Winter is here and it's deep

November has been a big month at wintercentric resorts across B.C. Records have been set and above average amounts of snow are on the ground almost everywhere.

Leading the way is the Coast Range where record November snowfalls have landed with more than 500 centimetres of snow falling in some locations. Elsewhere the snow hasn't been quite so prodigious but areas that often suffer from troubling early season layers in the snow pack, that make avalanche conditions a worry all season long, are looking at one of the most stable snowpacks in recent memory. It all adds up to a great looking season for snow focused resorts, lodges and huts across the province.

The Backcountry Lodge's of BC are looking at an excellent winter. Most of these rustic mountain hotels froze 2009 pricing for this winter. Plus, they often offer reduced rates for pre-Christmas visits. With so much snow on the ground it is a good year to jump on that offer. Conditions are looking really good at Burnie Glacier Chalet, Campbell Icefield Chalet and Mistaya Lodge.

The members of HeliCat Canada Association, a group of the best helicopter and cat skiing operations, are looking forward to a big winter, too. Like the backcountry lodges, many offer less expensive packages in the early season. Ask many ski guides and they'll tell you early season conditions are often the deepest.

Some are offering some interesting new packages. Bella Coola Heli Sports has amalgamated their two operations, one in the Pantheon Range and one near Bella Coola, and are now offering a package that includes time at both lodges and a 200 kilometre flight skiing across both tenures. Last Frontier, the proud owners of the largest tenure on earth, also have two lodges and a safari package that includes time at both. In addition this year they're offering a heli-assited touring package that involves time ski touring with the assistance of a helicopter.

If images and video of horses running through deep, fluffy snow catches your imagination check out the members of the BC Guest Ranchers Association. Many of the dude ranches are open during the winter with sled rides, winter horseback riding, tobogganing, excellent wildlife viewing and cross country skiing.

Ski films go to the Last Frontier

Two of this season's top ski movies include footage from Last Frontier Heliskiing, the largest heli-ski tenure on earth. Both Matchstick Productions (MSP) and Teton Gravity Research (TGR) spent time at the remote heli-ski operation last season filming athletes skiing crazy lines in big mountains.

Re: Session, TGR's new ski title, includes footage of pro skier Seth Morrison. It was his first visit to Last Frontier and he was impressed. "The skiing is very similar to what I have skied in Alaska, but it has many more options for down-day type skiing (bad weather skiing). Many tree runs with tons of features in them; cliffs, pillow walls, pillow poppers. And with a tenure a quarter the size of Switzerland, we barley scratched the surface."

I watched MSP's new movie, In Deep, and the footage was impressive. Check out this picture by Randy Lincks from Last Frontier.

Last Frontier has two bases in northwestern B.C. One is the remote Bell 2 Lodge on the Cassiar Highway. The other is in the town of Stewart on the Alaska border. Each accesses different part of Last Frontier's massive 9,000 square kilometre tenure.

Besides their usual four, five and seven day heli-ski trips, Last Frontier is offering two new programs for 2010:

A Lodge to Lodge Heliski Safari: a tour which has guests staying half the week at one lodge and then skiing with the helicopter to the other lodge. Bags go by ground.

Heli Access Ski Touring: for the purist. Start the week with 4 days of helis access ski touring. 1st run of the day lifted out by helicopter. Stay with you guide all day ski touring. Could be short tree runs, a long traverse, or one big climb and a descent, but you'll certainly be earning your turns! Then the final 3 days of the week are "regular heliskiing".

Olympic diversion

Coming to the Olympics in Vancouver will be an incredible experience, but all the cheering, partying and just being at such a busy and exciting time will be tiring. If you're looking for a way to relax during or after the Olympics check out three trips from Exposure Travel. The company organizes luxury adventure vacations from airport pick up to drop off. They have three great sounding Olympic getaways for up to eight people at very B.C. locales.

The first is aboard the Pacific Yellowfin, a luxury yacht (pictured at right). For four or more days it will be your all-inclusive home as you cruise the Sunshine Coast or Gulf Islands with a crew of 4 or more at your service. A chef prepares great meals paired with wine and spirits, while adventure guides help you decide on each day's activity.

Or rent a house on one of the Gulf Islands and make like a Vancouverite on a long weekend. There are boats and more at your disposal and a chef and guides to keep you pampered.

And the final trip Exposure Travel is offering is to a guest ranch. In February the snow will be deep, perfect for a true Canadian winter experience with horses and ice skating.

It's fun to be sustainable

 Tom Sawyer made painting a fence fun. Can we do the same for other everyday chores in life? That's the goal of The Fun Theory.

The idea of the website is to promote positive change by making everyday, ho-hum, things fun. A series of short videos show what happens when everyday activities are tweaked. The results are pretty impressive. Rig a set of stairs to act like piano keys and more people take them. Make recycling glass a game and everyone wants to do it. And add a sound effect to a garbage bin and people pick up litter.
It's a cool way to promote sustainability and stewardship. Imagine the possibilities.

Redeem your Aeroplan points for turns in the biggest heliski tenure

Aeroplan points have always been great, but they just got a whole lot cooler. Bella Coola Heli Sports, a B.C. heliski company, recently signed an agreement with Aeroplan, an air miles reward program, which allows collectors to trade points for skiing or fishing with Bella Coola.

The exclusive offer in the heliski world applies to two programs: a $1000 gift certificate towards a three day or five day all inclusive heliski package in the Coast Range near the central coast town of Bella Coola; or a five day, guided fly fishing trip for one person on one of the world class salmon and steelhead rivers near the Bella Coola valley.

Bella Coola's snow cred runs deep. The heliskiing company hires excellent guides and runs small groups into some of the biggest and snowiest mountains in Canada. This winter they've formally amalgamated with their sister heli-ski company Pantheon to form the largest heliski tenure in North America and one of the largest in the world. There is now 1.1 million hectares, that's 2.64 million acres, of mountains that range from the rugged coast to the light powder of the Chilcotin.

The Olympics are here! And the torch is surfing?

Okay, not quite, but they're getting close. Less than 160 days to go until the Vancouver-Whistler 2010 games begin. The Olympic torch is now making its way across Canada. It started in Victoria, British Columbia on Friday and is working its way north on Vancouver Island, including a stop in Tofino where it caught some surf. Check out what must be the first time the Olympic flame has caught a wave.

It's a fitting place for the torch to go in BC. This is a wild and diverse province. Sticking to the pavement isn't really BC's style and nor should it be yours if you're visiting here. Many of the coolest places are off the beaten path. So if you're coming for the games or in the afterglow set aside some time for checking out the backcountry. Here's a handy travel guide to help you find tourism businesses where you want to go, or operators who do what you want to do.

If you want to make like the torch, Tatchu Surf Adventures is a good bet for finding remote surf spots around Vancouver Island.