faq

Snowcats (or "cats") are the machines you see grooming ski hills. Ours are specially modified versions with a heated passenger cabin containing seats to transport twelve guests, two guides and a photographer into the backcountry safely and comfortably. The snowcat will take you to some of the best untracked snow you will ever get the chance to enjoy. With a strictly controlled number of people per day you always get first tracks. The only people you see are your friends and the guides.

Using a snowcat is the most fun and social way to get your untracked snow fix. If you are nervous about flying in a helicopter or if you are tired of the crowded, rushed experience that ski resort powder has become, Catskiing is the powder experience you are looking for. No lift lines, no crowds, untracked powder all day. You're with a small group of 11 other guests in 4,300 acres of untracked snow with beautiful views of magnificent mountains all around. Catskiing has great atmosphere as it's just you and your friends, and the very best 'bang for your buck' when it comes to the amount of skiing you get for the money.

It doesn't matter how old you are, as long as you want powder runs!

The youngest we usually accept is 19 years, unless you book a private cat. Then as it's your cat, you can bring the kids and ski at the speed you want. Our average age is mid-20s to mid-40s. If you want to bring your kid or kids, please keep the rest of the group in mind when you judge their skiing or riding ability. If the kid cannot keep up with the group they will have to ride in the cat for the day with no refund. We love kids getting the Powder Mountain experience, but not to the detriment to other guests' experience.

We use fully equipped Pisten Bully 300 Snowcats especially designed for catskiing. They have comfortable bucket seating for twelve, two guides and a photographer, as well as panoramic view windows for checking out the peaks and runs that have made Powder Mountain Catskiing legendary.

The great thing about our terrain is that there is an easier way down every one of our runs. We match groups to terrain so that falls are fun you'll always have a fun and safe day.

One of the best things about catskiing is that people of different abilities can ride together because the cat can only get to the bottom of the run at a certain speed. This means you ski and ride at your own pace to the bottom. Depending on your pace you'll just get to the pick up a little before the cat or slightly after it. As the cat can only go a certain speed down the mountain there's no intimidation and no rush. You can ride at your own pace without the feeling that you are "holding up the group". With two guides per group, everyone gets safe guided powder skiing in the mountains, with more fun and more great times than you can imagine.

If you are unsure of your ability, book into one of our weekly "Learn to ski or ride powder" snowcats that go once a week. We also have women only cats on the tenth of every month.

You should have intermediate skiing ability with experience in a variety of conditions including powder, trees and steeper terrain. Our more relaxed experience lets you concentrate on enjoying the day and learning to ski better. Our guides are all fully certified ski instructors who can help you with tips and pointers throughout the day to help you get comfortable in powder snow and ski better. Untracked snow is great for learning to ski in powder.

We highly recommend that you rent fat skis from Affinity Rentals in Whistler. They make skiing or learning to ski powder easier and take less energy than regular skis. Rent some. You'll be glad you did.

There is no need to be intimidated about going catboarding if you can link turns with proficiency on a blue run. If you can do that you are ready to start catboarding. Riding powder on a snowboard, if you have never done it, is one of the easiest things to get the hang of. Our more relaxed experience lets you concentrate on enjoying the day and learning to ride better. Our guides who are fully certified instructors can help you with tips and pointers throughout the day so you'll quickly get comfortable in powder snow and ride better. You will learn so much about riding powder from them that you will be an expert in no time.

If you don't have a powder specific board such as a Burton Malolo or Fish we recommend using one of our demos or renting one from Affinity Rentals. They make learning to ride in powder the easiest thing ever. The correct board is everything. You won't use all your energy fighting with your board to stay afloat.

Obviously, the more fit you are the less tired you will be at the end of the day. The cool thing about the cat is that if you are tired you can "sit out" a run and ride down in the snowcat while you re-energize.

Our highest elevation is about 6,500 feet, so altitude is not a problem.

Our runs range in vertical from 800ft to around 3,000ft. Most runs are in the 1200-2200 vertical foot size. Having runs of this size means you spend less time in the cat between runs and more time skiing or riding. It also means you can charge down each run with out getting worn out.

We also highly recommend renting fat skis or a Burton Fish or Malolo from Affinity Rentals. Having the right equipment will make it so much easier that you will use all your energy skiing or riding instead of using all your energy fighting with your board or skis to stay afloat.

As much as we'd all like to be extremenators, what you see in magazines are professional riders paid to do amazing and carefully planned things.

Real powder skiing and riding is different. With most of our terrain being descents ranging from 20 degrees to 45 degrees, we can pick lines to suit the group's ability and aims. Imagine a perfect day at your favorite mountain riding powder with no one around. That's what catskiing is everyday. The only people you see are the other people in the snowcat you came with. Once people have been catskiing once, they understand what the excitement is all about, how easy it really is and they start counting the days till their next trip.

Absolutely! With our two guide system, everyone skis and rides at their own pace within the group. This makes for a relaxing day without the intimidation that is sometimes felt by friends "trying to keep up".

of the nicest things about catskiing is that people of different abilities can ride together because the cat can only get to the bottom of the run at a certain speed. This means you go at your own pace to the bottom. You won't have the feeling that you are "holding up the group". With two guides everyone gets the same experience: guided powder skiing in the mountains, safely, with more fun and great times than you can imagine. If part of the group is slower, one part of the group goes with the lead guide and the other part of the group goes with the second guide. No stress, no vibes from the rest of the group, just happy smiles and jokes about wipeouts and epic face shots. Exactly what a day in the mountains with your friends should be!

you are unsure of your ability book into our "Learn to Ski and Ride Powder" Cat days that go once a week. A cat dedicated to everyone getting better at powder skiing and riding. The perfect confidence builder.

