Our trip to Panorama, BC turned out to be “the big one” for the season in more ways than one. Aside from it being our longest trip of the season, with six days on the snow, we also had the opportunity and fortune to give heli-boarding a go. Accessing the mountains via helicopter has long been a dream of mine, and the Panorama resort area just happens to have a heli operation sitting right next to it. On top of the that, because we were traveling with the DC Ski Club, we were able to take advantage of discounted rates. All we needed to know once we got to British Columbia was if the weather was going to accommodate us while we there.
DAY 1
The trip started EARLY on Saturday morning with a 3:30 am drive out to Dulles to connect with Scott and the rest of our 6-person crew (Sarah, Don, and Nathan). We were the late registees that didn’t make it into the main group flying out later in the day. Instead, we would fly out to Denver, kill several hours at DIA, fly up to Calgary, kill a few more hours while we waited for the other group to catch up, and then make the 4 hour drive up into the mountains. The wait in Calgary did allow us time to grab a decent dinner and some drinks though; something the later group did not get.
Once on the bus, we met the rest of the group and our trip leader, Dennis; who, I was excited to find out, was a snowboarder as well. We snowboarders were still grossly outnumbered, so it was nice that Dennis was one of “us.” 
Not that we bear any ill will toward skiers, but we didn’t want to feel like the outcasts on the trip for being knuckle-draggers. Plus, he entrusted me with the DVD selections on the bus ride. “Let it Ride: The Craig Kelly Story” certainly wasn’t what the skiers had in mind, but it certainly beat “Spiderman 3,” which bombarded us with a higher volume level than the previous flick. It was late, and we were all trying to get some sleep on the bus, but it would only be sporadic.
Finally, we arrived at the resort around midnight, mountain time, and were told to meet back in the common room in 20 minutes to be briefed by our mountain hosts, Dave and Shelly. There would be pizza and beer as well, but neither tasted too good by the time we were getting to it. All the same, I enjoyed 3 complimentary Konkanees before we all turned in for the night.
DAY 2
After some well-needed sleep, we headed down for the continental breakfast and prepared to meet our guide at 10:00 am for a tour of the resorts in-bound, advanced terrain. Lewis, Scott, and I were the last ones to get down to the meeting spot, but hooked up with Dennis and some others for some fun runs down the likes of Millennium, Tree Time, and Schober’s Glade. The snow in the trees was past its prime, making the glades challenging, but it was still soft enough to get some grip.
DAY 3
Heliboarding!
heli-boarding in the purcells from Todd Bayliss on Vimeo.
DAY 4
Lunch was provided that afternoon by SkiCan, our mountain hosts, at the Greywolf Nordic Center. We’re certainly not ones to turn down free burgers and beer. Made our first foray into Taynton Bowl and were introduced to some college dudes in banana hammocks.
DAY 5
Toga party
DAYS 6 & 7
Thursday and Friday were near mirror images of each other, except that Friday morning did not follow a toga party; thus minimizing the hangover.
Although Thursday started a little later in the day, Lewis was anxious to get into Taynton Bowl herself; so, she, Ben, and I headed off there after bumming around the hotel for a bit. We’d do the same thing on Friday, but with Steve instead of Ben, while Ben was off at Kicking Horse. Steve was feeling a little queasy on Thursday after Wednesday night’s festivities.
DAY 8
Time to head home.
