SNOW Magazine High Season 2020 by SNOW

WINTER 19/20

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P H OTO C R E D I T: M I C H E L E C A R DA M O N E

AUTHIER

PERFORMANCE SKI ASPEN â&#x20AC;¢ SNOWMASS

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COLE SPORT | park city . deer valley 435.649.4800 . colesport.com

You can find a store near you at www.goldbergh.com/storelocator

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HIGH SEASON 19/20

CONTENTS

92 SEA TO SKI

The M/V Babkin is your ticket to Alaska adventure skiing in the Prince William Sound. PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANTONIO CORDERO

9 8 D R E A M W E AV E R

Fine wine, farm to table cuisine, stunning architecture, and heliskiing have made Niehku the tour de force of Swedish Lappland.

10 4 T A O S

This kick-ass mountain has undergone a major makeover that celebrates its near-mystical culture, art, and history.

110 G R A T E F U L W A R R I O R

Double Olympic Gold Medalist Jamie Anderson has her eyes set on grateful living, giving back to the world, and winter sports.

114 K Ü H T A I K O O L Once a hunting lodge for Emperor Maximillian I, the 13th-century Jagdschloss Resort Kühtai, is a stunning setting for ski and après-s k i f a s h i o n .

13 0 M O N T A N A M O N O P O LY

Unparalleled big mountain skiing where the deer and the antelope and the billionaires roam.

on the cover Vest M. MILLER Earrings DOUBLE DIAMOND JEWELRY Necklace DOUBLE DIAMOND JEWELRY Photography by POBY

this page Ski Wear TONI SAILER Skis MACH Boots INUIKII Hat HOLDEN 22

Stay Exquisite Enjoy effortless access from this slope-side resort to the renowned trails of Deer Valley Resort® and experience the Greatest Snow on Earth®, with attentive ski valets to manage your gear. From first tracks to nightcaps, The St. Regis Deer Valley will delight skiers and connoisseurs worldwide.

The St. Regis Deer Valley 2300 Deer Valley Drive East Park City, UT 84060 t. +1 435 940 5700 marriott.com/slcxr

Stay exquisite at more than 40 St. Regis hotels and resorts worldwide. @stregishotels

HIGH SEASON 19/20 46

104 SNOW FLURRIES 33

Survivor Québec-style, innovative ski fashion designs, sumptuous designer chalets, ski art, and grand openings.

SNOW STYLE 42

Brands with an eco-focus and this season’s hautest onsies.

BEAUTY 46

Alpine flowers make Alpyn the perfect recipe for high altitude skin care.

TABLE 48

Telluride’s Alpino Vino transports the taste of the Alps.

42 70

BOTTLE 52

PlumpJack wine is only the beginning for this hospitality and lifestyle brand.

BOUTIQUE 56

Family owned and operated ski boutiques make all the difference in the days of e-commerce.

PERFECT PLACES 62

Be prepared to lose your heart to Québec’s 75 ski areas, nearly half of which are still privately owned.

SNOW CULTURE 70

Ski resorts, ski wear brands, and Protect our Winters are making fundamental changes to ensure the future of winter sports.

SUITES 80

The Experimental Chalet brings Alpine Baroque hip to Verbier.

SNOW GEAR 84

Peter Steltzner’s Rabbit on the Roof skis and workshop rise again.

LAST RUN 136

Chris Davenport’s Vallée Blanche

Â© Lapo Quagli

ANOTHER BEST DAY

ROSSIGNOL.COM @rossignolapparel @laurythilleman

PUBLISHER

Barbara Sanders

ART DIRECTOR Julius M. Yoder III JULIUS @THESNOWMAG.COM

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Meredith Ogilvie-Thompson MOGILVIE THOMP S ON @ GMAIL.COM

C H I E F E D I T O R I A L A N D C R E AT I V E O F F I C E R Barbara Sanders BARB @THESNOWMAG.COM

EUROPEAN EDITOR

A S SOCI ATE FA SHION EDITOR

Leslie Woit

Michael Mastarciyan

CRE ATI V E DIREC TOR

FASHION EDITORIAL TE AM

Julius M. Yoder III

John Martinez, Becci Wilson, Joan Valentine, Larissa Skripka

FASHION EDITOR John Martinez

DIGITA L DIREC TOR Julius M. Yoder III

ADVERTISING SALES

PRINT A ND DIGITA L CONTRIBUTORS

Sales Director

Christian Alexander, Leslie Anthony, Antonio Cordero, Greg Von Doersten, Daniela Federici, Andrew Findlay, Louise Hudson, Mattias Fredriksson, Lori Knowles, Audrey Mead, Kari Medig, Peter ‘Poby’ Pobyjpicz, Gerald Sanders, David Shribman, Tom Winter, Leslie Woit

Barbara Sanders (970) 948-1840 barb@thesnowmag.com

Sales Manager Debbie Topp (905) 770-5959 debbiejtopp@hotmail.com

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CONTRIBUTORS

SNOW TALENT

“POBY” PETER POBYJPICZ

JAY COWAN

Writer - Taos + Après New

Writer – Montana Monopoly

Photographing Jamie Anderson in Mammoth Lakes, CA for SNOW was extraordinary. Jamie is as beautiful and charming as she is accomplished. As a top-notch yogi, Jamie is at one with any environment. She is as comfortable doing yoga poses on the top of boulders as she was climbing trees and doing ha ndsta nds in front of Ma mmoth’s famous Minarets.

As a soul-feeding ski destination—high culture, living history, and a community of down and dirty duct-tapers finding great powder lines — Taos is top of the pile. I recommend going now.

Big Sky and the adjoining resorts around it provide one of the most unique ski experiences in America. The big question is, can they survive their increasing popularity and the billionaires who have created them.

MATTIAS FREDRIKSSON Photographer - A Phoenix Rises + Dream Weavers Photographing Peter Steltzner was like going back in time; it was so refreshing. His craft is so unique; I love that it’s so hands-on. From a photographer’s perspective, it was a dream assignment - I felt so inspired working with Peter and shooting him in the workshop. It was a bonus to shoot him on the mountain because he is such a great skier.

LESLIE WOIT

Photographer - Grateful Warrior

LESLIE ANTHONY

GREG VON DOERSTEN

Writer - Dream Weavers

Writer + Photographer Sea to Ski

Every once in a while, a travel experience is so profound, so otherworldly, that it’s forever emblazoned in your heart. That’s how I felt the first time I walked into Niehku Mountain Villa in Swedish Lappland. The setting stunned me. The history captivated me. The architecture floored me. The food, intimately tied to this remote land, was so perfectly complemented by wines from far away that I found myself ascribing true genius to it. All of this luxury comes packaged in a way that pays homage to the ski-bum roots of its proprietors and caretakers. It’s a hard combination to manage, but Niehku has done it well.

Skiing in the mountains of Alaska has been a never-ending passion that started in Valdez during the early 90’s heli-ski era and continues today. I’ve been photographing and writing about the incredible mountain ranges and hearty people of Alaska for half of my life and jump at any opportunity to return to a new range with a unique style of access. Ski touring with friends off a charter boat in the Prince William Sound reinforced my love for this region. The Alaska wilderness had a lifechanging effect on all of us.

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PUBLISHER’S LETTER

Make an IMPACT! Welcome to SNOW’s first Impact Issue. It’s our chance to tell stories that acknowledge some of the people, resorts, and brands that are making a difference in the alpine environment. Meredith Ogilvie-Thompson’s Saving Snow is hopefully just the beginning of the story about the industry’s drive to take action. Cover girl Jamie Anderson is making an impact in all she does. This Grateful Warrior has two Olympic gold medals and multiple X Games Golds. She embodies everything we are looking to achieve in life. She spends time focused on how to give back so more kids can have a chance to pursue their dreams in winter sports. Meredith Ogilvie-Thompson’s profile and Poby’s images take you to the heart of this snowboard superstar. Thanks to Mammoth Lakes Tourism and Mammoth Mountain for the photoshoot support. Greg Von Doersten’s photographs and words for Sea to Ski will fuel your fire for adventure. Ski perfect corn down to the ocean below with only the sound of calving glaciers and squawking seagulls to break the profound silence of the Alaskan wilderness. All this from the comfort of your floating ski lodge. Two-time Pulitzer Prize Winner David Shribman’s Québec , A Love Affair, poetically shares his unabashed love of winter in Québec. Of the people and the places that have made it so special. And the je ne sais quoi that is quintessentially Québec. Taos has been around since the mid-’50s, but thanks to substantial investments and its status as the only B Corp ski resort, it’s the popular new kid on the block. Leslie Woit’s story is about what makes Taos more than just another ski resort with good snow, terrain, lifts, and lodging. It is immediately apparent why Taos is so unique. I want to thank the Jagdschloss Resort in the Kühtai for offering us a phenomenal venue to shoot our fashion editorial. Basing out of the charming Hotel Grauer Baer was a luxury, thanks to Klaus, Cindy, and the team for having us and all of our boxes! Kudos to photographer Antonio Cordero, Stylist John Martinez, and our international group of models and support crew who brought our dreams for Kühtai Kool to life. 30

Lastly, I want to thank SNOW’s creative director Julius Yoder who is elemental in bringing my vision for this magazine to life. Always a good sport, he barely batted an eye when I told him that I wanted to do SNOW in Mandarin to share our passion with the 300 Million people that will take to the slopes this winter in China.

Let it SNOW!

PHOTO BY POBY

EDITOR’S LETTER

The Impact Issue

s world leaders concluded a week of meetings at the United Nations Climate Summit in New York this past September, Montana was hit with its second-biggest two-day storm on record – a historic four feet of snow that prompted Governor Bullock to declare a winter storm emergency. By late October, arctic temperatures and early snowfalls had spread across the region, allowing for an early start to the ski season at many resorts out West. If you are a skier (if you are reading this, it is likely you are), heavy snowfall is a good thing. Unless, of course, you are trying to raise awareness about climate change and remind an enormous demographic of outdoor enthusiasts to consider their impact on the environment. The good news is that positive impact is all around us and provides the impetus for SNOW’s first-ever Impact Issue, which shines a light on efforts being made across the industry. From Jeremy Jones and Protect Our Winters to Auden Schendler and resort management at Aspen to hotels, restaurants, designers and manufacturers, the outdoor industry is responding to climate change and making an effort to educate consumers to be more conscious and make better choices. There are so many great stories this month. Though one I found particularly special is about a soulful adventure into the Alaskan wilderness with professional photographer Greg Von Doersten, who takes us with him on one of the first commercially guided ski boat tours of Prince William Sound. With close to 15,000 square miles of roadless wilderness and thousands of peaks in the Chugach and Kenai mountains that can only be accessed by boat, the potential for exploratory ski touring and ski mountaineering is limitless, if not for the faint of heart. Speaking of heart, Pulitzer Prize-winner David Shribman’s Québec, A Love Story has plenty of it. An ode to the region’s charm, as well as winter sports’ pride of place in a story that spans four generations, Shribman’s delight in skiing Mont Habitant and the “fistful of small hills in Saint-Sauveur-desMonts – Sommet Saint-Sauveur, Avila, Morin Heights, Olympia, Gabriel, and Edelweiss, and the great Eastern Township resorts that hugged the American border in the southern part of the province – Mont Sutton, Owl’s Head, Mont-Orford, Bromont, as well as the mighty areas near Québec City - Le Massif, Stoneham, Mont-Sainte-Anne” is nothing short of infectious. 32

If (like me) you binge-watched Yellowstone, you might want to turn straight to Jay Cowan’s Montana Monopoly for the real story of assorted developers, bankers and realtors that have been ruthlessly competing over a wide-angle slice of Montana mountains, which – prior to the early 1970s – was the property of ranchers, timber companies and the US Forest Service (USFS). Not so much anymore. This issue’s gear and fashion have an impact bent as well – from Houdini and Picture Organic, to Peter Steltzner’s handmade wooden skis, Alessandro Marchi’s vision for 100% sustainability, and Alpyn’s wildcrafted skincare. Finally, there is our cover girl Jamie Anderson whose many talents include being an entrepreneur, writer, filmmaker, climate advocate and philanthropist. She’s a two-time Olympic gold medalist and the most decorated woman in X Games history – Jamie’s talents do not begin and end on the slopes. I hope you enjoy the issue, and that it inspires you to think a bit more about protecting the things we love most. All the best for a happy, healthy and snowy holiday season! Meredith Ogilvie-Thompson Editor-in-Chief

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SNOW FLURRIES

Photo courtesy Guadalupe Laiz Gallery Aspen

FLURRIES

Finally, what was once last is now first. The world’s first gourmet dessert restaurant has achieved the pinnacle of culinary excellence — a glittering Michelin star. Perched on the soigné slopes of Courchevel, Restaurant Sakara (from the Sanskrit for sugar) presents a full menu of sybaritic starters, mains, and, yes, desserts divined from the very finest produce and executed at the ambrosial behest of pastry chef Sébastien Vauxion. Think Cuban grand cru chocolate, Taha’a vanilla, and local Courchevel elderberries – alchemized as intricate creations that include macaron biscuit of lemon zest cream, lemon parsley sorbet, meringue, and Muscat grape jelly; a caramelized chervil ravioli in delicate Chignin broth; and perhaps a magical citrus and tea confection of bergamot zest and a rare Hojicha tea-infused cream. Open for lunch and afternoon tea, a table at Sakara, tucked into the sumptuous five-star K2 Palace Hotel, represents one of the sweetest culinary diversions into haute cuisine we’ve found this season. — LW

Sweet Dreams Ace of

LEK 2PAL ACE.COM

ART WORK BY MON SIEUR Z

ART

This winter Ace Hotel in New York will present a ski art exhibition featuring Traffic NYC Artists (@traffic_nyc): Cecilia Lundgren, Wendy Plovmand/Artiig, Monsieur Z, and Mia Marie Overgaard, whose art is presented on skis created by Wagner Skis. Everything is custom-made from Telluride based Wagner Skis, so bespoke artwork for the topsheet was only a natural evolution. “We love working with the team at Traffic NYC,” says Wagner. “Why not enjoy art outside rather than on a wall or in a gallery. It is also a great way to support working artists. Every time we use their work on a pair of skis, they get paid and the skis provide a unique canvas for art and expression. Aside from out on the mountain, we couldn’t think of a better place to show off our skis than the soulful and eclectic Ace Hotels.” — Barbara Sanders WAGNERSKIS.COM

Park Hyatt Hanazono, Niseko The all-new Park Hyatt Niseko HANAZONO Hotel & Residences will be open for guests in mid-January 2020. Ski-in to one of the signature suites which have stunning views of Mount Yotei as well as a private onsen. Recharge after a day skiing bottomless powder, by dining in Michelin starred Chef Mitsukawa’s “Sushi Mitsukawa,” which features Kanazawa influenced sushi and sashimi served on traditional Hokuriku Ohi-yaki plates or try the French-themed “Molière Montagne” with dishes showcasing the terroir of Hokkaido. Ask about private wine tasting in the hotel cellar. And what Japanese ski holiday would be complete without a bit of Karaoke? The hotel has not one, but two Karaoke rooms. - Barbara Sanders H Y A T T. C O M / E N - U S / H O T E L / J A P A N / P A R K - H Y A T T - N I S E K O - H A N A Z O N O / C T S P H 36

FLURRIES

Chalet CHIC

Aside from an invitation to Willy Bogner’s home itself, we’ve discovered the only place in the world where you’ll find a bonafide Bogner chalet. It is surrounded by snowy forests and pistes that criss-cross Austria’s expansive Saalbach-Hinterglemm ski area. This private, officially branded Bogner chalet, is one of 18 reclaimed-wood eco-forward chalets that comprise Bergdorf Priesteregg, a welcomingly sumptuous hamlet-of-a-resort.

