Monthly Archive for August, 2010

Nakiska ski resort

Published

ski dude

on August 29, 2010

in Ski Resort

. 0 Comments

Tourist Office

Nakiska
P.O. Box 1988
Kananaskis Village
Alberta
Canada
T0L 2H0

Telephone: (403) 5917777
Website: www.skinakiska.com/

Description

Purpose-built to stage the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics Alpine events, accommodation is centred on Kananakis Village, close to Canmore and Calgary.

Review

Located in the heart of the spectacular Kananaskis Valley, Nakiska was specifically designed to host the alpine events of the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Also known as Mount Allan, Nakiska is set within Kananaskis Country, a popular 4250 sq km/1615 sq mile) outdoor recreation area located an hour’s drive southwest of Calgary (110km/68 miles) spanning both the foothills and the Rockies. Within Kananaskis Country there are 4 provincial parks; Peter Lougheed, Bow Valley, Bragg Creek and Elbow/Sheep Wilderness. The area is a real winter playground with a host of winter activities including cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, ice skating and dog sledding as well as downhill skiing and snowboarding. Accommodation is directly adjacent to Nakiska in Kananaskis Village.

When Captain John Palliser led a British scientific expedition through this area between 1857 and 1860, he wrote in his journal about the legend of an Indian named Kananaskis, “giving account of his most wonderful recovery from the blow of an axe to his head, which stunned but failed to kill him”. Palliser gave the name Kananaskis to the Bow River tributary in the area. He named the Kananaskis River and the pass that he crossed, the Kananaskis Pass, which led him through the Rocky Mountains. The word Kananaskis is said to mean “meeting of the waters”.

Today Kananaskis Country is not only a multi-use recreational area, but other activities such as timber harvesting, ranching and natural gas operations also co-exist with the diversity of recreational uses. Alberta’s youngest Rocky Mountain resort, Nakiska was designed using computer technology to best create long, wide, fall-line runs, perfect for ski racing during the Olympics and now a cruiser’s paradise.

The layout of the ski trails is simple and very user-friendly with expert terrain primarily at the top of the mountain, intermediate runs in the middle and beginner areas at its base. Skiers and snowboarders can depend on quality snow coverage as Nakiska is equipped with extensive and sophisticated snowmaking systems. This combined with a commitment to world class grooming makes Nakiska a great choice for those that enjoy long cruising runs on the “picture-perfect” corduroy daily snow reports consistently speak of.

Only 30 minutes drive away through some spectacular wilderness is the neighbouring ski resort of Fortress Mountain. Lift tickets are transferable so you can ski the 2 areas in one day. The town of Canmore 60km/37 miles is considered to be the residential community of the area with an established infrastructure geared towards an outdoor lifestyle. Canmore Nordic Centre, which hosted the cross-country skiing, biathlon and nordic combined events of the XV Winter Olympics is considered to have some of the best developed nordic ski trails anywhere in the world.

keywords

Calgary, Canmore, Kananaskis, Nakiska, Resorts of the Canadian Rockies, Alberta, Rockies

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Gora Moroznaya ski resort

Published

ski dude

on August 25, 2010

in Ski Resort

. 0 Comments

Tourist Office

Kamchatka
Russia

Telephone: (415) 3526711
Website: ski.kamchatka.ru/

Description

The Lodge in Vilyuchinsk is not open to the public as its located in the restricted area.

keywords

Gora Moroznaya The Lodge in Vilyuchinsk Kamchatka Russia

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Chamonix – Mont Blanc ski resort

Published

ski dude

on August 23, 2010

in Ski Resort

. 0 Comments

Tourist Office

Office de Tourisme Chamonix Mont Blanc
85 Place du Triangle de l’Amitie
Chamonix Mont Blanc
Haute Savoie
France
F 74400

Telephone: (450) 530024
Email: info@chamonix.com
Website: www.chamonix.com

Description

An historic ski and climbing town on the picturesque side of Mont Blanc, by the entrance to the Mont Blanc tunnel. Chamonix offers the world’s greatest lift-served vertical drop. Away from the slopes it is very lively all year round with numerous bars and restaurants.

Review

One of the few serious contenders for the title of “World’s Most Famous Ski Resort”, Chamonix Mont Blanc (as the resort prefers to be known) has the world’s biggest lift-served skiable vertical drop of 2807 metres ( 9209 feet ), one of the world’s longest runs through the Vallée Blanche at 22 km ( 13.7 miles ) and staged the World’s first Winter Olympics in 1924. Beyond these spectacular statistics is Chamonix’s relatively undisputed status as the world’s tough mountain sports capital, the subject of endless ski magazine reports each season from editors wishing to prove they descended between the glacial crevasses and lived to tell the tale!

For lesser mortals there are plenty of on-piste kilometres to soak up, all dominated by the spectacular scenery of Mont Blanc, Western Europe’s highest peak (and Europe’s second highest after Mt Elbrus in Russia, although some dispute whether Elbrus is in Europe).

Chamonix’s history has been traced to Bronze Age times and its current status was confirmed in a report as far back as 1751 when the locals were described as “the most uncompromising men in Europe”. Ten years before that Englishmen William Windham and Richard Pococke had been on the first recorded tourist trip, reaching the Mer de Glace.

The first skis in the valley were spotted in 1893 and by 1907 one of the world first cable cars, ‘Les Glaciers’ was in operation (since removed). Six more were to follow between 1927 and 1963. The Mont Blanc Tunnel opened a few years later ensuring first rate access infrastructure in to the future. Chamonix Mont Blanc itself is a lively town with its own character, not just one created every winter season and reinvented every summer. That character reflects the attitude of its residents and of most visitors – a true love of the mountains.