Touring Areas RSS

A list of ski touring and splitboarding areas within 2 hours of Calgary.

For the purposes of this article, this ski touring and splitboarding region extends from West Louise Lodge on the Trans Canada to Field, BC. All the areas stretching north and south from that stretch of Highway are what this zone is referencing. Splitboarding in Yoho and Kicking Horse Pass is diverse and wide ranging. From big alpine style days in areas like Mt Field, to the tree riding of Narao glades, from the bowls, chutes and varied terrain of Sherbrooke Lake to the ever popular Emerald Lake Avalanche Path, this region is as large as it is varied and holds...

Highway 93 south has been growing ever more popular over the past few years for ski touring and splitboarding. It felt as though it was overlooked for many years due to the lower elevation trailheads and deadfall ridden lower elevations. The secret seems to be out now and traffic in this region has grown dramatically in recent times. For splitboarders this region holds the appeal of a lot of vertical relief right from the highway. So, in short, if you are a splitboarder who doesn’t like skiing for long periods of time, there are lots of zones that climb right...

Splitboarding on Highway 93 North is certainly one of the better zones to find snow for ski touring in the Rockies. Located north of Lake Louise, this region (Hwy 93N/Hwy 1 Junction to Saskatchewan River Crossing) sees more snow than the other splitboarding regions around Calgary. It is also the main access point to the ultra impressive Wapta Icefields, a spectacular environment with endless multi day adventure options. Highway 93 North is not just home to big icefield trip options -- there’s everything from gladed riding, easy access to the alpine, mellow beginner options, valley bottom tours, couloirs and circuits....

The Lake Louise ski touring and splitboarding region includes the backcountry accessed from Lake Louise Ski resort and terrain accessed from the Chateau Lake Louise parking lot (across the valley from the resort). I personally have very little experience splitboarding directly off the Lake Louise resort. The little I have done has largely been characterized by alpine riding in a variable depth snowpack. I cannot include too much more detail than that. There is, however, plenty of information to be found online in regards to these zones. On the other hand, I have spent a lot of time touring and...