Twinkle toes

Liz French skied the slopes of Canada’s Sun Peaks and Big White resorts, and it made her feel like dancing.

photos Liz French + Lindy Ellison + supplied

“Skiing is like dancing; the snow is your music,” said Olympic gold medallist Nancy Greene, who calls Sun Peaks home and is a wonderful ambassador. I was privileged to ski in a group with the woman named Canada’s female athlete of the 20th century in 1999 for her prowess and contribution to the sport.

Nancy’s 80 now, but she still skis like a teenager. She generously shared her story and tips for improving our skiing (“Stay on the balls of your feet”), taking us where we might not have otherwise gone – notably the ski cross course, on which you bounce over humps and race around well-cambered corners.

After a couple of cloudy but satisfyingly snowy days, Sun Peaks lived up to its name with bright blue skies and gloriously groomed pistes. My partner and I arrived there from Big White, which also lived up to its reputation as ‘Big Whiteout’. We had six murky days, but the payoff was snow you float through. It’s not like in New Zealand, where heavy cloud cover means skiing by braille. The trees provide definition and the wide, obstacle-free pistes instil confidence.

The slightly eerie feeling of skiing in the mist was enhanced by the sight of ‘snow ghosts’. Big White’s known for these trees on the upper slopes that get so snowbound they take on a sculptural form. To add to the sense of surreal, we went night skiing one evening. One long run is illuminated by lamps that throw pools of light on the snow, the patches of dark between them slightly disconcerting till you get the hang of it.

Members of Liz’s tour group - fast and furious meets sedate.

Skiing in Canada is delightfully different to skiing in New Zealand. Think long, wide, tree-framed pistes groomed to perfection, often with several centimetres of powder laid seductively on top. Sun Peaks has a signature trail, five miles (that’s 8km) from Top of the World to the base. The colder, north-facing side of the resort, Morrisey, has lots of glade skiing; on the south-facing side, Sundance and Sunburst have longer, sweeping trails. If Big White is whiting out, skiing the Black Forest side affords ample visibility. When the sky clears, it’s great to head to the Gem Lake area and the powder runs, most of which we skied without much visibility but with good guides.

The only queues we saw were on the main chairlifts when they opened in the morning, especially on a powder day. Most lifts allow skiers to take green (easy), blue (intermediate and so much fun) or black (advanced) trails down, meaning even amateur skiers can reach the top to enjoy the view.

We book our snow holidays through Auckland’s Ski Travel Specialists, and this year joined one of their group trips that come with the benefit of tour leaders. Ōhope couple Linda and Stephen Clews have been hosting ski trips for years and, as well as facilitating fun, share their knowledge of the fields. I mostly chose to ski with them, as they split the group into fast and furious (usually me!) and slightly more sedate skiers. We also took advantage of the snow hosts.

These usually retired, keen skiers volunteer their time to take visitors on tours of the fields they know and love. The ones we met said they enjoy Kiwis, who they find are usually game for anything.

Skiers need fuel, and both resorts offer a good range of eating, drinking (and shopping) options, though Sun Peaks’ village is more extensive than Big White’s. We even found good coffee, becoming regulars at the Tea Bar at Big White, and Bolacco and Vertical cafés at Sun Peaks. Costs escalate with tax and tips, but hey, you’re on holiday.

There’s plenty to do if you want a change from skiing or snowboarding. We could have gone ice skating, snow shoeing, tubing, sleigh riding, fat biking and axe throwing. I bowed to my partner’s desire to go snowmobiling and spent two hours squawking from the back seat as we shot along the trails, stopping to admire views and to thaw out at a warming hut also used by cross-country skiers. I much preferred dog sledding – sitting in a low-slung sleigh with a musher behind us to ‘steer’ the seven enthusiastic, well cared for canines swooping us along tree-lined trails and out to a frozen lake.

Skiing in Canada gives me a heady mix of ego-boosting snow and spectacular scenery, the adrenaline rush of gravity-enforced speed curbed and increased by skill, and the company of like-minded people. I can’t wait till I get to dance on snow again.