Heli Skiiing near Banff

Heli skiing is one of those must do experiences for every skier or boarder, at least once in a lifetime (warning: it can be highly addictive).

Heli Skiing near Banff, in the Canadian Rockies, with our dry champagne powder and spectacular terrain is one of the best locations in the world to enjoy and credited as being the birthplace for heliskiing.  Here's a report from our General Manager, Daymon Miller, who went with RK Heli Ski in January 2012.

I was totally stoked to be getting out to the Rockies for some untracked powder. The local scene on the mountains was a little dry so the fresh tracks accessed by the chopper would be a fantastic change. This is one of the greatest things about heli skiing. No crowds, untracked snow and riding in helicopters put heli skiing above any in resort experience. Once I was at the heli plex, near Panorama, I was warmly greeted and sat down to my complimentary breakfast. Good thing too, coffee is not a great breakfast on a heli ski day.

My group was a real mixed bag of participants. Our guides were 13 and 22 year veterans of RK Heli. There were two staff joining for the ride that day, myself, 5 intermediate skiers from Czechoslovakia, a father and son from Britain, myself and the pilot's daughter. It sounds almost like the introduction to a joke! Myself and the pilots daughter were snowboarders. The great part about heli skiing, or heli boarding in my case, is that you don't need to be an expert to do it. Riding powder is certainly different than groomers. RK makes it possible for intermediate riders and skiers by providing FAT skis or powder boards for customers to use at no charge. You really don't need to be more than an intermediate blue run skier to enjoy heli skiing, and if you are advanced, the guides can make things challenging for you even amongst a very diverse group like we had.

I was concerned about the weather that day as it was overcast and snowing. The weather didn't affect our trip at all. We stuck to gladed tree runs and open slopes that began just above the tree line, approaching the alpine. Zipping through the trees and cutting fresh tracks is one of my favourite feelings, and if you've never done it, you won't relate until you try heli skiing or boarding.

Everyone in our group had a great time, from the intermediate riders to the advanced ones and at the end of the day we were all pleasantly tired from an incredible day. The only thing I would change next time would be to take transportation to the heli plex. I would hire RK to drive me (they have a shuttle service) or hire an independent company to take me. I really wanted to celebrate a little more after the day with beers in the lodge, but alas, responsibility took over and I did not.