BOW VALLEY – Winter is on the way and local ski hills are preparing to open in Banff National Park and Kananaskis Country.
Sunshine Village Ski Resort will be first to open Thursday (Nov. 3); Lake Louise Ski Resort opens Friday (Nov. 4); Mount Norquay Ski Resort opens Nov. 10, and Nakiska Ski Area opens Nov. 11.
The Nov. 3 opening makes Sunshine Village the first ski resort in Canada to welcome the public for the 2022-23 season. It is also Sunshine’s earliest opening date in more than three decades.
Runs available on opening day are Strawberry Express, the terrain park, and all runs off the chair.
“Thanks to the snow we’ve received from Mother Nature we are now able to open a week early and we’re thrilled to be able to open November 3,” said Kendra Scurfield, director of brand and communications at Sunshine Village.
Thursday, oh THURSDAY, we’ll SKI YA on THURSDAY!!
— Sunshine Village (@SunshineVillage) November 1, 2022
You read that correct. We will open for the 2022-23 ski season on Thursday, November 3rd.
Thanks to the generous snowfall over the past week we can now *gleefully* say we will open THIS Thursday.
*Photo from last year* pic.twitter.com/57zhHHGa03
For the past seven days, fresh powder has been dumping down at local ski resorts.
As of Tuesday (Nov. 1), Lake Louise has recorded 44 cm of snow the past week; Sunshine Village has reported 58 cm; and Nakiska in Kananaskis Country has had 25 cm dump down.
According to Environment Canada, Banff National Park and Kananaskis Country are expected to have temperatures below zero and periods of snow and flurries until at least Monday (Nov. 7).
We know you’ve been waiting for news. We’re here to let you know we’ll be opening for our first preview weekend November 11th-13th! Stay tuned to our Snow Report or RCR App for more details. https://t.co/IenFVXy7vA#skiclose #nakiska #kananaskis #abviews #winterishere pic.twitter.com/d5qWAQdi1g
— Nakiska Ski Area (@SkiNakiska) November 2, 2022
As Canadians dust off their skis and snowboards this week, the ski world will once again be shifting its focus to Banff National Park.
Later this month and in December, Lake Louise Ski Resort hosts the alpine world cups for the world’s fastest skiers.
The men’s event takes place Nov. 25-27, and is followed by the women’s event Dec. 2-4.
In the offseason, the Lake Louise Ski Resort made improvements to its Juniper area, which includes a new chair lift and resort-wide snowmaking upgrades.
From flip flops to ski boots in one week! We are one week away from our (tentative) opening day! Mother Nature helped us out last night and the forecast for the next 4 days is looking great! ❄️❄️❄️ #justlakeit #lakelouise #skilouise pic.twitter.com/CyLPIuBscP
— Lake Louise Ski Resort & Summer Gondola (@SkiLouise) October 28, 2022
As crowds get ready to head to the mountains, all local ski hills have reverted to pre-pandemic mandates, meaning COVID-19 rules and restrictions no longer apply.
However, representatives from the local ski hills said cleaning and safety will continue to be a top priority.
