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BACKCOUNTRY RIDING GUIDE
SUNSHINE VILLAGE AND HEALY CREEK
In this post we look at some of the key riding areas and terrain located outside the Sunshine Village ski area and also the neighbouring Healy Pass Drainage.
SUNSHINE & HEALY CREEK SKI TOURING CHARACTERISTICS
SUNSHINE VILLAGE
The Sunshine Village backcountry is either accessed by the resort gondola and lift system, or you can do the 5km skin up the ski out. If skinning up, please be sure to know and adhere to all the resort rules about uphill access.
The backcountry around the resort is diverse and includes everything from mellow meadow skipping up to white knuckle descents suitable for only the most experienced. The beauty is easy access to the alpine, diverse riding options and some of the deepest snow in the Rockies.
Healy Creek is accessed via the lower ski out and the Healy Pass trail. It is a very popular winter hiking, snowshoeing and alpine cross-country ski route. Most of these users are heading to the gorgeous though low-angle Healy Meadows and Healy Pass. Not really a destination for quality turns, however, this drainage accesses a bunch of really fun terrain from mellow to scary.
This drainage is also a ‘catch basin’ for a bunch of longer and more committing runs accessed from the Wawa chair at Sunshine Village. It makes a very easy exit after a long lift-assisted back-country run.
SEASON
The skiable season up here is long, starting as early as late October some years through to June or July in longer cool springs and summer. Typically however mid November until late April is a safe bet for some awesome skiing and riding.
SNOWPACK
The Rockies is home to a notoriously thin, dry and dangerous snowpack. This region of the Rockies does get more snow than a lot of the range but it is still very much a continental snowpack. This comes with long lingering avalanche problems, shallow rocks and lots of wind effect. That being said, the flip side, when it is good, it has some of the lightest and driest powder snow on the planet.
SUNSHINE VILLAGE BACKCOUNTRY ZONES
As we mentioned, Sunshine has a wide range of backcountry adventures on offer, these are just some of the options available
If your curiosity is piqued after reading about our favorite riding areas below, be sure to grab yourself a copy of the Confessions Of A Ski Bum - Bow Valley: Banff to Castle Junction book; it's your ultimate guide to finding the most epic lines and secret stashes in the area!
Rockies Backcountry guidebooks
View allHEALY CREEK BACKCOUNTRY ZONES
Healy Creek is a location all on it's own, popular with mellow backcountry users and skiers/riders alike. It also acts as an exit from some of the more rowdy runs coming from the resort high above
The Healy zone is also super well covered in the Confessions Of A Ski Bum - Bow Valley: Banff to Castle Junction book; it's your ultimate guide to finding the most epic lines and secret stashes in the area!
FURTHER INFORMATION AND RESOURCES
The best guidebook to this area by a mile is The Confessions of a Ski Bum – The Bow Valley. You can find it on our website at this link. It covers all the areas listed here in great detail and the author Marcus Barranow has skied this area more than most.
Fatmap can also be a great resource for backcountry riding zones for Sunshine Village and Healy Creek.
Lastly, avalanche.ca or the Avalanche Canada app is your go-to resource for all things regarding the avalanche bulletin.
The Bow Valley also has a plethora of ski and splitboard guides that you can hire to show you around the Sunshine Village and Healy Creek backcountry.