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The following article was written by Brad Gilbert and originally appeared on GlutenFreeSnowboarder.com

While I’ve spent a lot of time in British Columbia heli and cat skiing, until recently I had not done a lot of resort skiing there. I had sampled Red Mountain, Whitewater, and Revelstoke but last summer I took the plunge and bought a house in Revelstoke and I'm now a season pass holder. While I originally chose Revelstoke because it is the heliski capital of North America (there are 5 heli ops based in town), I have been thrilled to discover that with a mountain like Revelstoke, I don’t need a cat or a heli to get the legendary powder I’ve been chasing in BC for so many years!

While Revelstoke is best known for having the most lift-served vertical in North America (5620 ft top to bottom), in my limited experience the most amazing thing about the resort, other than also having the most snow in North America (360 inches to date with a 100+ ” base) is the amazing glade skiing that is everywhere on the hill. BC is well known for its old growth forests and Revelstoke takes full advantage of those with a glading program that provides beautiful open lines everywhere you turn.

Amazingly enough, the resort provides access to 3,000 acres and 4 big bowls with only one gondola and two lifts. While the master plan for build out of the mountain would ultimately make it bigger than Whistler, right now it's a pretty simple mountain to navigate.

You ride up the gondola, traverse to the Stoke Chair and either do 2,000 ft laps on it, do a 5,000’+ run to the bottom, hike up to the bowls, or ski over to the Ripper lift which is a tree skiers paradise. No matter what you do, you’re bound to find some serious powder, especially this year (2017-18) as they're on a record pace during this 10th anniversary year.

What I have just begun to explore are the huge hike-to bowls – you can see the peak and the cliff walls in the background of the photos above. There are some very serious lines to be had up there and the Lemming Line (what a great name for the hiking trail) is a well-trod path.

The lines the skiers in the above photo are pointing to are just the beginning of a massive bowl with numerous entrance points. The pictures below are looking back up at those cliffs.

Like most bowls surrounded by cliffs and ridges, the snow lofts in and thus is some of the deepest on the mountain. Below is a pic from a particularly bountiful day.

Thankfully with all that powder, there is the sufficient steepness to make it all rideable.

And if you get bored of the endless glades and bowl skiing, you can always jump on one of the 5,620 vertical foot runs which will provide you with views of the Columbia River all the way down as your legs turn to mush.

As for the crowds, these kinds of goodies attract. It’s only on the biggest days that you’ll get a line like the one above, which will quickly be dispersed all over the mountain. Revelstoke is a small town with limited lodging, with no big cities nearby, and hard to get to which guarantees that it never gets too crowded or skied out.

So for now, I’m just going to keep exploring and enjoying my good fortune as the snow keeps rolling in. It may have taken me 30+ years to realize my ambition of becoming a ski bum but now that I’m here, I certainly have no regrets and I'm counting my blessings that I landed on this incredible hill…

Visit RevelstokeMountainResort.com for all lodging, event, and other ski-related information. 

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