MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM ONE,TWO,SKI!

Aspen

There’s no better way to celebrate Christmas than in the mountains. With glistening snow-flecked fir trees all around and star-speckled clear skies, you barely need to decorate.

Van Haren Family at Mt Norquay, by Louise Hudson

It’s not just the skiing that makes a mountain Christmas so perfect, it’s the atmosphere with visitors, locals and workers all in the party mood. Ski resorts all over North America celebrate in style with carol singers, skiing Santas, sleigh rides, reindeer appearances, parades, skating parties, gorgeous lights and dazzling decorations.

Breckenridge by Go-Breck

The skiing component of a mountain Christmas is also an effective antidote to all the overeating and boozing. And the outdoor activity gives a Vitamin D boost to add to the endorphin rush of  downhill delirium – all helping to ward off the cold and flu bugs that circulate during the holidays.

Buying Christmas gifts in cute little one-off shops in snow-cloaked ski towns is way preferable to the manic mall experience where frustrated families engage in turf wars over parking spaces or the latest gullible gadget.

Big White

Instead of couch potato sluggishness and senseless squabbles, ski families get parallel playtime, resulting in energized bonding between parents and offspring.

Skiing Christmas Day is the ultimate way to justify the overindulgence. With a bit of pre-planning you can ski the morning and still get back in time to have the turkey and all the trimmings ready for early evening dinner. We’ll be in Canmore, Alberta over the holidays, skiing lovely Lake Louise and also Mt Norquay, our usual Christmas morning haunt. 

And come Boxing Day, I’d rather be queuing for chairlifts than standing in line for sales. 

Happy Christmas Skiing!

I asked resorts to send me Christmas ski shots and got hundreds! Here are a selection of some of the best: 

Whistler Blackcomb

Aspen

Canyons by Justin Olsen

Castle Mountain - Sam Schofield

Arapahoe Basin

Kimberley

Whitewater

Heavenly

Telluride

Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort

Aspen

Aspen Snowmass

Chocolate Village at Keystone

Nakiska

Sunlight

Mont-Sainte-Anne

Powderhorn

Vermont

If you have always dreamt about owning a ski chalet, check out my ski hill property article in the Calgary Herald this weekend: 
http://www.calgaryherald.com/life/hill+properties+open+those+willing+hunt/9312409/story.html

Banff Mt Norquay

With winds ranging from 50-70 km per hour, we decided to ski Mt Norquay today. Just a hunch but thought that it might be more sheltered from the gales. We were right! Had a fabulous day, starting on the grippy groomers, then trying out first Ka-Poof, where we found really soft, tightly spaced bumps, and next the "Big Chair".

Lone Pine Run at Mt Norquay

The Lone Pine was surprisingly good for the time of year and we managed a couple of exhilarating, thigh-toning descents before retiring to the lovely lodge for lunch.

Louise Hudson in new Rossignol JCC Jacket 
 (left) with Ken Read (right)

That's where we bumped into Mt Norquay's part-owner, Ken Read who was there for a morning's ski while his younger son trained with the Banff Alpine Racers. Ken, one of the legendary Crazy Canucks, is a multiple gold medal winner in both Olympic and World downhill racing. His older son, Erik Read is the reigning Canadian slalom champion and a strong contender for the 2014 Sochi squad. "Norquay's the place to ski on Christmas Day and Boxing Day," said Ken, who had just got back from World Cup action at Beaver Creek, Colorado. "It's always fantastic skiing at Norquay and the busy season doesn't start until after that."Anyone who arrives dressed as Santa (or Mrs Claus) gets a free ticket on Dec 25. It makes for a jolly seasonal atmosphere on the hill and a great way to offset the turkey-toll over the holidays.

View of Mt Norquay's Tube Park from the Lone Pine run

For more Mt Norquay info please go to: http://www.onetwoski.blogspot.ca/2013_10_01_archive.html

MARMOT BASIN, Alberta, Canada

Simon leading the way at Marmot Basin  

After a wonderful World Cup weekend at Lake Louise, I’m now skiing with my husband, Simon, at magnificent Marmot Basin right in the heart of Jasper National Park, in the wintry wilds of Alberta, Canada.

Here you’re more likely to bump into a herd of elk than a bus full of tourists. On the four hour journey from Canmore we let the only two cars on our side of the road overtake us so they could track out the snow-heaped highway. Just like hiking into backcountry after a big dump, it was easier to let someone else cut the tracks. En route on the Icefields Parkway, we passed weeping waterfalls frozen in mid-torrent, glacier-fed lakes and the colossal Columbia Icefields where toothpaste-blue ice makes even the snow look warm. This has to be one of the most dramatic drives in the world.

Rocky Mountain Sheep always have the right of way

Arriving at Marmot Basin at noon, we launched into an afternoon of skiing over expansive early season slopes: a soft base, few people and a feeling of the beginning of a long winter of outdoor pleasure in the pristine Park setting.

Preferring to ski with a guide at unfamiliar resorts, we were lucky to nab instructor, Dave Morphy for a tour of the mountain first day. Morphy, who lives in Ontario during summer, chose Marmot as his winter wonderland for its community charm, above treeline terrain and incredibly soft, powdery snow. “My wife and I have been coming here every winter for five years since we retired,” he told us. “We love it because it’s a real community, not just a resort.”

He’s right. Jasper is what authentic skiing’s all about – the sport, the snow, the majestic mountains and the time-honoured mountain lifestyle. Everyone is chatty, from the lifties to the shopkeepers to restaurant staff. You feel as though just by seeking out the remote resort you are automatically inducted into their special clique, privy to the secret of Marmot’s glades and bowls, natural environment and teeming wildlife. 