Cozy up in front of a crackling fire in your own alpine-chic abode where panoramic windows reveal Birnhorn, the highest peak in the Leogang Mountains. Slip into a private 15-yard infinity pool warmed to a cossetting 93 degrees, just slightly cooler than a soak in the adjacent stainless-steel hot tub. The wellness offering is rounded out with a Finnish sauna, steam bath, outdoor shower, and a full complement of sybaritically comforting Bogner creams and unguents. Next door, in an ode to the dashing South Tirolean mountaineer and filmmaker Luis Trenker, the equally unique twoperson Trenker chalet reflects his mythos of mountain adventure and vitality. Two levels contain furnishings draped in hand-woven linens, floors of rich pine, and a raft of authentic details — a sumptuous leather-pile headboard bearing Luis Trenker’s embossed signature, elegant Catellani & Smith lamps, powder-light feather bedding, infrared sauna cabin, and a sleek modern bathroom create a refuge of wellbeing. A large mirror converts into a flat-screen TV with a simple touch, and both chalets (as do all 18 in the resort) run on all-renewable energy, use environmentally friendly technologies such as waste-water heat recovery and — because these things matter, too — bread baked daily in a stone oven and milk from a well-tended herd of blissfully happy cows. All details designed and determined to have you living your very best chalet life, as tradition blended with innovation dictates. — Leslie Woit W W W.P R I E S T E R E G G. AT

Survivor

QUÉBEC Want to pit your wits against the winter wastes of Mt Tremblant? For around $800 per person, Heli Tremblant will drop you off for two days in the remote forest. Your mission is to find your way back to camp. This is your chance to slough off city sensitivities and develop ancestral survival skills. Negotiating 12 miles of the Laurentian wilderness on off-piste trails around marshland, mountains and frozen lakes, you’ll learn ancient survival techniques using knives and flint stones – a somewhat sharp learning curve! Safety is ensured by survival instructor Alexandre Coser, and no need to forage for fodder as much-needed meals are provided. For extreme sports enthusiasts only, there’s an initiation day to get you ready for the wilderness. And if this is too hard an adventure, there’s always the romantic tour for two which combines a heli ride with a cozy candlelit sunset dinner. Worried about your wilderness footprint? Centre Kanatha-Aki which has created these experiences with Heli-Tremblant is part of Leave No Trace Canada, a national non-profit dedicated to promoting responsible outdoor recreation. Partnering in the mission to mitigate recreational impacts on Canada’s wilderness, proprietor Stéphane Denis says: “We are a proud partner of Leave No Trace Canada which is very involved in the environment. We make our customers aware 38

of the movement and the seven principles of leaving no traces.” These are ‘plan ahead and prepare’; ‘travel and camp on durable surfaces’; ‘dispose of waste properly’; ‘leave what you find’; ‘minimize campfire impacts’; ‘respect wildlife’; and ‘be considerate of others’. — Louise Hudson H E L I - T R E M B L A N T. C O M

FLURRIES

POWDER 8’s are BACK Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing (MWHS) is celebrating its 50th season this winter. In honor of this momentous anniversary, they are bringing back the legendary Powder 8 World Championships event. Launched in 1980, MWHS held the Power 8’s for over two decades. If you missed Aspen Extreme, it is where two teams compete head-to-head, creating perfect ‘8’s’ in deep powder snow. Mike, who recently celebrated his 81st birthday, is credited with popularizing the freeskiing movement of the ‘80s and ‘90s that is now a part of the resort ski experience worldwide. If you have always dreamed of your TJ Burke and Dexter Rutecki moment, Powderbird – a heli-ski company based in Utah’s Wasatch mountains adjacent to Snowbird – will host the U.S. qualifying event for the MWHS World

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Powder 8 Championships. The U.S. Powder 8 Nationals will take place on February 5-7, 2020, with a qualifying event open to the public with pre-registration required from January 22-24, 2020. The official MWHS Powder 8 World Championships kick off on March 31 - April 3, 2020, in beautiful Blue River, B.C. The championship event will welcome teams from Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Canada, and the U.S. We hear there will be some very notable competitors. As part of celebrating its 50th season, MWHS ha s just relea sed a docu ment a r y, Ca ll Me Crazy. — Barbara Sanders WIEGELE.COM

Shonagh Hamilton

Haute Designer Recently graduated from the Edinburgh College of Art with a degree in fashion design, Shonagh Hamilton has a unique take on ski wear. Family ski trips, a basement full of old skis, and the memories made while skiing had an impact on her. So, when she decided to choose a theme for her senior project, ski fashion was a natural fit. Shonagh likes to be innovative and make a statement. She feels like the ski slopes are the perfect place to do this. “Many people might not be confident enough to push fashion boundaries in their normal life, but they are ready to take bold steps on the slopes,” says Shonagh. Having a sustainable element was essential, and she started the project by “upcycling” old used ski wear to use for the fabric and zippers. Making a statement about single-use plastics, she took fourpack plastic rings and laser cut the shape into scrap fabric she photographed to create a 2D print. Other prints are inspired by ocean pollution. Overall, the designs are inspired by the Anthropocene, 80’s ski wear and Japanese graphic design. Look for prints featuring her Shanghai slow shutter speed street shots and the name of her favorite Chinese Takeout which got her through the long nights creating her collection. — Barbara Sanders 40

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FLURRIES

AIR to WEAR by LESLIE WOIT

Ladies of the snow, take note. As we layer up for another enriching winter in the mountains, spare a thought for the plucky pioneering gals who laid those first tracks for us all. Well before big lines and extreme skiing came into fashion, and not that long after ladies were first seen sporting trousers, a fearless set of identical twins from Canada were trailblazing a swath through the world of ski racing. Born in 1922, Rhona and Rhoda Wurtele were as inseparable as they were unstoppable. Keeping pace with their equally athletic brothers, the indomitable twins would dominate nearly every race they entered in the 1940s. Heroics that began with ski jumping in Montreal by age 11, eventually led to international racing celebrated with après-ski soirees among the likes of Salvador Dalí. Together they comprised the first — indeed, the entire — Olympic Women’s Alpine Team for Canada in 1948 and would subsequently spend decades coaching and inspiring generations of new skiers, female and male. For their contributions, a litany of awards has included the prestigious Order of Canada, honors from the Canadian and the US Sports Halls of Fame, and starring roles 42

in newsreels, ski films, and countless photographs. Turns out, one particular image is enjoying a renaissance. In search of an evocative vintage picture to reproduce on their luxury ski wear, the Italian firm of Newland alighted on two smiling girls sailing through cool mountain air. “We didn’t know the identity of the girls in the picture,” explained Newland’s Anna Dareggi. “We were excited to see a real photo of two girls who, so many years ago, and in such a different historical and social context, were so obviously brave

and exceptional at the sport we love.” By chance, the daughter of one of the twins saw the resulting sweater in Ski Town Boutique, in Brossard, Québec. The shop owner contacted Newland on behalf of the sisters — now 97 years old, avid cross-country skiers and by all accounts tickled pink to see their exploits touching yet another generation of mountain lovers. A special order, including a set of customcreated sweaters for the models themselves, was delivered to the boutique. Fleshing out a rich history woven right through the garment, Rhoda and Rhona shared its provenance. The photo was shot in Banff, Alberta in 1947 for an advertisement for the Canadian Pacific Railway and also graced magazine covers and a biography of their lives on skis, No Limits, by Byron Rempel. The perfectly coordinated jump captured in the photo, we’re not surprised to hear, was achieved in just one take. Clearly, the Wurtele sisters had places to go. W W W. N E W L A N D F R O M I TA LY.C O M

SNOW STYLE

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BEAUTY

Nature Versus Nurture b y M E R E D I T H O G I LV I E -T H O M P S O N

“Keeping skin hydrated in an alpine environment is a challenge,” says dermatologist Soren White, whose New York – Aspen – Palm Beach-based practice makes him better qualified than most to comment on the harsh effects of extreme sun exposure. “Not only can the sun be more intense in the mountains than at the beach, the lack of humidity at altitude significantly raises the stakes.” For former skincare executive Kendra Butler – who, along with husband Ryan, moved her family from New York to Wyoming in search of a more outdoors-oriented life – an alpine environment has proved more a solution than a challenge. Sitting in her backyard, which abuts the Bridger-Teton National Forest, Butler recalls looking at the plant life and being amazed by nature’s ability to not only survive but thrive in the harsh environs of Jackson Hole. A bit of research later, she learned her adopted town’s indigenous flora not only included skin-beneficial plants like borage, calendula, and sage, but there was a way they could be sustainably utilized to combat dry skin. “ Wildcrafting is the practice of ha r vesting a pla nt in its nat u ra l environment in a way that doesn’t damage it,” Butler says, effectively describing the process by which she makes her proprietary Alpyn Beauty Wildcrafted Actives, a yummy line that includes a cleanser, serum, moisturizer, eye balm and the brand’s latest offering — a Calming Midnight Mask with antioxidant -packed melatonin and detoxifying wild dandelion leaf designed to work overnight when your skin naturally regenerates. Packed with actives like wild arnica, chamomile, wild dandelion, and other plant-based ceramides high in Vitamin C, Alpyn has 48

become a cult favorite with Beauty Editors who rave about its hydrating effect, as well as its ever-so-slight alpenglow – reminiscent of the light that illuminates the mountaintops, forests and valleys around Jackson – that the products leave on their skin. “By allowing the plant to go through its natural life cycle – no shade, fertilizer or pesticides, just nature taking its due course – the plants have to learn how to hold hydration and become more resilient to things that can harm them.” It’s what Butler refers to as plant genius, and has prompted more than a few of her clients to coo, “it feels like my skin got a drink”. Though a strong advocate for daily sunblock – regardless of the altitude – Dr. White agrees many solutions to our everyday skincare woes can absolutely be found in nature. “I personally use Heliocare when I’m skiing or at the beach,” he says, referring to a readily available supplement derived from the polypodium leucotomos fern known as PLE. An aquatic plant found in the wilds of Central and South America, PLE adapted to life on land by creating its own protection from the harsh effects of free radicals in the environment. Grown on small plantations without pesticides or fertilizers – Heliocare is certified by NSF for Good Manufacturing Practices – and with a share of the profits re-invested in local communities, what’s not to love? Butler sums it up well. “I think nature holds so many solutions, and if we respect her and work in harmony with her, she holds the answers to a lot of our problems.”

8:38 AM

The moment your idea of heaven, finally comes down to earth. The best ski days are a glimpse of paradise on earth. And there’s no place more heavenly than Whistler. As North America’s largest (and Whistler’s only true) ski-in ski-out luxury hotel, Fairmont Chateau Whistler is the ultimate Canadian ski experience. We continue to raise the standard with offerings like our Experience Guide, who personally leads Fairmont guests to Whistler’s most unforgettable moments. Because you deserve access to the most heavenly of alpine getaways — wherever on earth you’re from. Explore our winter offers at fairmont.com/whistler

TA B L E

TASTING THE ALPS IN TELLURIDE Story & Photography by MARLA MEREDITH

hef Nicola Peccedi is Alpino Vino. His connection to this top on-mountain restaurant has become an integral part of his persona in Telluride, Colorado. He brings the rustic refined flavors of Northern Italy to the ski slopes of the San Juan Mountains. Peccedi has a boyish charm, is easy on the eyes, super fun to talk to, and greets friends old and new with a big hug and a vibrant “Ciao.” His eyes sparkle as he speaks about his high alpine cuisine at Alpino Vino. “Guests here enjoy the fresh, hearty, and homemade food I grew up eating in Bormio, Italy,” says Peccedi. Peccedi made his way to Colorado in 2000, bringing with him years of kitchen experience in Italy. His hometown of Bormio is also well known for its world-class skiing. Located in the Lombardy region of the Alps, it’s just over the hill from glitzy St. Moritz, Switzerland. On mountain dining in the USA can hardly be called dining, known more for a quick fuel stop for burgers and beer. In the Alps, stopping for a slopeside meal is altogether different. It’s an event. Lunches are longer, and hours are spent soaking in the sun, with lively conversation, sipping wine, and enjoying the cuisine. Food in the Alps is fresh, local, and downright honest. What Peccedi has 50

created at Alpino Vino echoes experiences reminiscent (in a smaller scale, as this tiny restaurant seats just 28 indoors) of Rifugio Maison Vieille in Courmayeur Italy, Chez Vrony in Zermatt and Hospiz Alm in St. Christoph, Austria. Peccedi says he wants his guests to “feel at home enjoying the authentic flavors of the Italian Alps.” What sets his cooking apart goes back to the basics. “Living here in the mountains, you depend on the essentials. I use all organic ingredients, and we make everything from scratch, from our pasta to the gnocchi and tiramisu,” says Peccedi. Take a bite of his homemade Pasta Bolognese, and you find yourself transported to faraway places. The sauce, made from locally sourced organic ground beef, red wine, and San Marzano tomatoes is served over homemade al dente pasta. Perched at 11,966 feet, Alpino Vino is the highest fine-dining restaurant in North America. Accessed only by skiing, take the Gold Hill Express (Chair 14), and swoosh partially down the See Forever run enjoying snow drenched views of Revelation Bowl and the local 14ers. On skiers left, straight out of a chic ski poster, revelers sit on the deck on sheepskin-lined chairs and day beds. Pop off your skis and sink into Alpino Vino’s refined elegance,

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TA B L E

“EVERYTHING IS REAL. We prepare virtually everything up here, so we need to be sensitive to cooking at high altitude.”

made even better clinking glasses of Prosecco. When Peccedi took over the restaurant in 2012, he changed all the sourcing of the ingredients, including sheep and goat cheeses from small Colorado-based farmers. “They cannot be complicated; they must be simple and fresh. Everything is real. We prepare virtually everything up here, so we need to be sensitive to cooking at high altitude,” says Peccedi. His deep connection to the mountains and the cuisine and presentation is present in every dish. Not to be missed is the Salumi e Formaggi plate with traditional alp-cured meats and farmhouse cheeses. Dinner specials change according to what he can have flown in fresh. The Seared Fresh Hamachi on the menu is a gorgeous dish with a risotto cake, crispy fried capers topped with Osetra caviar. It’s the kind of meal you hope will never end. The wine is expertly paired by Sommelier Andrew Shaffner, and the list of Brunello wines is one of the largest in Colorado. Peccedi is grateful for his tasks beyond the kitchen too. “I transport most of the ingredients daily by snowmobile. One of the best parts about this job is that I get to ski and spend time outdoors enjoying these magnificent mountains.”

