Truck camping at ski resorts in the Pacific Northwest/British Columbia

Good thread...appreciated...but would like to add info concerning the possibility of reserving a spot with electrical hookup for the Hawk before we commit to the drive....we either drain the water or have electrical to save the plumbing while skiing...

Thanks...Phil
 
Sweet!

Summit at Snoqualmie - multiple onsite camping options
Washington State - I90 just east of Seattle

Lot 3 at Alpental Base Area - best atmosphere as you are surrounded by other die hard skiers
- 24 Hour bathrooms near by
- No power
- $15 a night or 20 for two (If I remember right)

Patrol lot at Summit Central
- No facilities
- No power
- $15 a night or 20 for two (If I remember right)
 
nvanhoog said:
Looking at getting an Indy pass and exploring more independent resorts this year
Click to expand...
We got one last year and absolutely loved it so we got it again. Highly recommend it.

One thing I will add having worked with snow removal at ski resorts and surrounding areas; is try to only camp in designated places or be ready to move in the middle of the night when asked. Obviously when it is snowing, equipment will be out working, but most people don't understand how much work goes on when it is not snowing. Snow banks need to get blown back, parking lots graded, drainage/push holes cleared, etc.
 
Kolockum said:
We got one last year and absolutely loved it so we got it again. Highly recommend it.

One thing I will add having worked with snow removal at ski resorts and surrounding areas; is try to only camp in designated places or be ready to move in the middle of the night when asked. Obviously when it is snowing, equipment will be out working, but most people don't understand how much work goes on when it is not snowing. Snow banks need to get blown back, parking lots graded, drainage/push holes cleared, etc.
Click to expand...

Reviewed this and I also will be buying the "Indy Pass"...

Question...I have only been in backcountry here in NE Oregon where I live...can you folks recommend in order of best to least favorite areas to ski using the Indy Pass? Yes, I downhill as well as skin up! Prefer electrical for my FWC but can go without...most important is a challenging hill and least number of people! Thanks for any recommended areas on the Indy Pass list.

Phil
 
Ok.....I am in...bought the Indy Pass..plan to take all water out of my Hawk FWC [Tundra] and carry my 7 gallon jug in cab...

Currently planning about 3 weeks to cover many of the hills in Wash., Idaho, and Mont. Right now thinking West to East...starting at White Pass ending at Lost Trail.

Seeking advice: My thought is to plan the 'ski bum tour' during February; any comments on the best 3 weeks to give this a go? Another month? Looking for snow and to miss school crowds.

I will post my route plan when developed and of course hooking up with like minded folks along the way would work.


Phil
 
Very cool Phil, still contemplating the Indy Pass. I'm definitely interested in what you run across on your journey.

I'm not sure how the schools are going to play a part this year with so many of them doing the virtual learning thing.

Personally I'd plan on skiing mid week and maybe do the travel on the weekends.

I've created a document that might be useful, it is a piggy back on a document that someone added earlier. I've added a link to some resort reviews by SeniorsSkiing.com which is a site I've been following for a couple of years now. Be aware that some of the reviews are somewhat dated. Not all of these places participate with the Indy Pass.

Resorts
 
Thanks Mel...great source and appreciated...will also milk off the "senior discounts" when available...and definitely avoiding resorts on weekends if possible...perhaps skinning up on those days! :cool:

Phil

Ps....Looking through the list; seems as a "Super Senior" lift ticket costs are next to nothing...I will take it and may need 5 weeks and not 3!
 
Wallowa said:
Ok.....I am in...bought the Indy Pass..plan to take all water out of my Hawk FWC [Tundra] and carry my 7 gallon jug in cab...

Currently planning about 3 weeks to cover many of the hills in Wash., Idaho, and Mont. Right now thinking West to East...starting at White Pass ending at Lost Trail.

Seeking advice: My thought is to plan the 'ski bum tour' during February; any comments on the best 3 weeks to give this a go? Another month? Looking for snow and to miss school crowds.

I will post my route plan when developed and of course hooking up with like minded folks along the way would work.


Phil
Click to expand...
Weather for BC touring: There normally is a weather window often referred to as Jun-uary sometime at the end of January or early February of very stable weather and manageable avi risk. This is the ideal window for doing big winter ascents/descents or just go ski every day. It's as close to Utah bluebird days as the Cascades get

Final note: Hurricane Ridge is not really worth the drive past the cascades. White pass and mission ridge are great with 49 Degrees North being my favorite. Weekdays are the best.
 
Kolockum said:
Weather for BC touring: There normally is a weather window often referred to as Jun-uary sometime at the end of January or early February of very stable weather and manageable avi risk. This is the ideal window for doing big winter ascents/descents or just go ski every day. It's as close to Utah bluebird days as the Cascades get

Final note: Hurricane Ridge is not really worth the drive past the cascades. White pass and mission ridge are great with 49 Degrees North being my favorite. Weekdays are the best.
Click to expand...

White Pass is as far West as I intend to travel; purposely avoiding areas close to big urban centers ..and looking for dry snow.

BC, in fact all of Canada is out for me. I had my first really bad experience up there with RCMP at borders and don't intend to revisit until they settle down...Spring '19, we traveled Radium, up Ice Field Hwy, Robson, across BC to Hyder...been BC several times over the years but we were obviously not welcomed this time...

