Before the Whistler ski season could end, one BC skier ensured his last ski down the hill was memorable despite the lack of snow.
James from Rise and Alpine shared a video on YouTube of his recent trip to Whistler, where he skied top to bottom on the dirt.
The popular skier, who shares his adventures online, told Daily Hive he attempted to ski down the dirt mountain “just to try it.”
In his video, James can be seen touching as little snow as he can. While he admits it was “so fun,” he adds that dirt skiing is “extremely dangerous,” zipping through the rocks and dirt.
James has been out on BC mountains all season and expects to continue backcountry skiing into June.
So, while the Whistler ski season is over, James suggests there are still other good skiing spots at the top of the resort.
“[The snow is] just gonna keep on melting up high, but in BC, where we’re lucky to have mountains that are high enough elevation that we can, we can still find pockets the good snow or ‘corn snow’ when it gets really, really warm,” he said.
For those people who aren’t ready to hang up their skis yet, “You gotta go find your fun using your own two feet instead of taking a chairlift these days in the summertime.”
James suggests people can still find good snow pack in spots above 1,800 meters and are north-facing where the sun doesn’t hit as much.
“To find good late-season spots. It takes a bit of looking,” he added.
James also suggested that folks interested in summer skiing head to Mount Baker, Mount Hood in Oregon, or Pemberton.
As many skiers remember, the 2023/2024 ski season started out slow, a few snow storms that came through later in the season “saved the season,” James said.
“That snowpack kind of helped us run a pretty solid fun ski year until now,” he added.
Daily Hive asked James if he expected more people to try dirt skiing considering the lack of snow on some hills, but she said he doesn’t expect to see a shift.
“I don’t see it taken off because it’s such a different feeling from actually being on snow,” he said.
However, James predicts, “We’ll see a big shift in the mountain biking.”
Considering folks can experience the adrenaline and continue their love for mountain sports, James said he would not be surprised to see more people jumping on bikes in the next few years.
While some ski season pass holders may not have ridden the slopes as much as they could due to the lack of snow, James said he is holding out on the hope that next year will bring a great ski season.