Renowned for its snowmaking, the hill has invested in state-of-the-art equipment, ensuring exceptionally smooth lower runs in all conditions. Together with terrain park and chairlift expansions, Marmot has spent nearly $30 million on upgrades over the past decade and is listed in Condé Nast magazine’s Top 20 places to ski in North America.

The terrain is varied from gentle groomers to steep chutes with 86 runs of which 30% are novice, 30% intermediate, 20% advanced and 20% expert. The wide, white expanse of Charlie’s Bowl above the treeline off the Knob Chair is perfect for powder hounds after fresh snowfalls. And I really enjoyed the soft snowy bumps in the glades above the mid mountain lodge. Doing Jenn’s Run was fun on my first day, especially after interviewing its namesake, freestyle moguls-champ Jennifer Heil for an article recently. She grew up here, nurturing the skills to win Olympic Gold and Silver medals and five World Cup Champion titles.

And, at the end of an exhilarating day, where to stay? There are lots of charismatic choices in the tiny town centre - which is first/last station on the romantic Rocky Mountaineer route - but the bucket list option is the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge - a UNESCO World Heritage Site which literally takes your breath away. With its spectacular setting on Lac Beauvert, it’s the height of low-key luxury Canadian-style.

Cabins at Jasper Park Lodge

Picture snow-clad cabins (once frequented by Marilyn Monroe as well as British Royalty), overlooking the ice-covered lake in the heart of the Canadian wilderness. The snow-drenched setting is straight out of Narnia with a five-star rustic vibe. This is where we're staying this week, recuperating from each day’s downhill delirium by basking in the al fresco hot pool overlooking Lac Beauvert and getting marvelous massages in the decadent spa. 

Jasper Park Lodge

In order to get to the main lodge from the cute and cozy cabins, we’ve had to negotiate elk and deer foraging for scraps of grass under the snow. It’s a bit like staying in a safari compound where you watch out for hyenas on the way to breakfast. And last night, after hearing some nocturnal nibblings, we discovered a cheeky, chubby rodent foraging in our waste bin. Chasing it around our cabin I came face to face with it on the mantelpiece only to discover that it really had more ownership rights than us – it was a marmot, I deduced. There’s a capture-and-release trap in our cabin right now but with its impenetrable hidey-hole behind the mantel I feel it is too savvy to be caught. Needless to say, we were moved to another gorgeous lakeside cabin but I must admit I do miss our marmot with the munchies!

This is just the beginning of our adventures in Jasper – look out for more stories in the near future. As I write this, we're just off to sample the bountiful breakfast buffet in the magnificent main lodge overlooking the lake and Whistler's Mountain, followed by another day of serene skiing in the soft snow of Marmot Basin.

Mike Gere trying out drone photography at Marmot Basin 

Great beer and nachos at Jasper Brew Company

For more Canadian ski action, check out my Revelstoke, BC article at: http://www.dallasnews.com/lifestyles/travel/ski-snow/20131206-in-deep-powder-at-canadas-revelstoke-mountain.ece

LINDSEY VONN AT LAKE LOUISE

Left to right: Sierra Cole, Britt Richardson, Lindsey Vonn, Renee Coe, Cole Richardson
from Lake Louise Ski Club

World class World Cup at Lake Louise

Canada's Erik Guay at Lake Louise World Cup (Chris Moseley)

Lake Louise is a magical place. With a wave of the wintersports' wand, it goes from one lift, three runs in early November to a fully functioning international resort hosting the world’s fastest skiers under the global media spotlight by the end of the month.

Lake Louise World Cup by Chris Moseley

Lake Louise by Paul Zizka/Banff Lake Louise Tourism

Last weekend it was the men’s opportunity to showcase their skills and earn points for their place at Sochi 2014. And this weekend it's the women who are wowing the awed audiences who gather at the base of the downhill and Super G courses to cheer on their favourite athletes and clamour for autographs afterwards. I’m there, too, reporting on the action and the atmosphere for Dan Egan’s radio show, Edging the Extreme on Saturday.

As well as international cohorts of skiers, team managers, coaches and fans, over 350 volunteers descent upon Lake Louise to help run the annual Winterstart World Cup races. 

I recently interviewed Gerry Whittaker, a ski host from Big White who helps out every year at the Lake Louise World Cup, performing the dubious job of sliding the course to flatten out ruts in between the racers' death-defying descents. 

The group of volunteers is housed at the Lake Louise Inn http://www.lakelouiseinn.com, a resort with bustling bars, restaurants, suites and spacious family condos circling the central swimming pool and spa area - all just a stone’s throw from the slopes. Competitors and trainers stay at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise with that glorious glacial panorama to help inspire them. Whittaker told me they all congregate at the Chateau for festivities including a Western-themed dinner at the adjacent barn. There is a great party atmosphere among all the volunteers who rekindle long-distance friendships each year and enjoy being part of such a prestigious event. He said he would never miss it and he is also applying to go to Sochi. It’s certainly a great way to be part of the infrastructure rather than merely spectators.

Canada's John Kucera at Lake Louise World Cup (Chris Moseley)

Lake Louise is chosen to host the first World Cup races of the competitive season due to its consistent early snow record – the event has never been cancelled there due to lack of snow although the start sometimes gets postponed due to too much! This is the only World Cup outside of Europe to join the ranks of the famous Club 5 Ski Classics, the union of leading alpine ski race organizers. It's also the only event of its kind in Canada and is broadcast to more than 184 million people worldwide. Go to http://www.fis-ski.com/alpine-skiing/ for the latest World Cup results and http://www.lakelouisealpineskiworldcup.com/volunteers.html to volunteer for future events.