy drive on the re-opened highway to arrive at the Rogers Pass Discovery Center ready to rumble. Within minutes, we were gliding along the uptrack bordering Connaught Creek.

After 30 minutes, we arrived at the base of the Grizzly Shoulder, harbouring popular ski touring routes. Due to the avalanche closures, this area was closed for the day. We continued along the creek and traversed a major terrain trap, the Grizzly Slidepath. This avalanche path is generally steep and slides almost every storm cycle. Chunky avalanche debris carpeted the lower fan. Given the high hazard, we thought it best to space out by 30m (a school bus’ length) as we crossed the potentially dangerous path.

As soon as we had crossed the slidepath, we veered right and up into the nearest forest, Teddy Bear Trees. By then, the snow turned to mashed potatoes (or cream cheese as some prefer), evidence of rapid daytime warming – a clear red flag. Best to stay away from that giant slidepath and keep things conservative. We carved a fresh uptrack through the sparse mature timber with much difficulty. Our tails kept sinking into the bottomless, almost isothermal snow while the tips stayed afloat. It felt like we were forging a path straight up a 40-degree slope. This must have been the hardest trail-breaking I’ve done in a long time!

As we gained more elevation, the trees thinned out on the shoulder’s east aspect. Still, we stuck to the denser forest in fear of triggering a moist slab in the open terrain. As my hip flexors were about to give in from trenching through more than 50cm of dense snow, we arrived at our high point of 2100m, not so far from the bootpacked ridge leading up to Grizzly Couloir.

After digging a test profile, we transitioned for the descent. Surprisingly, the top 400m pitch through sparse trees offered decent moist snow, akin to coastal pow! We weaved in and out of the trees, jumping off features when we had a chance.

At about 1875m, we ducked into the tighter trees to the skier’s right (in line with the shoulder) to avoid a piece of dangerous, unsupported terrain riddled with unskiable gullies and bushy alders. While the upper slope offers the more open skiing in perfect 35-degree terrain, it’s best to be aware of the feature below, a big ol’ terrain trap, if you were carried away by an avalanche and dragged through the narrow, rocky gullies.

Once we traversed back into the mature timber along the shoulder’s crest, we skied through an uninterrupted string of clearings which made for an amazingly continuous and playful descent given the dense “cream cheese” snow. At the bottom of the shoulder, we sped across the Grizzly Slidepath and effortlessly skied down to the car. We then enjoy some ice-cold beers out of the campervan, courtesy of Rigel and Steph!

Route Info

4-5 h	800m	4.3 km	1330-2100 m

The post Teddy Bear Trees: Storms And Avalanche Closures appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: 1. Christiana Trees: Skiing The Old Growth 2. Ursus Minor Trees, Rogers Pass: Epic Glade Skiing

Report from January 1st, 2022

Freddy and I kicked off 2022 with some really good tree skiing at the tail end of an extreme cold weather event. It was -22C and sadly cloudy. With the visibility playing against us and our own time constraint, we decided on Corbin Pass, having only toured up the FSR during one of our professional avalanche courses. We left the Illecillewaet brake check area, a 30-minute drive from Revelstoke, around 8:30 AM. Actually, it was 9 AM – I was very late… oops. After climbing 2.5km up some snowmobile tracks on the Corbin Forest Service Road (FSR), we veered west traversing above a huge cut block, recently logged in 2017.

In the old days before this area was logged, people used to tour up the skid road crisscrossing the newly logged terrain. Now that the trees have fallen, it has become quite dangerous to follow the road through the open terrain with a ton of overhead exposure. Please keep that in mind during your ascent.

A short time later, we exited the cut block into an old-growth forest. One could almost feel the magic in the air! We continued into a large boulder field which offered some sweet, albeit short, lines. There might be a way to link up the boulder field with the main cut block. We’ve never tried!