BOTTLE

PLUMPJACK

pend time in Squaw Valley and you’re sure to run into PlumpJack. Be it the casually elegant inn steps from the village with breath-taking views of the Sierra Nevada mountains, the fashion-forward boutique offering the latest in designer Ski wear, street togs, techie gear, and mountainchic accessories, or the hopping après hangout where those in the know – notably, ski legends Jonny Moseley and Julia Mancuso head for haute cuisine and Napa wines. Including PlumpJack, of course, which has been wowing the world with its loveable, full-bodied, award-winning offerings. Founded in 1992 by California Governor (and expert skier) Gavin Newsom, what started as a neighborhood wine store, inspired by Shakespeare’s eponymous character - the legendary bon vivant and corpulent royal sidekick Sir John “Plump Jack” Falstaff, has since evolved into an impressive collection of hospitality and lifestyle brands. All of which have come to be associated as much with the Northern California ski town as the town itself is with the Newsom family. “There’s a long family history in Squaw Valley,” says Hilary Newsom Callan, Co-President of the PlumpJack Group and the Governor’s sister. A modest reference to the clan’s role in the town’s development, which started with Hilary’s grandfather after

the 1960 Olympic Games when he got the master lease for all of the Olympic Village. He would go on to operate the Olympic Village Inn where Hilary’s parents met and, later, where she and her brother spent summers learning to play tennis and soccer. “It was an important part of our lives.” Today’s PlumpJack Inn was born from the bone structure of the original Squaw Valley Inn, which had been used to house aspirational athletes and delegations during the Olympics, and later was bought by the Newsom’s close family friend Gordon Getty. When the opportunity came up to take it over in 1995, Governor Newsom approached Getty and, after securing his blessing to rebrand it PlumpJack, gutted it to its studs, rebuilt it, and opened the PlumpJack Inn and Cafe. “That put us on the map,” says Hilary. “We re-designed the property rather than tear it down, and focused our energy on the culinary experience, and creating a wine list with brands that were memorable and unique.” By 1997, PlumpJack wines were also on the map, being harvested at the PlumpJack Estate Winery. It has since grown into four distinct wineries - PlumpJack, Odette, CADE, and 13th Vineyard by CADE Estate, which in addition to supporting CADE’s production, produces its own single-vineyard estate

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF PLUMPJACK

by LOUISE HUDSON

ASPEN

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VAIL

BOTTLE

“The idea of bottling half of our 1997 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon with a screw cap was a calculated decision that we did not take lightly” Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. In recent years, PlumpJack’s wines have garnered rave reviews, with both PlumpJack and Odette Reserve Cabernets scoring a perfect 100 points from Robert Parker. Not too shabby for an industry disruptor that had been best-known as the first in the US to bottle a premium wine with a screw-top. “PlumpJack has always strived to innovate,” says Hilary. “The idea of bottling half of our 1997 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon with a screw cap was a calculated decision that we did not take lightly, working closely with professionals from UC Davis to determine what was best to avoid cork-taint.” It was a decision that paid off. While wines from the group’s vineyards are priced from $36 (for the CADE Sauvignon Blanc), a bottle of today’s Reserve from any of the PlumpJack wineries will set you back $300 or more – that is, if you’re lucky enough to get hold of one. When not stewarding PlumpJack’s portfolio of vineyards and restaurants that span from Carmel to San Francisco, up through Napa Valley and into the Sierra Mountains, you might spot Hilary sourcing fashion forward togs for PlumpJackSport, which she and GM /Lead Buyer Meg Millar have parlayed into one of the region’s most exclusive retailers; or heading up the PlumpJack Foundation, launched in 2016 to provide support to local communities; or even overseeing plans for a new eco-friendly facility - CADE is entirely Gold LEED certified. “Sense of place is everything to us,” Hilary tells me. “And means we have to be good citizens in the communities we’re part of.” This coming March, Hilary will get even busier as the group prepares to break ground on PlumpJack’s latest project - a total redevelopment of its Squaw Valley Inn. Ten years in the planning, the lodge is set to undergo a facelift that will transform it into a 56

complex of luxury ski-in-ski-out condos - most of which will be for rent - as well as a small number of hotel rooms. As for the Cafe, I’m assured plans are afoot to relocate the iconic fave to a temporary location nearby for the duration. If all this leaves you feeling PlumpJack FOMO, the awardwinning wines are now sold worldwide. I saw one recently at the 48 Wine Bar on South Carolina’s Kiawah Island. Though for full immersion in PlumpJack Inn-ovations, best head to Squaw Valley and follow Jonny Moseley’s lead. “Had some friends come into town yesterday afternoon and so far we are sticking the line. Wildflour to Chammy to PlumpJack for the fondue bacon burger (win) followed by some passionate karaoke at the Dub. Time to ski.”

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05/11/19 08:24

BOUTIQUE

ALL FAMILY in the

Skiing is the best family sport in the world. b y M I C H A E L M A S TA R C I YA N

PERFORMANCE SKI - ASPEN There’s a long list of reasons why Performance Ski in Aspen is one of the most successful ski shops in the world. The store itself is an Aladdin’s Cave of high-end labels, and one would think this may be the secret behind its success, but as many of Performance Ski’s loyal clientele will tell you, the real treasure at this posh ski boutique is co-owner Lee Keating. Skier, mom, wife, business owner, Ski wear designer, luxury brand owner (Authier), Keating is all of these, but she’s also one of the most charming and entertaining characters in the world of skiing. “How do we compete with all the Net-A-Porter’s of the world? How boring is it to shop home alone and not have someone tell you how great you look in something you’re trying on, that’s such a sad and lonely way to buy ski clothing,” Keating says with a chuckle. “Family” may be the key ingredient in the prosperity of Performance Ski. Keating admits the line between the shop and home gets blurred with husband and co-owner Tom Bowers (an ex-US Ski Team member) and their children Dairinn and Jack providing copious amounts of entertainment value to shoppers. “We’re too cheap to hire an agency, so we have our daughter do the modeling for our ads. Working with my kids is easy, but working with my husband is not so easy. People have seen me throw ski boots across the room at him, but that also provides for entertainment for our clients and that’s what people like,” Keating adds with a huge laugh. 58

PHOTO BY MICHELE CARDAMONE

e all know it, we’ve all said it, and according to six of the world’s most well-known ski shops, this very notion of “family” may be the best line of defense for traditional brick & mortar businesses in the age of e-commerce. Here’s what we found out when we asked them how their stores are thriving in an increasingly online-oriented world.

BOUTIQUE

“It’s the experience of the snow, the mountains, and the genuine “Austrian feeling” you get when you’re here that is missing from a digital App.”

four-floor luxury ski department store run by Grandpa Strolz’s grandson and namesake, Ambros Strolz Jr. The family boot brand is regarded by many as the world’s best bespoke ski boot. “Four generations of families have been skiing in Lech, and they keep coming back because, in some way, a visit to our shop has become part of their vacation experience,” Strolz says. “It’s the experience of the snow, the mountains, and the genuine “Austrian feeling” you get when you’re here that is missing from a digital App. You have to ‘feel it’ with all your senses, and this is something we focus on at Strolz, making sure our clients have a fulfilling ‘experience’ in our shop when they’re visiting,” adds Strolz.

GORSUCH VAIL/ASPEN/PARK CITY/BEAVER CREEK-AVON Gorsuch may be the Tiffany & Co. of the ski world, but at its core is a family business with very humble roots. “At Gorsuch, skiing is our heritage, and our family has been welcoming guests, friends, and clientele to the mountains for nearly 60 years,” says Jeff Gorsuch, one of three brothers who run the shops today. “Gorsuch stores are a destination, and it’s the exceptional teams of staff and professionals who make each store the destination that it is. It’s a given that you need great merchandise for prosperity in retail, but at the heart of Gorsuch are those who have given of themselves to make it the amazing place of community that it is. The richness of the relationships our family has built with the staff and our clientele give us a sense of community that is the lifeblood of success at our brick and mortar locations,” says Gorsuch.

STROLZ SPORT - LECH, AUSTRIA You know your clan has deep roots in the ski world when the family name morphs into a verb over time. Ninety-nine years ago, Ambros Strolz began making custom, handmade ski boots in Lech, Austria, and people have been “Strolzing” at the family shop ever since! Today, the humble bootmaker’s workshop is a palatial 60

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BOUTIQUE

THE SIGN OF THE SKIER - TORONTO, CANADA “Family, The Sign has always been about family,” says Bonnie de Merlis, one of Canada’s most influential ski fashion movers and shakers when asked to describe her shop in one sentence. She is the second-generation owner of Toronto’s The Sign of the Skier. “We’re family-owned and operated, so we love getting to know all members of the families that shop at our store,” says de Merlis, who believes it’s this sense of family that keeps her clients coming back to the Toronto shop that has had a cult-like following for years. Proud of The Sign’s renowned “no stress to buy” vibe, de Merlis believes making the shop a place where clients can touch, feel, and try equipment with zero sales pressure is the best way to keep people coming back in the digital age. “So much of what we sell needs to fit properly. We listen, we help, and we make sure the fit is right and the style suits, and that’s not something you can experience from a phone or computer,” says de Merlis.

COLE SPORT - PARK CITY, UTAH Ben Franklin’s adage, “Honesty is the best policy,” may be a great way to conduct yourself as a good person, but it’s also a smart way to run a successful business according to Adam Cole, a secondgeneration member of Park City, Utah’s most famous ski retailing family. According to Cole, honesty is Cole Sport’s highest priority, and the key to building lasting relationships with clients. Good relationships are good business in the e-commerce age. “From home, you’re missing everything that makes shopping for high-end gear so exciting,” says Cole. “The relationship you build with sales staff is hard to replace. Most of our staff have been working at Cole Sport for 10-25 years and can match you to what you truly want. Having someone help guide you into the perfect ski pants or boots is something you cannot replicate from the comfort of your couch,” Cole adds.

SKI TOWN - BROSSARD, CANADA It’s a rare occurrence for a name to be synonymous with a sport, but in La Belle Province of Québec, when you mention the name Bernard Trottier, people immediately think of skiing. “My father is one of the forefathers of skiing in Québec, and I guess you can say skiing and retail are in our DNA, so in 2011 it was a natural fit for my brother Richard and I to start our own shop, Ski Town in Brossard,” says Brigitte Trottier. According to Trottier, creating a family vibe in their shop is vital to the overall success of Ski Town. “When someone enters our store, they see a wide variety of snow sports equipment and clothing. We spend endless hours coaching and mentoring our service and sales staff in understanding the needs of clients. A happy skier will always come back, and our mission is to sell happiness above everything else,” says Trottier. 62

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his is a tale of youthful infatuation. Of love at first sight. Of a lifelong affair. A story of stolen weekends, raging fires, passionate interludes, hushed meals by candlelight. Of faraway alpine retreats, snow-kissed walks in remote country fastnesses, and clinking wine goblets, all to the soft soundtrack of a French chanteuse. Plus some creaky chairlifts, a few mugs of chocolat chaud, a splurge of tire d ‘érable sur la neige, and almost always a pack of Grabber hand warmers. Baby, it’s cold outside. As the son of a Montreal mother and a Massachusetts father, I am truly the product of Canadian-American relations. And while I’ve 64

skied in 14 American states, my heart - near, far, wherever I am, as a famous Québecker once sang - is held captive by Québec in winter, and by the beguiling slopes and trails of its 75 ski areas, nearly half of which are still privately owned. It isn’t only the snow, which is robust and relentless. Nor the air, cold but crisp, fresh and refreshing. Nor the lodgings, quiet auberges by the side of the road, hidden cottages by the side of the hill. Nor even the food, beginning with soupe à l’oignon gratinée and progressing quickly to the unimaginably rich sauces of French-Canadian cooking, followed by mousse au chocolat, the best you’ve ever had. More than all that, it’s the atmosphere that is its allure.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF QUEBEC CITY TOURISM

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Québec, a Love Story

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1. Jean Lessard 1965. 2. Mont Tremblant 3. Jean Lessard with France and Marc Lessard 1969 4. Ski school antics. Previous page

Vieux- Québec

Authentic, invigorating, laced with the conviction that winter is to be enjoyed and not evaded, employed and not endured. Every Québec schoolchild knows one line from Gilles Vigneault, the province’s poet, singer and songwriter - Mon pays, ce n’est pas un pays, c’est l’hiver. My country is not a country, it’s winter, which in any language is the cold truth of Canada. Québec especially. My romance began a half-century ago as a youthful tryst with a T-bar, rooted in my longest, closest friendship with Jimmy Stein, son of Mickey Stein, the visionary developer of Mont Habitant, who with a pair of bulldozers, some dynamite to blow away the larger boulders, and a $600 fee paid to the legendary trail designer Sel Hannah, sculpted a ski area out of a Laurentian hillside. It was 1959, the very year when legendaries like Henri Richard, Jean Béliveau, Bernie “Boom Boom” 66

Geoffrion and Jacques Cartier played with the Montreal Canadiens and when, perhaps in an homage to the beloved fireplaces of Canada’s ski country, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes by The Platters was the number one hit in what was then known as the Dominion of Canada. Jim and I skied together at Mont Habitant not long after his father’s vision became a reality, and then at the Dartmouth Skiway when we both were students at that capital of collegiate skiing, and even at Mount Cranmore, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. But always – always - I was drawn back to Québec, to Habitant and the fistful of small hills in Saint-Sauveurdes-Monts - Sommet Saint-Sauveur, Avila, Morin Heights, Olympia, Gabriel, and Edelweiss. And the great Eastern Township resorts that hugged the American border in the southern part of the province - Mont

