Snowmobile owners are becoming as anxious as skiers and boarders watching the snow line creep down the mountainsides. That’s evident locally with the growing number of vehicles appearing with powerful looking sleds tucked neatly into the haul box.
It’s an ideal time to join the Powder Mountain Snowmobile and Outdoor Recreation Club or the Pemberton Valley Snowmobile and Recreation Club. Both clubs offer trail access to the Pemberton Icefield with its 300 square kilometers of high alpine adventure.
“From our new parking area it’s about a 20-minute ride up the Brandywine trail to the alpine. In the old days it might take three days of plowing and digging,” Powder Mountain club president Nelson Bastien said.
“Now it’s a nice, quiet ride. Once you get up to the glacier, you can go any direction you want. There often aren’t any tracks ahead of you.”
It hasn’t been a smooth ride for local clubs the past couple of years as the provincial government and the 2010 Olympic organizers (VANOC) have closed access to the backcountry in the Callaghan Valley. The issues in the Callaghan relate to wildlife habitat and security for the Nordic facilities during the Games.
VANOC has also indicated it wants to use the club parking area to park busses during the Games. The lot is 15 km south of Whistler, another kilometre up the Callaghan Valley access road, with a left turn at the Whistler transfer station.
“We have a battle coming up with VANOC. First, they kicked us out of the Callaghan and now they want to close us down for three months, January through March, during the Games,” Bastien said.
“We’ve told them there’s all kinds of room to park busses off the highway around Black Tusk Village. We’re offering solutions but they’re not listening. We’re going to keep snowmobiling through the Olympics whether they like it or not.”
The Powder Mountain club spent $19,000 this past summer putting down gravel, grading and rolling the parking area and another $8,000 widening an access road. With money collected through membership and trail fees, they’ll spend another $15,000 in the area before work is completed this fall.
The Pemberton Valley Snowmobile Club has put to good use to a $30,000 grant it received this year from a provincial Ministry of Tourism and Arts program. Most of the expenditures went to improving the access road, parking lot and trail at Rutherford Creek. Located 7 km south of Pemberton, the Rutherford Creek trail provides an excellent climb to the Pemberton Icefield. The club has also purchased a new grooming machine.
“We’re pretty excited. The grooming machine is something we’ve been saving for — for a good many years. We’ll be able to do more areas and be more consistent with our grooming,” Pemberton Valley president Lincoln Ferguson said.
When asked about the best sledding in the area, he was semi-candid.
“Obviously the Rutherford Creek trail up to the glacier is one of our best trails, but there’s a great ride in the Hurley area over to Bralorne where you can stop and have lunch. Those two and lots of secret stashes,” Ferguson said.
The Pemberton Valley club has 75 members who have yet to set the cost of membership and trail fees for this winter. Their annual general meeting is scheduled for tonight (Thursday, Nov. 6) at 7:30 p.m. at the Pemberton Community Centre. Anyone interested in joining the club is welcome to attend.
The Powder Mountain club will hold its annual general meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 19 at 7 p.m. at the Blackcomb Snowmobile base, just past the parking area.
The Powder Mountain club has 125 members at a cost of $100 for the season that includes trail fees. A five-day trail pass is available for $25. A one-day pass is $15 or $10 if you’re a member of a club affiliated with the British Columbia Snowmobile Federation. They also offer an insurance policy with $1 million liability coverage for $70 for the season.
For contact information on the Powder Mountain and Pemberton Valley clubs, along with the Squamish based Black Tusk Snowmobile Club and the Bridge River Valley Snowmobile Club, please check the web site www.sledpemberton.com.