Eventually, we cut a trail through the meadows directly below Corbin Pass. As we crested the bald col, we peered into the distance. I could spot Fang Rock, a peak that we scouted during our Bostock to Revelstoke traverse last spring. It towered proudly over the Tangiers River, a bustling artery. The view brought back fond memories of that trip. It was such a memorable experience! Even further, we got a glimpse into Selkirk Mountain Experience‘s tenure near the Durrand Glacier, amidst the rugged, northern range.

With the Bell 205 helicopters from Selkirk Tangiers Heli Skiing reverberating in the distance, we transitioned quickly, braving high winds and bitter cold. We dropped into the main gully, speeding past sparse trees and big boulders. The forest got a little thicker midway down, only to open up again into the main cut block. The snow was light, fluffy and facetted given the extreme cold. It also slowed down our descent making it hard to find our balance throughout the run. But really, I can’t complain! Our run wasn’t the smoothest in the end. I bet it’s worth going up there later in the season to nail down on a flowy alternative.

All in all, it was a rather long run considering we peaked at 2032m, still well into the treeline elevation. I’d go back to Corbin Pass in a pinch during stormy days. It’s one of the most accessible tours in the area, rivalling the well-known Avalanche Crest route at Rogers Pass. It’s worth mentioning there’s also an epic run to the NE, just past the treed bump in the ridge, that’s often skied by Selkirk Tangiers Heli Skiing. The name is Helens. It consists of a large slide path offering several entrances from the top. Make sure you traverse back to the FSR to the skier’s left at approximately 1480m, otherwise, you’ll end up right on the highway.

Route Info

6-7 h	1175m	8.6 km	875-2030 m

The post Corbin Pass, Revelstoke: Logging Makes For Epic Skiing appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Ursus Minor Trees, Rogers Pass: Epic Glade Skiing

Report from January 5, 2021

We assembled a big crew: Rosalie, Steph, Kaitlin, Mia and Rigel. With Revelstoke’s pandemic unemployment rate at a record high, it seems everyone and their dogs are out ski touring. And you know what: it’s the ideal winter for that. Relentless snowfall and cold temps have provided a constant refresh on the slope of Rogers Pass – which leads to a common problem. Snowpack stability was questionable at best after our week-long storm cycle. Having very little intel on the conditions, we decided on skiing Christiana Glades, an area new to me.

After checking that the Bostock winter restricted area and its associated parking lot was indeed open for the day, we left the warmth of our vehicles for the mild cold of the outdoors. We toured along the Bostock Creek Trail, a gentle, handcrafted path that follows the valley bottom all the way to Bostock Pass. While we didn’t tour its entire length, you could reach as far as Corbin Peak if you desired so. 2.75km along the trail, we veered right off the trail, ski-skinned downhill, and crossed Bostock Creek over a series of pillows, conveniently bridging the gap of moving water.

We were now at the base of the Christiana Ridge, the start of the Christiana Glades uptrack. We followed the creek’s west bank until we found a wide-open gully piercing through the Selkirk bush defining the lower boundary of the ridge. We ascended the gully to a lovely clearing, peppered with tasty pillow lines and bordered by magical old-growth forest.

We raced past the clearing while I noted where the pillows – to be sent later in the day – were located. Soon enough, we were touring through the old-growth, a preserved snapshot of what it used to be eons ago. Our ascent led us through a band of denser trees that eventually dumped us into yet another clearing that seemed to offer some all-time skiing.

All in all, we ended up climbing along the border of the Fidelity Winter Prohibited Area until we could no longer go higher. At that point, the WPA wraps around the ridge, prohibiting further uphill travel. This is where the Parks Canada staff conducts snowpack assessments. We call it Parks Canada’s private ski area.

After a short lunch break, we dug a full snow profile to assess the stability of the upper layers of storm snow. With no apparent weakness, we transitioned for the descent. The snow was excellent: light, dry champagne powder.

The descent route was super straight-forward. We simply followed down our uptrack, hitting pillows left and right when possible. With that good of snow, the crew was absolutely ecstatic. I wished we could have gone for a second lap but the sun was getting a little low. Days are short in early January.

After the 700-meter descent, we arrived at the base of the ridge and crossed Bostock Creek at our previous spot. A quick skin up the east bank got us back on the trail that led us to our vehicle. All in all, we all thoroughly enjoyed the day of mellow, powdery skiing in the Christiana Glades.