Sutton, Owl’s Head, Mont-Orford, Bromont. And the mighty areas near Québec City - Le Massif, Stoneham, Mont-Sainte-Anne. One of the reasons I want to live a long life is to have a chance to ski the Rue Radar trail on Mont Ste-Marie, and visit Camp Fortune, the area with the very best name in all of North American skiing. All of which is not to mention Mont Tremblant, which became a ski area after Joe Ryan, the ski pioneer from Philadelphia, and Lowell Thomas, the fabled writer and broadcaster, ventured to the summit of the peak that bears its name. A trek that resulted in the development of an idiosyncratic resort that today has the corporate fingerprints of ski behemoth Intrawest, and is now owned by the Alterra Mountain Company, whose portfolio includes Deer Valley, Mammoth, Squaw Valley and Steamboat. But there is far more to Québec skiing than Tremblant. Indeed, at a time when ski traditionalists and even contemporary ski professionals are asking whether mega-ski passes offered by conglomerates are killing the sport, the heart - the bleeding heart - of Québec skiing remains the palette of small, family-oriented areas. “We offer a ski experience that isn’t like those big resorts, at reasonable prices and where everyone feels at home,” said Dean Booth, who was the ski school director at several Canadian areas before settling in as the longtime head of Habitant. We once sold

PHOTOS COURTESY OF FRANCE LESSARD

“We offer a ski experience that isn’t like those big resorts, at reasonable prices and where everyone feels at home”

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Solitude at Mont Bromont

tickets from the tiny stand at the foot of the ski hill, and his son now runs operations at the mountain - proof that these are family areas for employees as well as guests. Fra nce Lessa rd, for mer head of Rossignol’s clothing division, concurred. “There is something natural about the sport.” Her father skied for Canada in the 1960 Olympics at Squaw Valley, helped set out the runs and became a ski pro while also operating the ski shop at Mont Sutton. These days there is karaoke on Wednesdays, open mic at the Bar Le Tucker on Thursdays and, at the end of the season, a sugar-shack meal with the traditional 14-hour slow cooked maple ham, baked beans, pancakes, pork rinds and of course pouding chômeur, which roughly translates as poor man’s pudding, and was created during the Great Depression by female factory workers in Québec who poured maple syrup into cake batter. A video produced at Mont Sutton around 1967 - the year of Canada’s centenary and 68

Montreal’s Expo 67, widely regarded as the country’s coming-out party to the world - gives a sense of the ethos still present at Sutton and throughout Québec. In that video, the skis are close together, knee locked into knee in a way that is impossible with today’s shaped skis. Though you no longer can go up the mountain with individual tickets - 40 for $10.00 - and though T-bars and wooden skis are generally gone, the sense of intimacy remains. “Here it is kind of like the old days, with an old-time après-ski atmosphere, made all the richer because these places are not very crowded,” said Lessard. “The person who goes to Tremblant and then goes to Sutton is going to have a totally different experience.” Last spring, as the last traces of snow were retreating from the slopes of Owl’s Head, Montreal businessman Charles Baudinet strapped on his boards to capture his last runs of the season. “When I’m here, I feel at home,” he said. “I skied here when I was young, my kids raced and coached

here, and we just bought ski passes for the new season so we can keep the ski tradition going.” The personification of keeping the ski tradition going is Baudinet’s ski companion, Marc Richardson. A 50-year veteran of the area, Richardson’s father was an early ski school director at Mickey Stein’s Mont Habitant before – together with his mother - opening the ski school at Owl’s Head. Today, Richardson is one of the high-performance instructors at the arena in Mansonville, with its breathtaking panoramic view of Lake Memphremagog. “The big thing about the small places is that everybody knows each other,” said Richardson. “And people look out for each other. This is a place for people to grow in their ski ability. That’s the beauty of these types of places.” For many years Bernard Trottier, now 87, owned the recently defunct Mont Shefford ski area near what is now known as the Bromont resort. Trottier began skiing on barrel stakes that he fashioned himself and was, as La Presse described him, une véritable encyclopédie du ski au Québec. “Shefford and the small areas that are still operating weren’t like the big places even then,” Trottier said. “Skiing is the best sport for the family, and we catered to that. The size and degree of the hill was perfect for families, and we had 150 instructors to handle all the people.” We can be thankful that Québec’s nearly three dozen family ski areas aren’t the North Country equivalent of the fabled colony of Atlantis – once ambitious and lively, but ultimately lost to history. “ The old Québec sk i ex per ience endures,” said Paul Dalbec, who runs a boutique luxury real estate firm near Tremblant. “This province has remarkable variety and a lot of small hills that develop a lot of racers. I grew up at Tremblant but

PHOTOS COURTESY COURTESY OF SKI QUEBEC

“Here it is kind of like the old days, with an old time après-ski atmosphere, made all the richer because these places are not very crowded”

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know these teenie-weenie areas are very popular, and the people who go to them love their skiing. This is not Vail or Aspen.” True enough. In fact, eat your heart out Vail and Aspen, and Deer Valley too, for you won’t get a meal there remotely like those served at La Grange in MorinHeights, Québec - my favorite restaurant in North America where I always - every time - order le tartare de saumon, which is out of this world, accompanied by frites worthy of their own feature essay. For former American slalom racer Mark Taché, whose father Yves Taché was a preeminent racer and member of the Canadian national ski team, the difference between the tiny areas of Québec and the giant ski mountains of Colorado is one of stark contrast. “We skied in a lot of those small Québec mountains during my racing days, and they were great,” said the younger Taché, who today operates the Montana Ale Works restaurant in Bozeman, having retired from competitive racing. “There’s so much history in Québec, and after competing in the World Cup you go there and feel you’ve returned to real ski culture, rich in atmosphere and really fun. I only wish I could be there more often.” It is a sentiment echoed by my childhood friend Jimmy, who has played host to me and my family for five decades. There are the meals - the $4.89 spaghetti 70

lunch at Mont Habitant on Mondays, the Montreal smoked-meat specials on Fridays, and the Sunday evening special, when you can ski all night for $11.25, about the cost of a glass of wine back home in the States. And then there are the memories. My daughters are the fourth generation to ski at Hill 70, named for a World War I battle, and one of the peaks now at Sommet SaintSauveur. Indeed, one of my most cherished possessions is a photograph from 1934 of my grandmother Sadye Marks, at the top of Hill 70, no doubt reached after an early morning train ride out of Mile End station in Montreal and followed by a lunch of thick pea soup with homemade brown bread. There were my own struggles on the T-bar Jimmy’s father installed right beside the Bonbon trail. And there were times we watched our little girls learn at the ski school that at one time was run by Jimmy’s stepmother, almost certainly the first woman to direct a ski school in Canada. There was the afternoon Jimmy took a formidable 84inch ice saw, cut a hole in a remote lake just big enough for our daughters, dipped them in the cold waters, and then watched them then roll in the snowbanks. And, of course, our first experience of tire d ‘érable sur la neige, tasting the sweet treat produced by boiling and reducing maple syrup, placing it in a slender line on the snow, and then rolling it on a Popsicle stick to be devoured by eager children and adults alike.

Over the yea rs I’ve come to rea lize that more than one line of that famous Canadian country-is-winter poem by Gilles Vigneault has a rich meaning for me. There is another line that goes like this: Mon chemin, ce n’est pas un chemin, c’est la neige. Which basically means My way is not a path, it’s snow. For me this winter, when I have moved to Québec - in large measure to take a deep drink of its frosty but friendly winter - my way is not a path. It’s snow. Here in Québec. Here in snowy, warm and wonderful Québec.

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PHOTO COURTESY OF QUEBEC CITY TOURISM

1. Mont Tremblant 2. Powder skiing Mont Sutton 3. Vieux- Québec

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b y M E R E D I T H O G I LV I E -T H O M P S O N

s global leaders gathered in New York for the United Nations 2019 Climate Summit in late September, Italian authorities were busy closing roads and evacuating mountain huts near the alpine town of Courmayeur in response to warnings the Planpincieux glacier (512 square miles of ice sheet located on the southern slopes of the Grandes Jorasses in the Mont Blanc massif) was in danger of collapsing. While Courmayeur’s Mayor addressed the press, attributing the “phenomena” to climate factors, Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte addressed heads of state in the United Nations General Assembly: “It is an alarm that we cannot be indifferent to.” For those involved in the $20 billion (and that is just in the United States) snow sports industry, the news could not have come as a surprise. By now, most believe climate change is a threat to lives and livelihoods and have come to accept it as the yardstick by which impact – an oft-used word with seemingly limitless implications – is measured. After all, this is an industry inextricably linked to the health of the environment. So, why are we not more united around the issue? “There is an urgent climate problem and inadequate

individual and corporate action,” says Auden Schendler, Aspen Skiing Company’s (ASC) Vice President of Sustainability and the man behind “Give A Flake”, an initiative to activate engagement and influence the conversation around climate. By any standards, ASC does more than its share to save the planet. Recognized for its progressive environmental practices and climate change advocacy, it has had both a sustainability department and environmental foundation for nearly twenty-five years. It powers the resort, as well as offsets multiples of its carbon emissions, by capturing leaking methane from a nearby coal mine, has built solar arrays, LEED-certified mountaintop restaurants and affordable housing for its employees, and invests in the local community. Encouragingly, ASC is not alone. In recent years, ski resorts across the country have followed suit – from Jackson Hole, Snowbird and Squaw Valley to Crystal Mountain and Sugarbush. In 2017, Taos Ski Valley became the first ski resort to be designated as a Benefit Corporation (B Corp), a certification awarded to businesses that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal

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accountability to balance profit and purpose. Over the past few years, Taos has also been working hard to reduce its carbon footprint – from upgrading its snowmaking machines to developing a geothermal heating system for its new hotel, The Blake. It has vowed to reduce its emissions twenty percent by 2020. It even restored the Rio Hondo riverfront within the valley and has partnered with The Nature Conservancy on broader conservation efforts. “Things corporates do are good business, but they’re not a climate solution,” says Schendler. “Snow sports can do a lot more to move the needle.” A long-time activist, Schendler believes the industry has the potential to be a “big lever” – maybe even bigger than the NRA – if only it could be weaponized. “The industry is huge and could be a powerful lobby group,” he says. “By nature, though, it’s full of people who want to escape politics and policies.” Professional snowboarder Jeremy Jones is an exception to that theory. Over the years, he has ventured into some of the world’s most remote mountain ranges in search of uncharted lines, camping for weeks while waiting for the perfect day and time to ride. “I started seeing changes to the snow, which coincided with what the scientists were telling us,” says Jones. “As an industry-based around snow, I saw we weren’t doing enough. I wasn’t an expert, but as an athlete, I knew how the media worked. I remember writing on a piece of paper ‘we can protect our winters’, found a guy to do the website and an app, found a lawyer and formed the organization.” Launched in 2007, Protect Our Winters (PoW) has grown into the leading advocacy group for the winter sports community. In reality, they work with less than 4% (collectively) of the companies

PHOTO BY NAKSHE GHALAT

C U LT U R E

“Things corporates do are good business, but they’re not a climate solution”

Previous page Picture Organic Team. This page top to bottom

1. Houdini Outerwear. 2. Freeride Courmayeur

and individuals involved – what Jones refers to as a loud, vocal minority. “Our tactic is to motivate people on the sidelines,” says Jones. “It’s what we call a base-plus method. We’ve gotten very tactical and know where we need to win.” Anyone hitting the slopes this winter can be tactical, as well. Starting with your performance and extreme weather kit, which may not be simpatico with sustainable materials and values (hint: most is not) – it might be time for an upgrade. “There is an inherent hypocrisy that exists within an industry that sells us plastics and laminations to help us thrive in the outdoors,” says Bob Sheard, coFounder (with his wife Sophie Phillips-

Sheard) of leading outdoor brand and marketing agency Fresh Britain. Having worked with some of the industry’s biggest brands, including Salomon, Gore and Arc’teryx, Sheard sees this as an opportunity – i.e., we have a chance to shift to a low carbon economy – and is quick to add it is something brands and consumers are embracing. “There is a growing awareness about what’s right and wrong when it comes to consumption,” he says. “We’ve all felt the pull of a fantastic product that makes us feel more confident and able, and now we want to do that with a clear conscience. That is the new hygiene.” Patagonia, Burton and The North Face, all undisputed bellwethers for

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PHOTO BY ANDREW MILLER

corporate social responsibility, have for decades, strived to reduce their environmental footprint. But to Schendler’s point, perhaps it is their engagement in environmental action and advocacy that has had the most impact and influence on the industry. From the formation of associations like the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, which now includes some fifty members who, collectively, produce nearly a third of all clothing and footwear manufactured globally, to Patagonia’s recent decision to close its stores and offices to “join in solidarity with the youth activists peacefully striking for climate action”, these companies are inspiring a bevy of next gen brands to seize the “opportunity”. For the founders of outdoor clothing company Picture Organic, total committed responsibility for the environment and sustainability-driven eco-design were non-negotiables from the get-go. They use 100% recycled, organic, or responsibly sourced materials. They track every inch of its supply chain from manufacturing through packaging and shipping and are aggressively working to lower their carbon footprint through the use of renewable energy. Ideologically, the company is emphatic about mitigating climate change (here’s where Patagonia’s legacy, in particular, kicks in) and continually rallies its community of employees, consumers and sponsored athletes in the fight. “If you’re not an activist, you are nothing,” says Julien Durant, who, along with business partners Jérémy Rochette and Vincent Andre founded Picture Organic Clothing eleven years ago. “You don’t have to be a hypocrite to be in business. We can change the way we do business and then change the way people consume. People will decide with their wallet which brands will die and which will live.” 76

PHOTO BY ERIK NYLANDER

left to right 1. Jeremy Jones – Protect our Winters 2. Houdini in the backcountry

From the innovative use of biomaterials in products like its Harvest jacket (35% of next year’s collection will be made from materials derived from sugarcane) to investing to help its suppliers transition to renewable energy, tethering mission and business strategy has paid off for Picture, which received B Corp certification in late November. Equal parts fashion statement and ideological imprimatur, the brand is de rigueur in Europe in particular, a cult favorite with young and old alike. Founded some twenty-five years ago, Swedish brand Houdini has also evolved into a cult favorite, loved equally for its high performance “clean” designs, earthy color palette, and disruptive approach. It manufactures its products with a Scandinavian sensibility, using materials that are 100% recycled, recyclable, renewable, biodegradable or Bluesign certified – quality comfort, texture and fit made entirely from waste. Predominantly led by women, Houdini is a rare species in an industry traditionally dominated by men. Though a global brand, it behaves more like an outlier, most notably by rejecting the fashion industry’s modus operandi of creating consumer anxiety around the new – for Houdini, it is all about inclusivity. The company is also the first-ever to publish a corporate sustainability report based upon the Planetary Boundaries Framework – a holistic concept focused on the nine processes and systems that regulate Earth’s stability and resilience. “We are the Patagonia of Europe,” says Eva Karlsson, Houdini’s CEO. “We’re different, of course, but have the same goals. “We believe the way to be sustainable is not to compromise on beauty or performance, but without nature, there is no business for us.”

