Grouse and Cypress Training at Baldy - Thanks Paul Rauhala for the link

 

Chasing Snow & Collaboration: Coastal Ski Clubs Train at Mount Baldy

by BCAadmin | Jan 7, 2026 | Featured Stories | 0 comments

In the spirit of cooperation, creativity, and finding great training opportunities, two Coastal ski clubs teamed up for a memorable trip to Baldy Mountain Resort over the Christmas holidays.

The idea to head to Mount Baldy early in the holiday break originated with the Grouse Mountain Tyee Ski Club, which had explored the option well in advance and worked with the resort for weeks to organize a training camp. With limited snowfall on the Coast, the Cypress Ski Club decided to join the camp on relatively short notice.

From December 19 to 23, four athletes from the Cypress Ski Club’s U16 group joined Grouse Mountain’s U14 and U16 athletes, continuing a strong collaborative relationship that has been building between the two clubs since the start of the season.

Mount Baldy proved to be an exceptionally welcoming host. Despite being a smaller resort with no snowmaking capabilities, it offered excellent training terrain and quickly became an ideal alternative to North Shore conditions at the time.

“We completed four full days of slalom training in a truly wintery environment—cold, quiet, and peaceful—far from the crowds typically found at North Shore resorts or in Whistler during this time of year when snow conditions are good,” said Ferdinand Gros, Cypress Ski Club U16 head coach.

Cypress Ski Club was thrilled to be part of the camp and would like to sincerely thank the Grouse Mountain Tyee Ski Club and Mount Baldy Resort for their warm welcome, hospitality, and outstanding support throughout the week.

“The overall experience was great—a mountain that, in a lifetime of skiing, was almost a myth turned out to be a fairytale,” said Ryan Jazic, Grouse Tyee head coach. “We were treated incredibly well by both the locals and mountain staff. The athletes loved the snow and the lack of crowds and lift lines, which kept the terrain in great shape both on and off piste. The stunning views when the sun came out were a bonus, and the old-school vibe made the experience truly unique.”

Snow Study Area

Alpine base up to 134cms.

 

Photo by Ron Hiller

Thanks Ron for today's feature photo. 

Comedy Night

 

Old Photos

I have thousands of unsorted prints in bins. It seems that I only get around to looking when someone passes away. In the last few months, there have been several of my fruit industry work colleagues pass. The sort is a bit of an emotional roller coaster. Occasionally, I find one with happy memories.

Oh, I wish. That is a 1987 Interski Jacket. In the good old days at the lunch rock.

If you know, you know. I had to choose the image that does not show the face or the uniform logo. This was around the time that I attended a Canada West Ski Areas risk management session, where lawyer Robert Kennedy briefed us on the first law suit to hit a Canada West Ski Area. An American guest suing Whistler. He warned us of things to come.

Thirty plus years later, we can't do some of the fun stuff anymore. 

This guy will likely make an appearance on the hill next week. My answer to his inquiry tonight - of course not - rock skis not required. Yes Primrose, this is your Uncle John a long time ago.

MBCA Fundraiser for Trails

 

These durable bags as well as a baldy mountain community association sticker are available for 20$. All funds raised go to support trail mapping, markers and maintenance this year. If folks want to buy one they can email  baldymtnca@gmail.com  to arrange pickup.

 

Baldy Blue Jays Adaptive Snowsports

This program is named in honour of Jay Ozanne, Baldy's original adaptive athlete. I hope he is looking down on us and smiling. Blue Jay was his "handle" on the CB, before we had phones on the mountain,

https://pimbc.ca/baldy_bluejays_adaptive/

Monday

The holidays are over, the sun is shining.

It's all there, on the new BMR Website.

 

Baldy Hours of Operation

Guest Services: Retail, Season Passes, and Lift Tickets
8:30 am – 4:30 pm, Sunday to Thursday
8:30 am – 6:00 pm, Friday and Saturday

Lift ticket pickup Kiosk
24/7 located at roundhouse

Rentals, Snow School
8:30 am – 4:00 pm, 7 days a week

Quad Chair (Sugarlump)
9:00 am – 3:30 pm, Tuesday to Sunday

Double Chair (Eagle)
9:15 am – 3:45 pm, Thursday to Sunday (Monday 9:00am – 3:30pm)

Magic Carpet Tubing & Skiing
9:00 am – 3:30 pm, 7 days a week
Open until 7:00 pm, Friday & Saturday

Corduroy Café – Licensed
9:00 am – 4:00 pm, 7 days a week

Baldy Bar – Après Bar
11:00 am – 6:00 pm, 7 days a week

Bar Closed Today, Limited menu cafe

 Baldy Mountain Resort

Srsdeopontf36g50i3mh5a051267ii68m6laa0hha9aact3l6h65t2cahggl ·

JANUARY 4TH 2026

Due to an unexpected mechanical issue in the lodge, the Baldy Bar will be closed today and there will be a limited food menu in the Corduroy Cafe for today. We don't have an eta on the repair but we will update you as soon as we know.

Two out of bounds rescues yesterday and early this morning

I should have gone with my gut instinct, gone home, and contacted one of my trusted sources. I spoke to a group of SAR volunteers, two of whom called me by name, and was not told the truth as to what was up with the SAR presence here last night.

The Baldy Ski Patrol led out of bounds guests out to safety yesterday afternoon, and the SAR team rescued a cold out of bounds person in the wee hours of the morning.

My first major search was before some of these volunteers were born. The head count on the school buses did not add up. I pulled the search plan out of the desk drawer, and followed it for the successful rescue of 4 students,(we were looking for 3). We had one radio phone - I called the patrol leader in Oliver to make the RCMP/SAR phone calls and send up reinforcements. I did not get help from the valley, but the students were found at 6:15, and back in the lodge sipping hot soup by 6:30.

One of the key things in that decades old search plan was having someone record everything. Who went where, what time, what time RCMP was called - every detail. The plan had things listed that people on the hill could do while there was still daylight.

I was recruited to the recording task about a dozen years ago. I just sat at the search desk and recorded everything, including the timing of the SAR arrival, and the police car that didn't quite make it up the road. There was great celebration when the lost lad was brought back to the lodge. I insisted that there was one volunteer still out there. I had not crossed him off the list as returned. Sure enough, he was found slogging his way back, with a dead radio.

Today's SAR volunteers are highly trained and well equipped. I do ponder from time to time if the time it takes to find the person might be shortened if some of the old school stuff were included.

From OOSAR Facebook

Yesterday was a busy day for OOSAR call-outs to Baldy Mountain Resort Resort . The first task was at approximately 2:30pm and involved two young skiers who had gone out of bounds. OOSAR stood down, as both individuals were successfully brought back to safety by Baldy Ski Patrol.

A few hours later, in a separate incident a second skier exited the same area and became lost. Fortunately, the male subject was able to obtain a cell signal and call 9-1-1 for help. With darkness and heavy snow, OOSAR teams deployed on snowshoes and snowmobiles to reach him. After an extensive night search that concluded around 2:00am, the man was found cold and tired but otherwise okay and taken to hospital for assessment.

We’re reminding everyone to respect ski area boundaries and to be fully prepared—proper gear, warm layers, and working communication devices are essential when venturing into the backcountry.