It's the best place! We have "Learn to Ski and Ride Powder" Cat days that go once a week. A cat dedicated to everyone getting better at powder skiing and riding. Everyone is learning so you don't have to worry about "holding up the group" . The guides are all certified instructors so they are handing out tips all day that will have getting better at skiing or riding powder in no time. The perfect confidence builder.

We have terrain for every ability and fetish. Tree skiing freak? Powder Mountain Catskiing has awesome trees and glades. Love the high alpine open bowl skiing? Got you covered. With 5 peaks to choose from we have every kind of skiing you could want. The guides constantly monitor the weather and snow and we go to where the snow that is best that day. Check out our run maps

There are only a couple of our runs that are only accessible with a short hike. They are worth the hike. In general though there is no hiking involved: that's why we have the cat.

Not less than 7,000 ft, but mostly 8,000ft to 10,000ft per day. You can expect six to ten runs, depending on the conditions and the group. The more you ski the happier we are. The record runs in a day is fifteen. Our runs range in vertical from 800ft to around 3,000ft. Most runs are in the 1200-2200 vertical foot size. Having runs of this size means you spend less time in the cat between runs and more time skiing or riding. It also means you can charge down each run with out getting worn out.

Free pick up at The Longhorn

The Powder Mountain Lodge is about 20 minutes south of Whistler on Highway 99 at the Chance Creek turn off.

The Longhorn has no breakfast, so make sure you eat before we take off. Check here for pick-up times and please don' t be late. Time wasted cuts into the amount of skiing you get in a day. Every turn you miss is one you are behind.

Every day varies according to snow conditions, group ability, weather and other factors, so we can't give you an exact time. Plan on returning to Whistler at around 5:00 PM. See here for a typical day's schedule.

We have one group of twelve people, two guides and a photographer in each snow cat. The most we ever have on the mountain is two snowcats. Unlike heliskiing, you have your own machine so you can bring a pack with anything you think you might need and leave it under your seat in the cat.

The first ride up in the cat takes anywhere from 25 minutes to a hour minutes before we drop in for the first run, depending on which of the 5 peaks we are skiing that day. After that the runs come quickly. The average cat ride time is 10- 15 minutes for each run. Just enough time to recharge your energy, grab a snack or something to drink crack some jokes, make some friends. Sometimes it seems like you just got in the cat at the bottom of the run and then suddenly you are back at the top getting ready to drop in. It's amazing how much fun and how social catskiing is.

We try to get as many runs in as possible. Weather and snow conditions as well as the ability of the group all weigh in when factoring how many runs you will get. We guarantee 7,000 vertical feet of skiing. On an average day you can expect to do six to ten runs. The record is 15 runs in a day. We are just as happy as you are if you ski more than average.

Absolutely! Whistler has pro skiers like a hot tub has water.

There's always the off chance a famous skier or snowboarder will be part of your group. They know how much fun catskiing and riding is.

We have a professional photographer on the cat with every group.

You can pre book him to shoot photos of you and your friends when you ski or ride. It's all shot on digital so at the end of the day we can burn you a CD with the photos of you from the day. Also included on the CD is a greatest hits package of photos from Powder Mountain Catskiing. Who knows, maybe you will make our greatest hits slideshow.

The photographers are with you the entire day, not just for a run or two. They chronicle the whole day because we understand that this is a day you have been dreaming of and an experience that no matter many times you've been, it's always amazing and filled with moments where you think, "Man! I wish I had a picture of that". Our photographers get all those moments. Your day never ends because of the photos - you can re-live that perfect turn or slash forever.

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Fat skis make powder easy and require less energy to turn so you have more energy all day and get more skiing and more fun.

If you don't have fat skis, rent them from Affinity Rentals in the Blackcomb Lodge, the building next door to where we meet at Gone in the morning. You can thank us afterwards. We recommend Affinity Rentals for your entire rental needs. Click on our Skis To Rent page to see the skis they stock. Click on our Where To Rent page or the button to book.

Not at all. What ever makes you stoked works. Dedicated powder skis and boards just make it easier. Trust us though, we get so much snow you'll be glad you had the fattest skis you could rent. Suffering is optional. We have Burton Malolo and Fish boards to demo. Just let us know in advance

You can rent you all the ski or snowboard equipment you need at Affinity Rentals. Their service and selection are the best in Whistler. CLick on the button to book your rentals.

Bring both if you wish. Most of the time we all wear goggles, although once spring rolls around sunglasses are great. As we are in the alpine some form of eye protection is necessary. Our guides use and recommend Oakley Goggles and sunglasses.

The Tricouni area typically receives 60% more snowfall on average than Whistler/Blackcomb. Our Cypress area recieves double the snowfall of WB. Our average snowfall is approximately 18 meters/60 feet per year. This makes for more powder days than you can imagine. With only two cats with twelve people per cat on the whole mountain you can imagine how long the powder lasts. FOREVER!

The beauty of cat skiing is that the snow is always great. If it isn't we don't go skiing. Your experience is the most important thing. We won't take you skiing if the snow is bad just to "make money" We know you would be way more stoked on the truth. If the snow is good, which is 99 day out of 100 we go. Otherwise we don't.

Our season starts in mid December and goes to mid April. December, January, February and March are the prime powder months where we have fresh snow all the time. April has great snow with awesome corn after the spring hits. Three years ago our best day of the year was April 18th. With 4,300 acres of untracked snow, when you come with us you are going to get the goods. Spring time also means longer days so you get more skiing for the same money.

We know powder. We've traveled the world looking for it and this is it. Come skiing or riding with us and you'll have your best day in the mountains ever.