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1. Opera ski factory Italy. 2. Minimal recyclable waste.

Interestingly, by adhering to the principles of a circular economy, Houdini is democratizing winter sports fashion, making it accessible to rich, poor, experts and beginners through a reuse platform for second-hand styles, as well as a rental platform where customers pay a “per-use” fee. As of last year, the company has also run a pilot subscription service as another alternative to owning, allowing customers to pay a monthly fee for access to a library of clothes with the option to switch garments whenever they want. Plans for strategically located recycling units, as well as a broader take-back system, are also in the works. “Most brands do couture and ready to wear, meaning they have to compromise somewhere to make things more affordable,” says Karlsson. “By having rental and reuse, we will not compromise our original products and we will reach more consumers.” Being small and independent helps as does being owned (mostly) by its mission-aligned employees. Without pressure from outside investors who might be driving the business for quick growth and higher margins, Houdini has been able to take a long-term perspective – a strategy that Alessandro “Sandy” Marchi, the Founder of Opera Skis, not only relates to, but says aligns nicely with his long-held tenet that everything we do must be 100% – not 1% – for the planet. “The responsibility of the investors and the manufacturer 78

is to produce responsibly, and create high performing goods using circular economy materials,” says Marchi. “The model is not customer-driven, but in the end will help capture market share.” Opera hopes to realize its commitment to zero-waste within the next five years. They are collaborating with regional universities and laboratories to source and develop materials that are better and less expensive than more widely used synthetics and petroleum-based products. Custom-built using state-of-the-art design and processing tools – including a proprietary Wood Evolution™ technique that allows for the use of natural wood in the topsheet – Opera’s skis and snowboards are nothing short of high-performance art. With an ideology akin to the Slow Food Movement (the company manufactures locally and prides itself on knowing every inch of its supply chain), and a commitment to keep its carbon footprint to a minimum (it has no intention of globally distributing its products) it is difficult to decide if Opera is cuttingedge or old-fashioned – given its next sixty pairs of skis will be made with locally sourced, FSC-certified wood from Paulownia trees the company planted near the factory, probably a mixture of the two. “In terms of measuring impact, brands tend to think about how they produce a product and how they deliver that product to market,” says Sheard.

PHOTOS COURTESY OPERA SKIS

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“You don’t have to be a hypocrite to be in business. We can change the way we do business and then change the way people consume.

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The Bell Mountain Chair Aspen Mountain

“What’s also important is longevity – a long aesthetic life expectancy, as well as a long functional life expectancy.” Though counterintuitive, longevity may well be the key to cultivating customer loyalty in a sustainability-minded world, and the weapon of choice in this yet-to-be-named revolution. After all, bespoke high quality made to last has kept brands like Chanel in business – and out of landfills. Like Karlsson, Marchi is acutely aware he cannot build a circular economy in the absence of beauty and performance and is unwavering in his belief that the eco-friendly, sustainable materials he has chosen will perform. “We build our products to be life-long tools,” says Marchi, who does not want customers who buy new skis or snowboards every year and has no desire to scale the company’s capacity beyond an annual production of 2,800 units (the company currently produces about 700). Instead, Marchi is banking on his eco-friendly products to not only outperform their fiberglass rivals but to age far more gracefully. “There’s so much passion within the brands, as well as our end-users — to protect what’s there,” says Karlsson. “I think it’s imperative to show there are solutions, that there is intuitive hope in the way we portray our work that is not just about solving problems, but about realizing how to use our full potential. I mean, who wants to go down with the leader flag when there is no more snow to ski?” “The reality is we are bigger than the extraction industry and the gun industry,” Jones says, echoing Schendler’s sentiments about the outdoor industry. “You see the power of the NRA on our elected officials, but there has never been a politician not elected because of their stance on climate.” If Patagonia has taught us anything, it is that brands and consumers have the power to shift the paradigm. Manufacturing practices and purchasing power notwithstanding, if we are going to save snow, we will need to decide with our votes, as well as our wallets. “There is no room for deniers in office anymore,” says Jones. “We need to do everything we can and leave nothing on the table. I mean, no one is going to say we overreacted on climate.”

PHOTOS COURTESY ASPEN SKI CO BY MATT POWER

“If Patagonia has taught us anything, it is that brands and consumers have the power to shift the paradigm”.

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The Swiss Ski Boot

For every moment, on any mountain

Verbier’s newest hotel brings a welcome t wist to an old joke, including sophisticated cocktail hours and timeless late-night revelr y.

oodbye cows and cuckoo clocks, hello Alpine Baroque hip. Thanks to a few soigné Frenchmen keen on craft cocktails and boutique vibes, good times in notorious party-fueled Verbier are as secure as a Swiss `bank account. Everything’s under one snow-capped roof at the new Experimental Chalet. An intimate hotel, sexy cocktail bar, louche nightclub and, for those who still have energy to ski, a driver to whisk you to the lifts and back. The Experimental Chalet, Verbs’ newest hotel, and The Farm Club, the long-lived nocturnal classic for gambling Brits and disco-mad Genevois bankers, are in stylish hands now. Catering to the cool kids, a small posse of French entrepreneurs picked Verbier for their first Alpine foray, adding another jewel to their happening hotel-and-bar studded crown that includes Ibiza, Menorca, London, Venice and Paris. “For me and my partners, Verbier was love at first sight,” explains co-founder Pierre-Charles Cros. “It has great energy, the skiing is fantastic, and the fabulous après ski is the perfect link. We 82

Après New by LESLIE WOIT

have a more relaxed style compared to Courchevel for instance but, like them, we are also very professional.” The hotel is awash in a palate of deep jewel, pale moss and soothing sorbet tones. There are thirty-nine airy light rooms and suites. Sweeping views open onto ragged Valais peaks, and Mont Blanc glitters in the near distance. Bedrooms feature floor to ceiling windows, some with balconies, while the master penthouse boasts a fireplace and outdoor jacuzzi on a private patio. Milanese architect Fabrizio Casiraghi has achieved a comfortable, minimalist quality, a fais comme chez toi feeling that reflects, according to Pierre-Charles, “a time when the family chalet would have been decorated with more elegance than we’re accustomed to seeing nowadays.” The restaurant serves fresh, local fare – think succulent roast duck on the crown, foie gras terrine with smoked fera snatched fresh from Lake Geneva. The bijou spa includes a hammam, jacuzzi and three treatment rooms where superb clinicians minister to thirsty skier’s skin using Biologique Recherche, French tailor-made unguents of the highest quality. Come sunset, a phalanx of hipster barmen are ready to soothe

PHOTOS COURTESY OF EXPERIMENTAL CHALET

SUITES

Four French Guys Walk into a Bar...

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Tucked on the first floor of the Experimental Chalet, the bar makes a tony hideaway for après-ski, for apéro hour, or for a jet-fuelled launchpad before making a proper night of it. thirst and spirit alike. Inventive cocktails are served between six o’clock and the early morn, alongside an open crackling fire and moody French rap music. Tucked on the first floor of the Experimental Chalet, the bar makes a tony hideaway for après-ski, for apéro hour, or for a jet-fuelled launchpad before making a proper night of it. Connected to the new hotel, The Farm Club is a grand old bird, proudly responsible for several generations of outrageous behavior, cheesy dance moves and savage hangovers. After four decades and counting, her venerable plumage continues to attract capering night owls like a Mick Jagger peacock strut. The evening is young when the clock strikes minuit, just when things are getting going at the Farm Club, now cleverly reached via a secret VIP door off the Experimental Chalet lobby. From gyrating Royals to minxy Madonna, Richard Branson and the Family Fleming (of James Bond fame), this boîte defines Verbier after dark. “We don’t want to change anything here,” declares PierreCharles firmly. “Apart from the carpet.”

MACH SKI NEW HANDMADE SWISS SKIS

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A X I N E O PH r ’s R a b bit e n z lt e t S r e t Pe on t he Ro of TIAS FREDRIKSSON | photos by MAT by JOSEFINE ÅS

s e s i R

wd rest of the cro e th m o fr t u o rdigan, teltzner stands ockers, Norwegian wool ca eer S r te e P , re è g t Flé ntain nickerb the cable car a th century mou h his woolen k Heading toward ul, glitz y Gore-Tex gear. Wit ho could easily pass for a 19 onix scene. Speaking w rf Cham dressed in colo ntage backpack, Steltzner t fitting into the uickly shows himself to be a u o b a re vi ca d to n t nd seems no Steltzner q classic cap a flex patterns, a red postcard - tly on the market, however, s, lo o iu d -c ra ia p rn se tu a , rials rren from freeride skis cu ionately discussing core mate about the new ss f the sport, pa keen student o performance. 86

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All of which define Rabbit on the Roof, Steltzner’s iconic brand of wooden skis, which he’s been making by hand since 2005. A native of Northern California who grew up skiing in Squaw Valley, Steltzner’s journey to the French Alps started some thirty years ago. “It’s kind of like Homer’s Odyssey. I went to Paris to study at the Sorbonne when I was seventeen, then spent my junior year abroad in Aix-en-Provence, then met a French woman in San Francisco and followed her back to Paris.” Steltzner ended up staying for twenty years, working first as a fashion photographer and, later, having bought the Bois Cintre Finet - a multi-generation artisan family business - as an ebonist creating handmade wood furniture. For the kid from Northern California, however, the mountains were always calling. So, when the opportunity to rent a historic watermill in the picturesque village of Les Praz came, he knew it was time to make a move. The building - four hundred years old with a river running through it was perfect for a workshop, with enough space to live onsite. Steltzner fell in love at first sight, moved all his machines from Paris, and settled down with his partner, artist Anati Graetz. Later, after British artist and renowned mountaineer Andy Parkin installed his atelier at the mill, it came to be known as le moulin des artistes. A rare sanctuary for artists in the Chamonix valley, the mill was the perfect spot for exhibitions, parties and open house gatherings, and – above all – for Steltzner to create his beautiful handmade wood skis for modern skiers. “My original idea worked immediately,” Steltzner says. “When you use a hardwood ash core, you end up with a really good ski.” His first benediction, as he refers to it, came from Vincent Peguy, his guide in La Meije who swapped out his own skis for Steltzner’s prototypes, skied down from one of the region’s famous ice caves, and declared them “great.” “In the beginning, I continued to make furniture as well,” Steltzner says. “Little by little, my reputation grew, and really good riders started to appreciate these were good skis. Now I have clients from all over, including guides and free riders.” A lengthy list that includes ski legends like Anselme Baud, one of extreme skiing’s earliest pioneers. 88

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“My original idea worked immediately,” Steltzner says. “When you use a hard wood ash core, you end up with a really good ski.”

It was the stuff of dreams, until one night in December 2016 when Steltzner and Graetz returned from an evening in town to find the mill in flames, and with it their livelihoods totally engulfed. At the time, Steltzner was busy finishing his annual production, some one hundred pairs of skis made lovingly by hand and ready for delivery. With the help of friends and neighbors, he managed to save around thirty pairs, but the remainder, including large stores of unique wood and Graetz’s art, was lost. “The fire was so devastating, it’s taken me two years to start making skis again,” Steltzner says. “I didn’t even have a screwdriver left. And the building, because it was so old, was uninsurable. The 90

community of Chamonix gave me so much support, hosting parties and holding fundraisers online.” Though efforts to re-build the mill are underway, for the moment, Steltzner is working from a temporary shop in town. “I found some great tools, remade all my machining templates, and orders are coming in,” Steltzner says, adding that he is as committed as ever to his love of creating skis with a lasting purpose for clients of all shapes and sizes.

Disembarking from the lift at Flégère, Steltzner heads off into the powder. A magnificent Chamois - an alpine mountain goat - appears peacefully on the peak beyond his line, against the majestic backdrop of the Mont Blanc range. An almost surreal manifestation and, for Steltzner, a magical omen.

