Alright, I’m not going to pretend that I don’t have a massive bias when it comes to this place. (Team Panorama Rules!!) But at the same time, I know it well, better than any other hill or mountain out there. Now back in the day when I was still wearing diapers and apparently clapping for myself as I made my way down and around the bunny hill, Panorama was a small, cozy place where the same group of people skied, and still do, every weekend. I miss the marathon t-bar (even though I was busted zig zaging at 11 with Niall Johnson and almost lost my lift pass). But with two decades of change Panorama has become not only a winter getaway for families but a true force on the expert scene. Some of you may not believe me, but that’s fine, I like having most of the powder to myself anyway.
Panaroma is like a good mullet: all business up front with a party in the back. The front-side is well groomed, maintained, respectable, friendly, welcoming. The backside however is free flowing, un-tamed, rough around the edges and even a little wild.
While Panorama’s reputation used to revolve around its groomers, snow making abilities and family friendliness, the new side of Panorama is less Kumbaya my Lord and more Living on a prayer.
From the top, hike in (very briefly) to Taynton Bowl. The farther you go, the more chance you have that others before you gave up and dove in earlier. C-Spine is a great place to drop in to get both a steep chute and then some tree skiing lower down. Many chutes, and great glades await you. It didn’t snow this week, don’t worry, if it snowed last week, the powder is still there. One of the best things about being labeled family friendly.
But where Panorama really hits in stride is in its deep powder tree skiing. At the top, go left and down a little and then left again into Heli-High. The snow piles higher than a stoner in here and the trees are 80s acidwash jeans tight. There are some deep tree wells. Ski with a buddy. This run is as long as Stairway to Heaven and hopefully will provide as much action as the song did in HighSchool.
Also left of the lift, Gunbarrel is a mean, lean, powder machine. It looks daunting but you just have to make that first jump turn and you’re good to go.
Mogul lover’s can have a very physical affair with Stumbuck’s, located just below Heli High and for those who like it gentle but still a little wild, head to the SunBowl or into the glades on the skier’s left hand lower portion of the mountain.
Long cruising runs like Shober’s Dream, his steeper friend Millennium, his grandfather Oldtimer and his snowboarding cousin Rollercoaster are also as fun as zinc used to be. If you are feeling a little crazy and there has been some major snowfall, go to Cliff Glades. Find it on the map and when you get there, yes, this really is the run. Steep like gas prices with trees as close as the Flames were to winning the Stanley Cup in 2004, it’s not for the faint of heart. Watch for stumps, they’ll get you, but if you make it through you will feel a new kind of skiing ambition, like anything is possible. After that.
Panorama has a great ski school for lessons, and you can see the by-product of instruction all around. This mountain is always full of racers. You’ll see them training and in their downhill suits either shivering like mad or trying to cover their teen bumps in the lift line.
The cappuccino hut, mid-mountain is a great place to get a hard cup of joe or hot chocolate. It gets cozy in there but it’s a nice warm place to compare frostbite.
Also, by the time you get to the summit, you may need to defrost in the Summit Hut before you head down. They serve lots of drinks, virgin and experienced as well as tasty treats and good home cooked food. An amazing thing to do is the late night fondue. Go up for your last run, then stay for an incredible meal and some vino and ski down just before complete darkness with the entire runs to yourselves. It is (to borrow from the 90s) rad.
On the mountain in the daytime, usually between noon and 3 p.m. beware of old racers and grey hairs flying past you. Panorama is home to many who now race for the bar instead of the finish line. The last one down may have rounds on the line and so a few children or slow folk getting in their way may not make it down unscathed.
The T-Bar (or as it’s now called - the crazy horse saloon (lame)) is a great place to go for some Apres pitchers. The finger foods are delish especially the chicken wings. It is possible to stay on from Apres ski, to dinner drinking crowd right through to late night dance party. And in fact, I am proud to say that along with Shara and Lindsey Grice, I hold the record for 12 hours spent in the T-Bar without leaving. (I admit my feet were sore in my ski boots at 3 a.m.) The T-bar also has a shot ski, so find 5 friends and convince them to do it so that you get fresh tracks in the morning while they nurse their jager-over. Open mic night is worth a visit. Some of the Panorama staff can really kick it and you may just be blessed with the most bad-ass rendition of Leroy Brown you have heard since Croce.
For food, don’t ignore the Heli-plex. It sits above the rest of the resort for a reason and it allows you to get away from the Intrawest “Resort” feel and have a cozy, log fire, steak dinner while you think about what you need to sell in order to pay for heli-skiing the next day. (The Heli-sking by the way is Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!).
For a little gourmet, the Earl Grey Lodge is a great, beautiful venue with really yummy food prepared by a punk rockerish chef who cooks some mean meat. (If you ask what the strange sign means, be prepared to figure it out or pay or both.) It’s the perfect place for a special occasion or romantic night out.
Most people stay in condos at Panorama and you have your choice of old-school-cool reminiscent of the 1970s brown and square era, or nouveau ski chic a la Intrawest. And for a budget, the Pine Inn is right in the centre of the action.
On a more personal note, there’s something very special about this mountain. A windy road takes you up to this small, humble village and you feel as though everything else, work, troubles, stress, civilization are fairly far removed and can’t hurt you now. The views and vistas from the top of the mountain remind you to take deep breaths and appreciate the extreme natural beauty that exists in Canada and the special rugged and wild-ness unique to British Columbia. Not too big, nor too small, full of families and friends, it’s easy to feel at home here. Little lights in the trees, snow banks pilled up beside outdoor hot tubs, children tobogganing down the runs after dark (I know that’s not allowed but come on). This is a real spot-on (to borrow from the Brits) place to go to get away and wrap yourself in winter - and family - and fun- until you have to go back to work. Or at least work doesn’t believe that you are sick anymore.
And talk to the locals, their bark is worse than their bite. They’ll share a pitcher and if they really like you they’ll lend a little insight on where the powder’s good. But just remember. Never….ever……call Panorama Pano.