Thinking right now that Red Lodge is as far East as I might go...depends a lot on weather...plans keep expanding!

Getting all the water out of the Hawk plumbing is my current issue to solve....perhaps will blow it out to be safe.

Appreciate any and all insights!

Phil
 
Would maybe suggest trying to do the MT section later in year. Temps can get very low and stay there for a while. Without electric hookups, prolonged use in these temps could make drying out a chore. If i am out for more than two days in the winter i try to bring a generator (i know, hassles) and use it to run an electric heater and fan to get the condensation back under control. Also helps keep my batteries topped off it has been stormy.
Good luck, your trip sounds great.
w
 
Wango...

Excellent advice...Gawd how I hate hearing those generators running late into the night! BUT, the idea of buying one for winter use has definitely crossed my mind...probably a 2K Honda....need to do the research....guess I would slide it in the Hawk on the floor and take it out when I stop...securing it while I am gone skiing will be an issue....

I also plan to locate RV sites with power along my route to recharge the batteries if needed and to run my heater...I use a small electric heater when I have power to save propane and batteries...

Have skied at about zero [clear sky, bright sun...in '80s @ Breckenridge] and got a frostbite tip on my nose for that nonsense. Generally cold means lighter snow....

Thanks for input...Phil

Ps...Problem with several ski areas is that they are running scared and limiting number of skiers and then only selling tickets on-line....no showing up at ticket booth and expecting to get in.
 
I definitely second Wallowa on the Hurricane Ridge comment.

BC is not even relevant right now with the border closure but Baldy, Apex, and Big White are really nice places to ski. Big White being the only real destination place but in the future check out their early season deals when you can basically get a ski in ski out room right in the village that comes with two lift tickets per day for $70ish US.

Bummer about the run in with the RCMP. We generally make it up to BC 5 or 6 times each year and have only had problems with the U.S. border patrol on the return.

Yep, don't miss 49º, first come first serve on the electric hook-ups and there are only 6 of them.

I know several people who have skied Brundage and they really really love it. I've skied Mission Ridge 8-10 times but have yet to be there when the snow was really good. Rumor is that when the snow is good it is a really fun place.

We've a friend who has the 2K Honda and she really likes it. Not real noisy but it is a generator. She has a chain and locks it to the truck when away. Generally only has to run it for a couple of hours each day. We're going to do our best to avoid a generator, time will tell.
 
[SIZE=10.5pt]Mel...[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Thanks again for info...very valuable....still sorting out where I can simply walk up and buy tickets when I arrive at a ski area and not be forced into buying tickets on-line, if available...virus panic is in full bloom at ski areas and no end in sight...[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Let me explain if I can my comments about last year’s negative contacts at Canadian borders. I have traveled in Canada many times over the years and these were the first negative crossings. Our cranky RCMP contacts were indeed an anomaly.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Going in [Porthill] RCMP Bardal [his actual name..like the oil supplement] kept telling me that I did not need a shotgun for bear protection in the interior since there were rangers there to protect us [I had the requisite permit]...I patiently explained we were off-roading it in non-park areas with no rangers within hundreds of miles, especially at O-Dark-Thirty... told him we had no way to escape the Hawk camper if a pissed off [early Spring..]Grizzly wanted in while we were inside; bear spray inside the Hawk would not be prudent...he advised us to take it back some 30 miles into USA and put it in a storage locker..but we were not coming back to that border crossing on our return.. on and on and on... I finally slid my completed RCMP required firearm permit and $$$ across the counter and stood there until he accepted it...30 mins of goofy-ness.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Next negative event for me was after we crossed into Alaska at Hyder. No USA border station going in. Those that don't know, that Hyder 'road' [dirt] is a dead end near a famous glacier...we encountered mud slides and then 2+ feet of heavy old snow across the road after many beautiful miles up that cliff side road...back we go to cross back into Stewart Canada...honestly, we did not see anyone living in Hyder going in or coming out, Stewart and Hyder are cool places, but talk about isolated! So as we approach the Canadian border and there is a very 'rustic' shack [weather beaten does not start to describe it] on passenger’s side with a stop sign and a window perhaps 6 feet above the road...I assume it is the border station...but do not see anyone in the window; waited briefly then pulled slowly forward: Siren! I mean big, frickin’, loud Siren! I jam on brakes and backup to find an RCMP [female] at my driver’s window; I lower the window...she shouts at me in her best enforcement scolding scream: "I don't know what 'stop' means in Oregon but here it means stop!" I say I did stop, she says “No you didn't and 'we' [ a fellow RCMP then appears in the window of the shack; he is very sheepish looking] were going to go in pursuit of you and that would have been a $2,000 fine”...wife, nudges me and I stop talking, except to answer her questions, all the while wondering if she would take a check..I was in law enforcement and can sympathize with her being stuck at a meaningless, clapped out, BFE border crossing; she must have really pissed someone in RCMP off to get assigned there; or she is in their witness protection program...her igniting and transforming into a living, fire-breathing Valkyrie was a real shock; it took me several days to de-stress. Funny now but not then...Did find out that Stewart RCMPs are not happy with residents of Hyder since RCMP does not have any jurisdiction in that corner of Alaska and Hyder folks get bounced often when they enter or pass through Stewart for supplies. Not a border war, but no love lost either. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Mel, did not know border was closed...more insanity, seems to be the new norm.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Phil [/SIZE]
 
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