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Lynsey Dyer skiing corn off Culross Peak, Prince William Sound, AK. 94

Sea to Ski Discovering an unexpected wilderness in Prince William Sound Story and Photography by GREG VON DOERSTEN

he ship is underway, cutting through the ink blue waters of Prince William Sound with a course charted to Culross Passage. Onboard the 58-foot boat, our group of five adventurous skiers have signed on to one of the first commercially guided ski boat tours of Prince William Sound (PWS). With close to 15,000 square miles of roadless wilderness, and thousands of peaks in the Chugach and Kenai mountains that can only be accessed by boat, the potential for exploratory ski touring and ski mountaineering is limitless. The scene on the boat is one of controlled chaos. Amidst ski gear and duffel bags, crew members store equipment and provisions for the week-long trip, while our seasoned captain, 53-year-old Alex von Wichman, unfurls her tattered, sun-stained nautical charts. Searching the peaks and contour lines with her steely hazel-blue eyes, she points out possible ski objectives and it becomes clear we are about to experience one of the most unique and pure forms of skiing in Alaska, possibly anywhere in the world. It’s what Captain Alex calls “Alaska adventure skiing.” A term oft-used by our chiseled ski guide Nick D’Alessio, which – when loosely translated – means utilizing wilderness and ski guiding skills to navigate Alaska’s vast dangers, while at the same time

opening up exploratory ski lines to clients by private charter boat. As D’Alessio explains it, “Skiing in PWS is a total adventure remote setting, minimal information going in and unknown snow conditions until you get out to the field, with a lifetime of terrain options.” A pioneer of boat-assisted ski touring in the area, Captain Alex has been commercially fishing and chartering in these waters with her brother and business partner Brad von Wichman for over thirty years. Struggling at times to make a living, the two nearly lost everything in the wake of the 1989 Exxon-Valdez oil spill, which dumped over eleven million gallons of oil into pristine wilderness, contaminating more than 1,300 miles of coastline, and killing an estimated 250,000 seabirds, 3,000 otters, 250 bald eagles, and 22 orcas. “When I saw the oil first-hand,” Captain Alex tells me, “it was a mix of emotions. It wasn’t just the oil; it was the absence of life - no birds flying overhead, the ocean was devoid of otters and sea life. As I got closer to the smell, the oil was omnipresent. Like a slap in the face, and an assault on the senses.” The impact of the spill – at the time the largest in US history – played a major role in the collapse of the area’s fishing industry

“Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit.” Left to right

1. Zach Husted and Kara Williard sea kayaking the "Beloit" tidewater glacier, Prince William Sound, AK 2. Loaded for adventure, the MV Babkin makes way through the Culross Passage. 3. First mate and chef Gabrielle Markel with "dinner" from the MV Babkin shrimp traps, Deep Water Bay, AK.

and set the von Wichmans on a new course helping with the environmental clean-up and, afterward, chartering boats for scientific research, as well as sea and mountain-based tourism in the PWS. “When the bottom fell out of the US fish market,” Captain Alex says, “this is what propelled our thinking to try and figure out what to do next - either go for the fishing or start chartering since we knew the Sound so well. Onboard the Babkin, our group is quite happy to be commercial

guinea pigs, and have the ability to customize our itinerary, and select peaks and untouched wilderness routes from the safe confines of a charter boat. “There is something special about skiing down to the ocean, and then getting on the skiff to go home for the evening,” says Captain Alex. “Your meals are taken care of, you aren’t sleeping in a tent on shore, and you don’t have to worry about bears finding you or your food. It’s just you and the wilds of Alaska offering a ski and wilderness experience that is pure and life-changing.” With the dome-like features of Culross Peak in the distance, the boat’s twin-turbo powered Volvo engines rumble toward our first ski objective. We swap our fishing gear for ski boots, and make our way over the lime green seaweed and cobblestone beach before heading off toward the snow line where a dense, temperate rain forest awaits. Wading through thick Alder bush and mountain Hemlock, we begin the ski tour with a true Alaskan bushwhack, passing fresh Wolverine and Black Bear tracks that prompt the crew to call out “Where ya Wolverine, Heyyaaa Bear” to alert fellow critters and acknowledge that we are not alone. Weaving past lakes and multiple creek crossings, we finally access the upper flanks of Culross Peak and wind upward 2,500 feet to its rocky, snow-covered summit where our foot-powered ski touring is rewarded with views of fjords and glaciers, and some of the biggest mountains in the Chugach. On the horizon, Mt. Marcus Baker - the highest peak in the Chugach - pierces the clouds at just over 13,000 feet, offering bountiful ski mountaineering lines, while the Serpentine glacier, which cuts through Mt Gilbert, 97

meanders its way to the ocean. The team transitions from ski touring to descent mode, smoothly slicing through granular corn snow as we admire the beauty of our mountainous setting and one another’s silhouettes against the blue shades of the Pacific Ocean. Later that evening, after “glacieritas” and a delicious dinner of salmon pesto, we gather around a beach bonfire under the starlight – all smiles – as we reflect on our day of unparalleled wild scenery and fantastic skiing. The next day, we head out to Blackstone Bay for a combination of sea kayaking and ski adventures. From the ridge adjacent to the Beloit tidal glacier, our ski-touring group stands in reverence of a jumbled white and blue ice mass created over 11,000 years before during the Pleistocene. As we prepare to descend, we hear a primordial cracking sound - a rumbling from deep within the glacier that feels as if it is talking to us. We watch as a fifty-foothigh tower calves tons of ice into the ocean, creating an explosion of water and debris that alarms a flock of Kittiwake seagulls into a frenzy of calls and highlights our insignificance in this vast wilderness. Back on the boat, I reflect upon a quote by Edward Abbey: “Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit.” Having come for the experience to ski Prince William Sound, our group encountered a wilderness that changed us. Watching the glacier calve into the ocean had brought tears to my eyes, and an intense sense of reality about the current state of our planet – in particular the challenges of climate change, ocean pollution and environmental catastrophes. The PWS wilderness had been transformative, infusing each of us with a greater appreciation for the value of the Alaskan wilds, and the notion they are more important than our constant 98

need to consume. Like Abbey, we left with a cause, as well as an understanding that we must hold these wild places in our hearts, and a commitment to preserve them so that others may also experience their beauty and life-changing power.

clockwise left to right 1. Captain Alex Von Wichman mapping AK ski lines with Lindsey and Zach. 2. Lynsey Dyer and Brooke Edwards SUP paddling in Deep Water Bay, Prince William Sound, AK. 3. Brooke Edwards and Zach Husted enjoying the "AK Polar Plunge" Nellie Juan Glacier, Prince William Sound, AK. 4. Team Babkin bonfire on Culross Island, Prince William Sound, AK.

Babkin Charters offer bespoke ski boat tours in Prince William Sound annually, from 1 March â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 30 April. Groups of up to 5 people can be accommodated on the Babkin, with prices starting at $2,700 per day for charter costs, and $1,000 per day for a ski guide. For more information, contact: Captain Alex von Wichman Babkin Charters +1 (907) 272-8989 alex@babkin.com Nick D'Alessio Remarkable Adventures +1 (907) 441-0432 info@RemarkableAdv.com

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With Niehku Mountain Villa, two Swedish ski bums realize a dream. by LESLIE ANTHONY P h o t o g r a p h y b y M AT T I A S F R E D R I K S S O N

You’ve doubtless heard of Fäviken, Magnus Nilsson’s mystical Michelin three-starred eatery in the Swedish hinterlands. But other Swedish gastronomes are also making magic in the middle of Scandinavian nowhere. Like Patrik “the Sock ” Strömsten, entering his thirtyseventh season in the wonderfully isolated Lappland ski resort of Riksgränsen, high above the Arctic Circle. “I serve wine at night, ski during the day, and get paid for it,” says the congenial ex-mogul skier, describing his vocation in more prosaic terms.

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Counter clockwise left to right

1. Heli skiing terrain near Riksgränsen. 2. Patrik Strömsten skiing the steeps in the wilderness Europes Region. 3. Niehky is built into an old storage house for locomotives used on the Ototen Railway. 4. Coproprietors Johan “Jossi” Lindblom and Patrik “Strumpan” Strömsten; two lifelong buddies and ski bums

Strömsten set a hospitality benchmark in 2005 when he opened Meteorlogen Ski Lodge and Restaurant in Riksgränsen’s oldest building—a restored 1903 customs station where he’d once dwelt in squalor as a young ski bum. The boutique lodge filled from the outset with well-heeled ski-tourers and heli-skiers, plus their guides. The celebrated restaurant, showcasing the food of the land, was a sensation–its wine cellar equally so, with Strömsten awarded Sweden’s Sommelier of the Year for the second time in 2014. Meteorlogen’s runaway success convinced Strömsten of an unfulfilled market. “It showed me how many adventurers like to sleep in a good bed and drink a nice glass of wine,” he sums. With the conversion of historic buildings into world-class lodging and dining establishments suddenly his jam, Strömsten took aim at a disintegrating roundabout that once served the iron-ore railway that has run daily through Riksgränsen for over a century. Teaming up with mountain guide pal Johan “Jossi” Lindblom and retired builder Clas Darvik, the trio opened Niehku Mountain Villa in spring 2018. With only fourteen rooms, a 102

“Thirty years ago, Jossi and I used to boulder on this rock, we left a few litres of blood on it.”

Michelin-aimed kitchen, and Strömsten’s wine-cellar savvy, it was instantly the planet’s most exclusive and luxurious heli-ski lodge, yet still reflected the grassroots vibe of Riksgränsen’s early days as a far-flung spring ski destination. The old roundhouse’s semicircular stone wall now passes through the lodge’s deck, lobby and kitchen as a fascinating architectural anchor. The interior design draws inspiration from the stone in combination with other natural materials, colors, and the cultural traditions of Lappland’s Sami people. Throughout its restaurant, bar, lounges and other facilities, Niehku retains a personal, relaxed ambiance. Comfort be damned, of course, Niehku wouldn’t exist but for skiing. Out the front door you fly into a five thousand square kilometer wilderness of over sixty skiable peaks. “I’ve guided all over the world, but kept being drawn back to these incredible mountains,” reflects Lindblom, who oversees the ski product. “I knew we could deliver some of the best heli-skiing and ski-touring imaginable.” We’d bolted out for a couple of hours of midnight-sun heliskiing the evening we’d arrived, enjoying chalky snow in warm

light. The next day we’d flown deeper into the range, our seemingly endless first run demonstrating how deceptively big the vertical was. Our next drop was close to Kebnekaise, Sweden’s highest peak, where we skied a north-facing cirque of cold, knee-deep snow onto a long, sloping glacier. Grouping up in the sunny valley, a soft zephyr kept temperatures just above freezing as we enjoyed a superb lunch of pork and potato soup, eaten with a compostable wooden “spork”, and sandwiches featuring homemade bread and butter; dessert was the ne plus ultra of Lappland cuisine—a cloudberry muffin. Another half-dozen runs and we’d headed back over the enchanting, chocolate-chip sweep of Arctic Lappland. At dinner that night—always a set menu, unless you have dietary concerns—we enjoyed mussels, reindeer, chanterelles and other delights, learning more of Niehku’s backstory as Strömsten poured wine between courses. He’d met Lindblom in 1993 and the two hit it off, forming a raucous local rock band known for spontaneous nudity. Other hijinks ensued. “Thirty years ago, Jossi and I used to boulder on this rock,” Strömsten recalls wistfully, pointing to the old wall. “We left a few liters of blood on it.” 103

You can sit in a glass sauna nursing a branded Niehku beer as Northern Lights streak the sky.

Counter clockwise top left to right

1. Patrick in the plexiglass ceilinged converted coal-pit wine cellar. 2. Niehku has one of Northern Europe’s most impressive selections of wine and Champagne. 3. The lobby is a great place to chill in comfort 4. Head chief Ragnar Martinsson working with locally sourced ingredients. 5. The ski terrain near Kåtotjåkko. 104

The catalyst for the lodge was Clas, a long-time client of Jossi’s. One day in 2012, with heli-skiing canceled due to weather, Clas skied down the backside of Riksgränsen and first saw the old roundhouse. He immediately suggested to Patrik and Jossi that they do something with it, perhaps build a hotel. They said “Sure,” not realizing that six years on that wild, in-the-moment idea would come to fruition. Niehku’s award-winning architecture and many masterful elements celebrate the past by adding value to historical structures in a modern design context—a plexiglass-covered, converted coal-pit wine cellar in the restaurant’s center, massive timber amalgams supporting a log-beam roof, and an iron woodstove in the style of a locomotive boiler in the lobby. The design also plays to the strengths of the land—you can watch late light pool on snowy hillsides without having it pour in through the massive arched windows to violate the dining area’s intimacy. In March, while the sun still sets, you can sit in a glass sauna nursing a branded Niehku beer as Northern Lights streak the sky. Niehku means “dream” in the Sami language, and no more perfect word describes a place where such improbable Arctic luxury and ski adventure come together.

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T AO S The Near-Mystical Appeal of an American Classic by LESLIE WOIT

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2X Olympic Gold Medal Snowboard X Seth Wescott. PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAOS BY BLAKE JORGENSON

urrounded by red cliffs and prickly cacti, my sore, happy corpus inches delicately into the same steamy waters that have healed, soothed and cleansed for millennia. Through the vapors of lithia-induced euphoria, I can just make out the figure of a woman weaving slowly past pools of varying temperatures and mineral contents. Backlit by a ray of sunshine, she wears a halo and carries a small oval sign; Please whisper. Thank you. This angel of tranquility has light duties at the geothermic pools of Ojo Caliente. The voices of my fellow bathers never rise above reverential hushes, making it a perfect après-ski refuge less than an hour’s drive from Taos. Indeed, this soaker’s retreat yielded a telling remark, “Taos, the reason you move to Colorado.” Cheeky, yes. Yet many things people are seeking – the empty pistes, the untracked powder and that elusive chestnut, quality of life – may be harder than ever to find. Enter, New Mexico. Anyone falling for Taos today joins a long and distinguished list of discoverers. A high-desert home to Native Americans for more than 1000 years, Taos has since become a crucible of the artistic, the wealthy and the free-spirited, attracted by a dreamy quality of light and the arid beauty of rolling mesas and imposing peaks. From maverick socialites like Millicent Rogers, who fled a broken love affair with Clark Gable (she dispatched him and his new paramour with a bottle of champagne and a goodbye note via a Hedda Hopper column) to Mabel Dodge Luhan who decamped from New York and Florence to establish a glittering modernist literary salon in the desert, which included D.H. Lawrence, Martha Graham and Ansel Adams, Taos has won a reputation for drawing artists, writers and forward-thinkers into its luminous sphere. The latest lodestone to roll into town? A New York billionaire with a conservationist bent. In 2013, hedge funder-philanthropist-

skier Louis Bacon rescued Taos Ski Valley from troubled financial waters. No run-of-the-mill ruthless buyout, 63-year-old Bacon’s redevelopment plans are on track to take Taos softly, bravely and swiftly into skiing’s 21st century. Stepping through the door of Taos’ new ski-in ski-out boutique hotel, The Blake, I am struck by the warm flutter of staff. From the young woman who takes the car keys - her brash accent and spontaneous warmth give her Brooklyn roots away – to the articulate young man from Nigeria who helps with my bag, to the welcoming employee at reception who produces my key, a sort of talisman hangs above us all - a breathtaking mountain dreamscape of reds and ochres painted by that doyenne of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains herself, Georgia O’Keeffe. Courtesy of Mr. Bacon’s private art collection, The Blake’s vibe is tempered by a patina of confident panache. Hotel Manager Eduardo Sampere guides me through the four floors that house 80 rooms and suites, which as of this winter will also include several posh, extremely roomy apartments. It’s nothing short of a walkabout study of the Taos Pueblo people --- one of the oldest cultures on the continent --- a major in Western American history, with a minor in mountain sports. Beginning in reception where O’Keeffe (whose drawings figure elsewhere) is flanked by Walter Ufer’s The Watcher, there’s an embarrassment of images from iconic Edward Curtis - renowned photographer of early 20th century Native American life - some of which were previously undeveloped and unseen. A Gustave Baumann woodblock print leads to the lobby loo, several pieces by Karsh line the walls of the spa, black and white life-size Dick Durrance ski photos command the landings, and 10th Mountain Division artifacts abound. While Eduardo shines no light on the dollar value of the collection, he is quick to extol its cultural merits - “It’s a 107

spectacular collection that sympathetically blends the essence of the century-old Taos Society of Artists movement, the beauty and lifestyle of the Taos Pueblo Native American community, and the roots of a European ski culture that found its way to this part of the Rockies in the 1950s.” Dawn breaks with a salmon-hued blush over snow-laden mountains. Topping out at 12,481 feet, Kachina Peak proves a deep-powder siren following a big storm, patrol has put opening of the steep, black face on hold for avalanche control. The chairlift, new in 2015, will remain closed during my visit. A lift to the top of Kachina’s forty-five-degree slope was among the first of three hundred million dollars of capital improvements planned by the new owner, alongside three further lifts and a pedestrian gondola that accesses a revamped beginner zone, base area and spacious children’s center. At its heart, Taos is a challenging mountain. Known since day one for steep north-facing pitches and demanding tree runs, it was the alpine manifestation of the man who built it. Ernie Blake, né Bloch, was a German-born, Swiss private school educated rebel whose Jewish family fled a privileged life in Europe in the 1930s. A highly intelligent individualist who grew up skiing in St Moritz, Blake volunteered to serve in the 10th Mountain Division, but was rejected as a possible spy. Eventually, he commended himself in service with the OSS, which included interrogating Himmler, Goering and Speer, as well as serving under General Patton. After that, he was known to joke, “fooling around in the ski industry was a piece of cake.” From his New Mexican ground zero at the foot of mighty Mt Wheeler - terrain spotted from the air in his Cessna - Ernie set out in defiance of naysayers and logic-speakers to establish one of America’s classic ski mountains, initially living with his wife Rhoda and their three children in a second hand 16 foot trailer at the base. In its first year, the ski area grossed $1,600. “We had no tax problems,” Ernie observed. “Taos was considered too steep, too remote. And because it was so steep, people had to stay a week to get anything out of it and be in ski school,” admitted Ernie. His original philosophy still prevails. You don’t come to Taos to learn to ski, but to learn to ski better. Fear not. Time and technology have softened the edges of the savage fall lines of the 60s and 70s, while 108

PHOTO BY CHRIS FIGENSHAU

“When you bring various things together, they are improved by the experience. Taos is a cauldron of such creativity.”