Route Info

5-6 h	1000m	9 km	900-1900 m

The post Christiana Glades: Skiing The Old Growth appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Christiana Glades: Skiing the Old Growth

Report from November 18, 2020

Izzy, Mel, and I teamed up for a bit of ski touring (and splitboarding) at Rogers Pass, my favorite place of all times. With unseasonably warm temperatures, we would maintain a cautionary mindset regarding avalanche conditions. We had no clue what hazards were waiting for us up there, whether a thick crust would be present or new storm snow would be slabby. With that decided, we left the Rogers Pass Discovery Center at 9:30 AM with no expectations.

We headed up the well-established uptrack along the Connaught Creek, a busy artery for ski tourers and splitboarders. We quickly crossed under the Grizzly, Frequent Flyer, and Dispatcher Slidepath.

With temperatures so close to the melting point, we could feel a thin, breakable crust over 10cm of moist snow. As dense clouds engulfed the towering summits, flurries of snow started gently falling. Even in a storm, the sights here are still incredible. We veered off into the dense forest below Hospital Bowl, an open alpine slope topped by Video Peak, a common ski route.

The Hospital Trees uptrack was steep but manageable with good technique and moist snow providing a sticky grip. This section is the most demanding vertical gain when it comes to gaining the SE shoulder of Ursus Minor Mountain to ski the trees. A few techy switchbacks later, we reached the open fields of Christmas trees marking the base of Hospital Bowl.

We took a brief lunch break and looked at Ursus Trees across the valley. We skimmed through the terrain, looking for possible downhill options. We found three obvious routes where trees were sparser.

we broke off the existing uptrack which went directly up the bowl. With the avalanche hazard at “Considerable” and limited intel about our young alpine snowpack, we choose to avoid the set route. Instead, we toured up through sparse trees until we reached an open alpine slope bounded by a large convex roll.

Related: The Early Season Snowpack: How It Affects Your Winter

Climbing this slope was a risk. Convex roll, large planar slope, 20+cm of unconsolidated storm snow, you name it. We could have ducked for the trees at that point but I preferred to gather some observations before declaring this slope unstable. Our group dug a shallow test pit with the goal of assessing the stability of the upper storm layers down to a thick crust-sandwich buried 70cm down. Our test revealed a few unstable layers but no slab properties. Without slab properties, instabilities within the snowpack cannot propagate, reducing the likelihood of triggering large avalanches. After doing our due diligence, we proceeded up the sketchy slope towards the top of Ursus Minor Trees.

With seemingly stable snow conditions, we raced up the SE shoulder through deep powder until we emerged in the alpine where strong southerly winds had formed a stiff slab on the ridge’s crest. The visibility improved considerably during this final ascent. We wasted no time transitioning for the down… which was absolutely, positively EPIC.

The exposed alpine ridge was obviously scoured to hell, although Mel still found pockets of deep powder lee of micro-features. As for Ursus Minor Trees per se, we were the second party down the section. The fresh snow was blower, nearly bottomless, typical of Rogers Pass. The supposed crust was nowhere to be seen. Most likely, the spike of warm weather was too brief to form a melt-freeze crust in the alpine and at treeline.

After a thrilling run, we grabbed a bite and discussed our options. We decided to avoid the horrible bushwhack through the uber-tight trees right below Ursus Tree, technically the continuation of said run. Instead, we put our skins back on and skirted around the base of the Hospital Bowl to gain the entrance of the Hospital Gully which supported mostly open terrain. To our collective surprise, the snow was way deeper here, most likely from wind transport. I cautiously dropped in, testing the snow for any signs of instability. Everything seemed fine.

We maneuvered through the open gully and stumbled back on the Connaught Creek uptrack. From there, we plowed through ice and crust to get back to our ride at 3:30 PM. I didn’t expect anything from today but Rogers Pass still delivered the goods… as always.

Route Info

6 h	1150m	11.5 km	1330-2300 m

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