Backcountry Skiing in Duffey Lake

57hours is committed to providing safe outdoor adventure experiences. We require all guides using our platform to have a COVID-19 safety plan and to make the details of that plan accessible to travelers. In most cases, group sizes will be reduced, guides will avoid overcrowded locations, and other safety measures will be met depending on the location and activity. 

We also expect clients to respect local regulations and take measures to protect themselves, guides and the communities they’re traveling to. For more information on COVID-19 measures in Duffey Lake, please refer to British Columbia’s Travel and COVID-19 website.

Please contact us if you have any questions or require further information. We are happy to provide you with the most up-to-date information!

What you get in this adventure:

• • An experienced, certified ski guide with extensive knowledge of the area
  • 1 day of backcountry ski touring
  • Group equipment

What’s not included:

• • Technical backcountry ski touring equipment
  • Safety equipment (can be rented from your guide)
  • Transportation
  • Accommodations
  • Food (lunch or backcountry meal packages available as add-ons)
  • Heli drop (available as an add-on)

To enjoy this guided backcountry tour in Duffey Lake, you need to have a reasonable level of fitness. Your guide will find the terrain to match your level of fitness and skill. You will be on your feet for multiple hours for a full day, covering several miles of terrain every day. You will need to manage controlled descents in variable conditions. All participants should feel comfortable on challenging blue or black-level resort runs and be able to carry a loaded daypack while skinning up variable degrees of terrain.

No backcountry or avalanche experience is necessary. Backcountry skiing isn’t just for pros looking for the ultimate thrill ride, it’s also beginner friendly, meaning anyone with solid blue level resort experience can have fun in the backcountry. If you’ve never backcountry skied before, heading out with a guide is your best bet. They’ll take care of the planning, introduce you to the basics, like skinning uphill, and teach you how to manage the terrain. They also have the experience and avalanche training to keep you safe.

For technical backcountry ski touring gear, you will need to bring:

• • Alpine touring skis, telemark skis or splitboard with skins (can be rented)
  • Touring boots and poles (can be rented)
  • Avalanche safety equipment (can be rented):
    • Digital, 3-antenna avalanche transceiver or beacon
    • Lightweight snow shovel
    • Avalanche probe

For personal items, we recommend bringing:

• • Helmet
  • Sunglasses and ski goggles
  • Face warmer — scarf, face mask, neck tube, or buff
  • Light and insulated gloves or mitts
  • Wind and waterproof shell jacket with hood (Gore-Tex recommended)
  • Down jacket or vest
  • Mid-insulation fleece or puffy jacket
  • Warm outer puffy jacket
  • Ski pants (Gore-Tex recommended)
  • Synthetic or wool base layers, underwear and socks
  • Wool or synthetic toque
  • Brimmed cap
  • One triple-action locking carabiner or two conventional locking carabiners
  • Repair kit and Leatherman for your equipment (can be shared between several people)
  • Water bottle and 1L of water
  • Thermos with a warm beverage — optional
  • Food you can eat on-the-go
  • First aid kit
  • Sunscreen
  • Lip balm
  • Daypack large enough to carry all items listed (around a 20-30L backpack)
  • Camera — optional

All mandatory gear can be rented if you don’t have your own. You can rent: 

• • Avalanche safety pack, including backpack, beacon, shovel and probe from your guiding service.
  • Alpine touring or telemark skis, touring boots and poles can be rented from Escape Route
  • Splitboards can be rented from Escape Route

Ski rental locations are in Whistler and should be picked up the night prior to your outing. If you need to rent gear, let us know and we can help make arrangements.

Group sizes and pricing:

• • For this private adventure, the max client-to-guide ratio is 6:1. All prices are per person.
  • Costs per person decrease as the group grows for this private tour, so it’s the perfect opportunity to ski with friends and family. 

Ski touring in Duffey Lake can be arranged for larger groups. Contact us to make arrangements.

Min. age requirements:

• • If you are older than 18, you’re good to go.
  • Minors as young as 10 may be permitted to join private tours on a case-by-case basis.

If your group has skiers under the age of 18, contact us prior to booking to make arrangements.

• • BlackSheep Adventure Sports requires a 20% deposit for trips/courses at the time of booking unless otherwise specified.
  • Final payments are due 30 days prior to the departure date unless otherwise specified. Failure to make this final payment by the deadline will result in forfeiture of the trip and deposit.
  • If booking a trip within 30 days of the departure date, full payment is due upon booking.

Once the trip is confirmed by the guide, the cancellation policy stated below applies. 

• • BlackSheep Adventure Sports reserves the right to modify or cancel any trip or course at any time due to unfavorable weather conditions, injury / illness, or other reason without penalty. Guests will be notified as soon as possible. Cancellations initiated by BlackSheep because of unforeseen circumstances (lodge closures, highway closures, covid lockdowns or closures, extreme weather events, etc.) are refundable less any sunk costs. Travel insurance is highly recommended for all bigger trips as there are often costs that are not eligible for refund.
  • Deposits are non-refundable but transferable at the discretion of BlackSheep so long as the cancellation is made more than 30 days prior to the trip or course or is initiated by BlackSheep.
  • Cancellations to TRIPS made less than 30 days before the date for any reason are non-refundable but potentially transferable to another trip or date at the discretion of BlackSheep:
    • Any such transfers are subject to a 25% administration fee.
    • No more than 1 transfer will be offered
    • BlackSheep will accept a substitute guest should you not be able to attend, provided they meet the skill level requirement for the trip or course. BlackSheep reserves the right to determine if the substitute guest meets these requirements. Any such substitutions are subject to a 15% administration fee.
  • Cancellations to COURSES made less than 30 days before the departure date for any reason are non-refundable and non-transferable.
  • Cancellations made 30 or more days before the trip or course departure are refundable less any sunk costs and a 10% admin fee. The 10% admin fee is waived if the refundable amount is put towards another trip.
  • Cancellations due to COVID-19 related border closures or travel restrictions are transferable to another guided product less any charges that we incur from third parties such as lodges, credit card companies and so on and will attract a 10% admin fee. Travel insurance is highly recommended to mitigate these risks.
  • Trips involving helicopter flights that are canceled or postponed the day of the trip because the weather is not flyable incur a cost of $250. A plan B for the day will always be offered.

To get to Duffey Lake, most people fly into Vancouver International Airport 3 hours from Duffey Lake. From there, you can rent a car or take a shuttle service.

Once you and your guide agree on the details of your itinerary, you will meet your guide at 7:30 am in Pemberton and drive up the highway to the Duffey Area. The guide will choose the appropriate terrain dependent on conditions and the ability of the group.

At 4:30 pm, you’ll be back in Pemberton.

If you decide for the heli drop add-on, your day starts with a helicopter lift first thing in the morning.