Clockwise left to right

1. Powder day. 2. Lift line shadows. 3. Base lift up. 4. Canine Avalanche patrol.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAOS BY BLAKE JORGENSON

improvements in ski design and snow grooming mean trails and glades are more amenable to middle-of-the-road skiers on wider, shorter boards. Though state-of-the-art Pistenbullys have turned “death cookies” into pub trivia quiz material, the soul of Taos is, however, still about great powder descents down chutes off the West Basin and Highland ridges. Most of the best expert runs are still accessed only by hikes – from a few short steps to the huff-pant-pant kind favored by hardcore locals. Despite 50 percent of terrain being classified as expert, with 15 lifts and 110 trails, there are plenty of long blue and green runs to go ‘round, including one long run with five miles of continuous cruising. The snow is dry and north-facing, so there’s no melt-freeze either. The bumps on Al’s Run will rattle your bones - no complaining allowed - it’s named for a local doctor who skied out his last runs wearing a portable oxygen tank. A glance at the trail map yields further clues about the world view of Ernie and his founding friends. Stauffenberg, Fabian and Oster - all responsible for assassination attempts on Hitler - rub elbows with heroes Winston (as in Churchill) and Patton, under whose service Ernie rather

unwittingly uncovered valuable intelligence around the Atomic bomb, informing his “anything is possible in America” mantra. For Taos, another bomb of sorts went off in 2017, one that resonated with an industry increasingly sensitive to environmental concerns and green values. The first ski resort in the world to become a Certified B Corporation® (B Corp™), Taos was judged to have demonstrated a commitment to positive social, economic and environmental actions. Joining the ranks of Patagonia and Ben Jerry’s, Certified B Corps are required to meet the highest standards of verified economic, social and environmental performance, as well as public transparency. Among the initiatives that contributed to its status, The Blake’s geothermal heating and cooling system and LEED Green Building Certification, which reduced energy consumption by almost eleven percent in two 109

Clockwise left to right

years, restoration of the Arroyo Hondo River through the ski valley in cooperation with the US Forest Service and The Nature Conservancy, and employee benefits that include paid time in return for charitable work of their choosing. Its spinoff benefits may surprise. “The B Corp certification has also really helped us in recruiting millennials,” explained Dave Norden, Taos CEO. “We found they were approaching us first because they truly want to work for a purpose-driven organization. Our commitment to sustainability is embedded into everything we do, and a direct reflection of the vision of our owner – lifelong conservation philanthropist Louis Bacon.” Another of Taos Ski Valley’s commitments is honoring the land it inhabits. Recognized as the longest continually inhabited civilization in North America, the Taos Pueblo has been home to a non-nomadic people for over 1,000 years. Once a year, the ski folk meet with the War Chief to share plans and foster neighborly relations. Recently, the ski company was paid high tribute indeed - not only did the Pueblo request the tribal council be hosted at the resort, but they offered to pay by barter with a buffalo, no less. It was the first non-intertribal buffalo barter by a Native 110

American tribe and resulted in bison burgers all year at the ski hill – a delicious manifestation of a unique and rare culture that’s been a part of these mountains longer than any of us. One of Taos’ challenges –

“When you bring various things together, they are improved by the experience. Taos is a cauldron of such creativity.”

getting there – was met with a similarly creative approach. Last season, the resort opened its own airline, Taos Air, operating from Dallas and Austin into Taos’ newly expanded airport. This year they will add flights from Los Angeles and San Diego. In keeping with the green philosophy, a carbon footprint offset was put in place. With no TSA to navigate, passengers arrive just thirty minutes before takeoff, like a private airport. A jammy deal with

Rossignol offers complimentary rental skis with your boarding pass. “No car, no security, no skis,” says Dave Norden, “make it the easiest route to the Rockies.” Before leaving Taos behind, a visit to at least one or two museums is a must. The Millicent Rogers Museum is a romp through 2,000 years of Southwestern history, including her jaw-dropping jewelry collection, and a beautiful shop with original artisan pieces for sale. At the Harwood Museum of Art, diverse collections include Native American, Hispanic and Moderns, as well as the famous Taos Society of Artists. “There’s a biological phenomenon called heterosis, or hybrid vigor,” explains docent Bob Fies on a fascinating hour-long tour. “When you bring various things together, they are improved by the experience. Taos is a cauldron of such creativity.” B Corp status in tandem with a

PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAOS BY BLAKE JORGENSON

1. Patrol room . 2. Patrol dog Sadie . 3. Bar snacks at The Blake.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TAOS PUEBLO

Clockwise left to right 1. Ernie Blake 2. War Chief and Pueblo 3. Art in The Blake 4. Beers at the Bavarian 5. Ski Patrol Joe

PHOTO COURTESY OF TAOS PUEBLO

better-not-bigger philosophy is indeed a creative way to work to Taos’ strengths. Arts, culture and beauty surround these high-desert snow-blessed peaks, so maintaining scale and husbanding its environment are integral to its success. From Native Indians to New Mexicans, it’s long been both a crossroads and a journey’s end. From the 1000-year-old pueblo to galleries a go-go housed in Spanish revival studios, to Doc Martin’s restaurant in the historic Taos Inn and the sophisticated show-stealing dining at Lambert’s off the piazza, the overall effect is a vibrant mountain town alive with authentic culture, exhilarating skiing, and the peace of a good night’s sleep. On the way to a delicious shared-plate dinner of spring lamb, charred Brussels sprouts and the finest Chilean Malbec at The Blake Restaurant 192 - named for

Ernie’s Cessna tail number - we pause to admire another artifact on display near the door. A hand-knitted pop-pom toque, circa the 1980s, with “JANITOR” spelled across its headband. The juxtaposition of knitwear belonging to the first owner and the fine art of the new one begs the question, “How often does Mr. Bacon leave his New York City lair to come to rustic, rolling Taos?” “As often as he can,” says Eduardo. “Given the legendary and unique terrain here at Taos, when the snow is good, it’s second to none.” The latest enthusiastic custodian of a very special place.

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Grateful

WARRIOR

b y M E R E D I T H O G I LV I E -T H O M P S O N | P h o t o s b y P O B Y Stylist JOHN MARTINEZ | Hair & Makeup ERIC LEONARDOS

ntrepreneur, writer, filmmaker, climate advocate and philanthropist might not be the first things that spring to mind when one thinks of Jamie Anderson. But scratch the surface of most champion athletes – in this case, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and the most decorated woman in X Games history who twice finished first overall for slopestyle in the World Cup – and you’ll likely find their focus and commitment does not begin and end with their sport of choice. Raised alongside her seven brothers and sisters in the mountain town of South Lake Tahoe, Anderson’s ascent to the podium is a story of community and family and scrappy hard work. From Nikki Warren, the gymnastics teacher who got her onto a local team and kitted her out with hand-me-downs to selling golf balls on the side of the road and working for her mother’s lawncare business, Anderson was inspired to strive from an early age. “I made a resume when I was ten to try and raise money for me and my sisters Stacie and Joanie,” Anderson says, referring to her two older sisters with whom she is particularly close. “We were the three blondies and got sponsored really young and won all the events at our first nationals.” By the time she was thirteen, Anderson knew she could turn professional and travel the world, despite the fact snowboarding was not yet an Olympic sport and, more importantly, that she had neither a credit card nor a sponsor. “I have a journal from 2005 when I was 15 at one of my first events,” Anderson recalls. “I was homesick and sad and broke. I was afraid and felt so alone and I would call my sister Joanie for support.” Anderson would go on to place third on the World Tour that year, and in 2006 became the youngest Winter X Games medalist, edging out Shaun White by a matter of days. By 2008, she was crowned World Tour champion and making a six-figure salary. While still very much focused on snowboarding with hopes to compete in the 2022 Beijing Olympics as long as she is “healthy and happy” (which is likely as Anderson is both a yoga and meditation devotee) – these days Anderson is equally focused on giving back. She launched the Jamie Anderson Foundation in 2013 as a way to support young athletes and

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Vest & Leg Warmers M.MILLER Swim Suit MAAJI Necklace DOUBLE DIAMOND JEWELRY Ring DOUBLE DIAMOND JEWELRY Boots UGG Scarf QASMYR 113

“When I first started learning about the environment in my late teens, I felt super overwhelmed with everything. I realized I was just as much a problem as everyone else” inspire them to be community and environmental leaders. To date, she has sponsored more than thirty kids with equipment, clothing, season passes and financial aid so they can travel to the USASA national competitions. Like many winter sports professionals, Anderson is concerned about climate change and sees this next

clockwise left to right:

1. Bodysuit: Vitamin A, 2.M.Miller Vest, Earrings Double Diamond 3. Swimsuit: Maji, Vest M. Miller, Necklace & Earrings Double Diamond Jewelry 4. Bodysuit: Vitamin A

generation as a critical front-line. By introducing them to winter sports and providing them access to the mountains, she believes they will naturally be guided to care about the environment and participate in a social movement. “When I first started learning about the environment in my late teens, I felt super overwhelmed with everything. I realized I was just as much a problem as everyone else,” she says. “While we’re all responsible, I believe little things can make a difference. Nature is abundant.” In addition to being an ambassador for Protect Our Winters (PoW), Anderson recently ventured into filmmaking with a short she hopes will inspire people to work together to make positive changes. Titled “Hypocrite”, the film shines a spotlight on her career, travel, and the ways she, like many of us, has contributed to this existential threat – that despite being an activist, she has also been part of the problem. Anderson’s desire to bring people together to solve problems and make things better is a driver for pretty much everything she does. Speak with her for even a short time and her almost pathological need to connect and help others to heal bubbles to the surface, from references to wellness retreats and wanting to work together with her sisters – one is now a health practitioner, and the other specializes in acupuncture and Chinese medicine. Even her investments in real estate seem to have a higher purpose. “I have a property in Whistler, as well as places in Tahoe and 114

Colorado, which I’d eventually like to use to bring people together,” Anderson says. “I’d like to bring my teachers to enlighten people to achieve more vitality and connect more consciously. I think about the future a lot. We’re living in a crazy era, and I want to work more to give back. “It’s important to have people around you to have faith. I’ve been humbled so many times and had to persevere through difficult days. I’d like to be a light that can positively influence people around me.” 115

AMELIA JACKET DAINESE PANT DAINESE HAT CHAOS SUNGLASSES MODO BOOTS BRESSAN PHIL JACKET AZTECH SWEATER AZTECH PANT BOGNER HAT CHAOS SUNGLASSES VUARNET BOOTS INUIKII BASE LAYER WE NORWEGIANS EVE JACKET BRENDRATTI LIGHT JACKET BRENDRATTI PANT BRENDRATTI HAT CHAOS SUNGLASSES VUARNET BOOTS MONCLER MASON JACKET MOUNTAIN FORCE BASE LAYER MOUNTAIN FORCE PANT MOUNTAIN FORCE HAT CHAOS SUNGLASSES VUARNET BOOTS BOGNER

Photographer ANTONIO CORDERO Stylist JOHN MARTINEZ Assistant Stylist CAROL GAMARRA Makeup SARAH HAPPEL Hair EVA SANDELGARD

PANTS ALPS & METERS JACKET COTES OF LONDON SWEATER AMUNDSEN BASE LAYER NEWLAND FROM ITALY WATCH JUNGHANS GLASSES PASCAL MATHIEU BACKPACK ALPS & METERS BOOTS HOLDEN

PANTS M.MILLER JACKET M.MILLER BASE LAYER M.MILLER GLOVES ZANIER GLASSES VUARNET BOOTS AMMANN POLES BERNARD ORCEL

PHIL PANTS HOLDEN JACKET HOUDINI LIGHT JACKET HOLDEN SCARF CHAOS BOOTS BRESSAN AMELIA PANTS AMUNDSEN JACKET NOBIS SWEATER ALPS & METERS GLOVES GOLDBERGH BOOTS AMMANN

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EVE SWEATER FRAUENSCHUH SKIRT FRAUENSCHUH LEGGINGS FRAUENSCHUH HAT FRAUENSCHUH BOOTS AMMANN MASON SWEATER BOGNER JACKET BOGNER PANTS BOGNER HAT FRAUENSCHUH BOOTS AMMANN SHIRT FISHER & BAKER

PANTS MONCLER JACKET MONCLER SHIRT MONCLER HAT MONCLER BOOTS MONCLER SCARF NOBIS SKIS BERNARD ORCEL

EVE PANTS SOS BLACK SNOW SWEATER SOS BLACK SNOW HEADBAND M.MILLER SUNGLASSES VUARNET POLES BERNARD ORCEL BOOTS BRESSAN AMELIA PANTS HEAD JACKET HEAD LIGHT JACKET HEAD HELMET BOLLE BOOTS INUIKII GLOVES ZANIER POLES BERNARD ORCEL MASON PANTS TONI SAILER JACKET TTONI SAILER LIGHT JACKET TONI SAILER HOODIE HOUDINI BOOTS INUIKII GLOVES BOGNER SKIS MACH HAT HOLDEN

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PANTS PARAJUMPERS JACKET PARAJUMPERS SWEATER PARAJUMPERS BOOTS BRESSAN SCARF NOBIS WATCH JUNGHANS BACKPACK THE NORTH FACE

MASON PANTS SPORTALM SWEATER SPORTALM BOOTS BOGNER GLOVES TONI SAILER SKIS BERNARD ORCEL SUNGLASSES YNIQ GOGGLES YNIQ EVE SKISUIT FUSALP BOOTS BRESSAN SUNGLASSES MODO GLOVES BOGNER

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MONTANA MONOPOLY Billionaire Bargaining for the Soul of Big Sky By Jay Cowan

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF YELLOWSTONE CLUB PHOTO BY RYAN TURNER

“Big Sky was a far cry from what it is today,” with only four lifts and dirt roads.

Legendary views from Big Sky.

Stepping off the tram to Lone Peak into a full-face blast of what Big Sky ski resort is all about is an inspiring moment for most skiers. For others, even after they brace themselves and lean into the wind, it’s just terrifying. But for the rest, it feels spiritual, powerful, and bigger than us. Because it is. Standing in the crisp, clear air at 11,166 feet you can see three states and the Tetons of Wyoming sprawled under that boundless sky. Closer at hand are the rocks and sculpted snow that form an array of steep, wild skiing as exciting as anything in North America. There are very few lift-served summits like this in the world where you can ski every single aspect of the mountain for three hundred and sixty degrees. Okay, maybe not you, but it all gets skied, though some is out of bounds. And even what’s inbounds seems insane at times. Most of the Lone Peak terrain is pitched in the high forty degrees for up to 2,000 fully exposed vertical feet, with runs often separated by skeletal stone ridges. On bluebird days it’s all killer. In heavy cloud cover, it can be another kind of killer, producing a buzz that, when you consider the kind of skiing you’re getting into, is like a serious drug. For a handful of people, right after that rush has come the desire to own it all. Assorted developers, bankers and realtors have been salivating for fifty years over this wide-angle slice of Montana mountains. Prior to the early 1970s, most of the Madison Range was the property of ranchers, timber companies and the US Forest Service (USFS). In that cluster of beautiful mountains about an hour’s drive up the Gallatin River from Bozeman, fang-like Lone Mountain dominates the landscape.

It was on its flanks in 1970 that Chet Huntley, a Montana native and recently retired star NBC news anchor, chose to develop Big Sky Ski and Summer Resort, which opened in 1974, three days after he died. It was sold two years later to Boyne Resorts, owned by the Kircher family of Michigan. Stephen Kircher, now the president of Boyne, recalls, “Big Sky was a far cry from what it is today,” with only four lifts and dirt roads. The first time I skied here in the 1980s, it was already something completely different from the other Montana areas I’d been to as a kid. It wasn’t a little ski club operation with a cozy warming hut, but high, wide and handsome, with a purpose-built village and more wildlife on the slopes at any given time than skiers. Annual numbers have since skyrocketed, going from 70,000 in the 1970s to over half a million today, still with enough animals to populate a season of National Geographic shows bighorn sheep on the roads, spectacular snow-white mountain goats roaming the A-Z ridge, and elk and moose pretty much anywhere, any time. The scale here is such that the massive 5,800 acres of Big Sky skiing that swallows up all those critters and skiers is also dwarfed by its surroundings. They used to be mostly wilderness and logging tracts, but in 1992 lumber billionaire Tim Blixeth and partners bought land and swapped it with the USFS for nearly 100,000 acres of private property adjoining Big Sky. Such widely used, as well as widely unpopular, manipulations of USFS policy met with heated blowback, as they have many places in the west, but sadly to no avail. Blixeth kept 13,600 acres, logged 2,700 of it in 133

Left to right

1. Dropping into the infamous Big Couloir on Lone Peak . 2. Lone Peak and Tram.

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jail. The story got complicated, but also fascinating and worth following because it was so cutthroat, and unlike any other ski resort. The struggling YC sold in 2009 to CrossHarbor Capital Partners for $115 million, dramatically down from an earlier withdrawn CH offer of $470 million, leaving Blixeth crying foul. When Moonlight also went under, CrossHarbor, in partnership with Boyne, eventually picked up the property at a steep discount in 2013 and rolled the 1,900 acres of Moonlight skiing into Big Sky. Spanish Peaks failed as well, and in 2013 CrossHarbor and Boyne stepped in yet again to buy it out of a bankruptcy auction. James Dolan was reported to have said of Sam Byrne, CrossHarbor’s billionaire managing general partner, “Well, he’s the new king of the valley. I wish him luck.” If all of this sounds like Terry Sheridan’s popular and grittily modern “Yellowstone” TV series, it’s worth noting that few who live around Big Sky think there’s much fiction in a show that revolves around feuding Montana land barons. By the time the big shakeout finished, the four former - often mutually antagonistic - owners had been reduced to two power players, Boyne and

PHOTOS BY JEFF ENGERBRETSON

the form of ski runs, and in 1997 turned it into the super-exclusive Yellowstone Club (YC), the world’s only private ski and golf community. I was invited there the year before when Blixeth, Warren Miller, and former quarterback and congressman Jack Kemp took a handful of us on a press tour. It was good, varied terrain with 2,700 feet of vertical, and really fun to have all to ourselves. That’s still the case. Members love the uncrowded, unhurried vibe, powder that lasts for days instead of hours, and access to a total 8,500 acres of skiing spread across the YC and the adjoining Spanish Peaks, Big Sky and Moonlight Basin slopes. Meanwhile, Blixeth had been busy flipping property. He sold a Moonlight Basin partnership 25,000 acres on the legendary north-facing side of Lone Mountain in 1992. Next, the Dolan family of Philadelphia bought another 6,750 acres from him for the Spanish Peaks development between the YC and Big Sky, filling out the map for one of the biggest interconnected ski resort systems in the country, all of it on private land. Eventually, however, things went south as the Great Recession took hold, and Blixeth’s life turned tabloid when he got over-extended, divorced, and went to

CrossHarbor, who appear to be working and playing well together to operate what they call “The Biggest Skiing in America.” The result is some of the country’s most wide-ranging terrain at a resort that’s exploding in popularity and trending steadily more upscale. How this unusual Monopoly board of properties and maneuvering will play out, only time will tell. All of the lifts except those at the YC are accessible on the full mountain Big Sky ticket, and it’s a fun journey around that vast domain. The Andesite Mountain side of Big Sky provides the bridge between the Spanish Peaks, the YC and Big Sky, and features some of the best, fully buffed, high-speed terrain you’ll find anywhere. So good that numerous state and regional ski teams race and train on it. I’ve gotten going much faster than is wise here, especially on

Big Horn in early mornings when the corduroy is crispy. More than a dozen bomber runs, powder glades and pocket steeps cover the three-lift Andesite spread that includes, as of last winter, the only eight-passenger heated and bubbled high-speed chair in North America. The latter is part of what recently retired longtime Big Sky president and general manager Taylor Middleton describes as Boyne’s “commitment to progressive improvements and sustainable

growth over the next decade that includes a new age of lift technology in major zones of the mountain.” Lone Mountain has loads of popular blue boulevards similar to Andesite’s, winding everywhere and allowing intermediates access to a sweeping arc from the Dakota lift to Moonlight’s Six-Shooter. The family options feature several big, magic-carpet-accessed learning areas and multiple terrain parks. Ultimately, though, what adds real gravitas 135

“We look at this market as akin to Jackson Hole twenty-five years ago, that in general has been dramatically underserved by hotels,”

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF MONTANA TOURISM

to Big Sky is that much of it is so kick ass. It all flows from Lone Peak, where the most famous runs are the double-black Dictator Chutes alongside Marx and Lenin, appropriately combining for some of the baddest run names ever. And the equally infamous Big Couloir is tucked into a dogleg ravine along the same curving summit ridgeline that features the A-Z Chutes. The backside of that ridge is the home of Moonlight Basin’s Headwaters terrain that’s been luring hard-charging free-skiers since it opened. These north-facing, 50-degree plunges offer a full Imax-style display of local rippers dropping lines that seem visibly crazy, like the frozen waterfalls people climb up and then rappel down in normal resorts. The other big inbounds skiing off the tram is the North Summit Snowfields on long, steep, sidecountry that is my favorite part of the mountain. It’s demanding and isolated, with a sign-out policy like the Big Couloir, requiring probe poles, shovels, transponders, and hopefully good local knowledge, because people die on Lone Mountain. Given its world-class skiing, the fact that Big Sky never really attracted major skier numbers has been a happy mystery to locals for a long time. Some of the reasons are fairly obvious: it’s windy, rocky, and remote. Plus, skier surveys have long complained that for a place with relatively pricey tickets ($160), it’s been weak on high-end lodging and amenities.

Left to right

PHOTOS COURTESY OF YELLOWSTONE CLUB PHOTO BY RYAN TURNER

1. Lone Peak behind Big Sky Resort’s legions of condos. 2. The Warren Miller Lodge at the Yellowstone Club.

Now, in what could be seen as a major re-positioning, that part is rapidly changing. In recent years the YC – whose members include Tom Brady and Giselle Bundchen, Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, and Bill and Melinda Gates – has been experiencing exponential growth, with dozens of new homes in the $5 million to $35 million range being built annually. This has led to new openings in Big Sky’s Meadow Village that include the acclaimed Beehive Basin Brewery and Michelangelo’s, arguably one of the best Italian restaurants in the Northwest. Meanwhile, at Spanish Peaks last fall, CrossHarbor and Montage International partnered and broke ground on a $400 million, 150-room, ultra-luxe Montage Big Sky hotel, scheduled to open in 2021. “We look at this market as akin to Jackson Hole twenty-five years ago, that in general has been dramatically underserved by hotels,” said Sam Byrne at the time. As further proof of that belief, CrossHarbor also built the brand-new Wilson Hotel in the Big Sky Town Center. And Moonlight – with few lodge rooms for guests and relying on luxury home, townhome and cabin rentals instead – has two major new hotels in the planning stages. The lodging and residential explosion is also accompanied by a $150 million capital improvement program from Boyne. Called Big Sky 2025, it has already funded four new lifts since 2016, the swank new Everett’s 8800 restaurant at the top of Andesite and, as of last summer, the beginning of a multi-million-dollar ground-up renovation of the Mountain Mall. Remodels of the Huntley and Summit Lodges, and a gondola from the Mountain Village to the Lone Peak Tram, are also on the books. This substantial growth spurt, and the fact that it’s all skewing

distinctly up-market, combined with the back-to-back biggest winter visitor numbers in history, makes some people nervous. Big Sky is a resort not unlike many around the world, growing and succeeding, maybe even beyond what they imagined. Part of the community is terrified of becoming another Jackson or Sun Valley, while another part is hoping that’s exactly what happens so they can cash in on the bonanza. After seven years of calling Big Sky my home mountain, I feel conflicted writing about it at all. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t love it, but I don’t want to help sell it out any more than it already has been. As with all great places, the key to what makes them special and sustainable is the people. Big Sky’s are still a potent and semi-diverse mix of the athletes, artists, wild hearts and dreamers who have been here from the beginning, loving life and living it hard. They’ve worked to get better schools, grocery stores and on-site medical services, and to define their town as a community, not just an alpine strip mall. If the powers that be can keep the whole four-resort complex going symbiotically, Big Sky proper may continue to be an almost affordable middle-class haven, albeit surrounded by private clubs and gated subdivisions. While no longer a secret hideout on a deserted mountain, how much more of its soul and essential down-home Montana charm Big Sky sacrifices will depend on the strength and vision of its residents. And, also, on the real intentions and scruples of those who are still arriving in the mountains, wanting to own - and sell - it all.

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LAST RUN

Dav’s Descents

Vallée Blanche Chamonix, France. b y C H R I S D AV E N P O R T

PHOTO BY CHRISTIAN PONDELLA

et’s begin with the superlatives. The longest run in the Alps, a massive vertical drop of almost 9,000 feet, and widely regarded as the most famous off-piste run in the world. In my experience and opinion, the Vallée Blanche ski experience lives up to its reputation! The first time I stepped out of the glacial ice tunnel at the top of the Aiguille du Midi cable car station, I felt like I stepped through a portal to another world. It was the mid-1990s, and I was new to the Alps. The valley dropped sharply away, below the long snow arête (ridge) that we would be walking down to put our skis on. Peaks and ridges stacked in rows lined up for as far as I could see. White and blue icy glacial seracs glistened in the sun as they began their long and broken journey down the Mer de Glace, the “Sea of Ice” that is the namesake glacier of the Vallée Blanche. Guides clad in Gore-Tex, and their clients roped up and strapped on crampons, and freeskiers of all nationalities chatted excitedly about the descent. It was almost too much to absorb at a single moment. But the excitement and nervous energy of my first adventure down this classic run had me focused, and I strapped my skis to my pack and began the short, albeit steep, walk down the snow arête to the large flat spot where people prepare for their ski descent. Many dozens of descents later, I still crave this experience. It is

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intense, yet precisely what adventure should be. The descent is a journey to be savored, especially with a guide and good friends and on a beautiful sunny spring day. There are several routes to choose from for a descent of the Vallée Blanche, and depending on snow conditions and weather, all of them are excellent, although of varying difficulties. I prefer the steeper terrain skiers left on the Grande Envers du Plan, or the Petit Enver variation, but these slopes require caution and knowledge of the snowpack. And of course, like any route off-piste, avalanche gear. The “Voie Normal,” or normal route, is a bit more relaxed, and while still on the glacier (crevasses), the slopes are less steep, and the run is lined with amazing glacial seracs. It’s hard to pay attention to the turns ahead, as the views of the peaks above are so stunning. But after 6 miles or so, you arrive at the lovely Refuge du Requin, a perfect restaurant perched on a rock outcrop where skiers picnic in the sun with baguettes, fromage, and bottles of Côtes du Rhône. A stop here is a necessary part of your first Vallée Blanche descent. Sadly, the glacier is melting and receding at an alarming rate. The next generation of skiers surely will not have the same experience as we have had on this classic run, so, if you have never skied in Chamonix, or descended the Vallée Blanche, now is the time.

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