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Thank You for a Great Winter!

Hello Everyone!

And with that, our winter season has come to an end.

The 2020-21 winter was a unique one, to say the least. We are so happy that we had the opportunity to open and that you, our valued guests, were offered 123 days of skiing and riding.

Thank you for your patience and understanding this season. Thank you for following all of our safety protocols and respecting our staff and each other.

We all worked hard to get to the end of the season, and it was the combined efforts of our community, our staff and our guests that successfully got us here. We are grateful and hope that all of this translated to a great winter season for you and your family.

We are getting geared up for our Early Bird Winter Pass Sale for 21/22 – keep an eye on our website and social media for details!

Stay safe. Enjoy our wonderful outdoors, and we hope to see you on the mountain soon!

Andy Cohen & the Fernie Alpine Resort Team

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Announcing our Winter 20/21 Bonus Week!

We have an exciting announcement regarding our season here at Fernie Alpine Resort.
 
In celebration of our passholders, your patience, understanding and commitment to us, and our Fernie community, who rallied together when the chips were down, we are moving our closing date to April 11th, 2021 (weather/conditions permitting).
 
This winter has been one like no other. Our community was one of the fastest to recover from a COVID-19 cluster, from 97 to zero cases in a few short weeks. The hard work and perseverance of our community was commendable.
 
Thank you for saving our community and our ski season. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you.
 
We hope to see you enjoying the wonderful spring skiing!
 
Thanks all,
 
Andy Cohen and the Fernie Alpine Resort Team
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The #FernieStoke Ski Shuttle 2020-21

Catch a ride from Fernie to the Ski Hill!

A Shuttle Season Pass is available for $299 plus tax.

Only available from the Fernie Alpine Resort Guest Services desk.

#FernieStoke Ski Shuttle Schedule 2020-2021 

The daily #FernieStoke Ski Shuttle will operate daily between 7:50 am and 11:30 pm from December 16, 2020 – April 4, 2021. Please see the schedule for bus stop locations and pick up/drop off times. 

Fares:

  • $5 cash only each way
  • Kids 5 & under ride free with paying adult/caregiver
  • $35 for a 10 Ride Booklet*
  • A Shuttle Season Pass is available for $299 +tax

The individual bus fare can be paid in cash on the bus with exact change only, no change is provided, or with a voucher from a 10 Ride Shuttle Booklet*.

*Booklets cannot be purchased from the shuttle drivers. Please pre-purchase them at the Guest Service desk at Fernie Alpine Resort.

Need to Know –

  • Masks are mandatory
  • Window seats only
  • The Buses are sanitized throughout the day
  • No Storage on the hill, so please avoid bringing extra luggage on board
  • Seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. No pre-booking of seats is available.
  • Reduced capacity during COVID-19 restrictions.
  • Bus pull over locations may vary slightly due to excess snow or parking/pull-over ability.

All details and schedule are subject to change without notice.

Please call Guest Services for more information, 250-423-2435.

The shuttle program is a partnership between the City of Fernie, Fernie Alpine Resort, Tourism Fernie and the Fernie Chamber of Commerce.

Two 24-passenger buses will be used in the operation.

The service is being operated by Fernie Alpine Resort. Funding for the purchase of the two buses was through the Resort Municipality Initiative.

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OPENING DAY – DECEMBER 10TH!

FERNIE ALPINE RESORT ANNOUNCES OPENING FOR WINTER SEASON 2020/21!

Fernie Alpine Resort will open for skiing & snowboarding on December 10th, 2020 at 9 am.

Our team has worked tirelessly to prepare our operations for your arrival, and we are looking forward to kicking off the 2020/21 skiing and riding season.  While we all share the joy for sliding on snow, this season will look different.  We have put in place a comprehensive COVID-19 Safety Plan developed in collaboration with the Canada West Ski Area Association.  

This set of rigorous procedures and operating plans is to help ensure our guests, staff and community have a safe winter in Fernie. Our plans have been reviewed by Interior Health, the Elk Valley Hospital and they lead the way in North America for Best Practices for Winter Operations 2020/21. 

We understand that many of us in our community feel the uncertainty of this pandemic. We recognize that opening the resort will make some of us anxious and stressed.  That is why it is everyone’s responsibility to follow the guidelines that we have put in place, as we all want a long season, and a safe skiing and riding experience.

Due to our safety protocols surrounding the COVID Virus and looking to create a safe environment for our guests, this season we will be closely monitoring lift capacity and ticket sales to help ensure that we can manage daily the number of people at Fernie Alpine Resort.  Day lift tickets will be available at our resort ticket windows daily.  On high demand days, only a certain number of day tickets will be sold – so one should use the opportunity to pre-purchase your lift tickets online to guarantee you get the ski day’s you want on those days.  We do anticipate some periods of higher demand, so to avoid disappointment, it is recommended that you pre-purchase your lift tickets online and in advance as some dates may sell out.

Skiing and snowboarding provide a much-needed outlet in winter, providing mind and body benefit, and we are looking forward to sharing our wide-open spaces with each of you.

To adapt our operations for this winter, we have made many changes, including the following:

1. Masks are required to be worn throughout the entire resort, inside all buildings, in lift lines, while riding lifts, in shuttle buses, parking lots and our Plaza.
2. Reservations are required to dine in any of our indoor restaurants.
3. We have eliminated all outdoor shelters and gathering places, like the fireplace at Bear’s Den, Slopeside Café Patio, Yurts, etc.
4. Our lift loading procedures will ensure physical distancing.
5. We have eliminated touch points in systems and transactions.
6. We have eliminated bag storage in all buildings.
7. Seasonal lockers will be for ski/snowboard storage only, no boots or clothing.
8. Our teams are required to be fully outfitted in masks with filters, shields where needed, and Plexiglas barriers to protect all.
9. Dining spaces will be separated by Plexiglas where needed.
10. Washrooms will have reduced capacity to ensure no crowding.
11. Childcare will not be offered.

This season will look very different. By following these procedures and with your patience and respect, we will have a snowy, fun ski & snowboard season.

Please take the time to read the Know Before You Go section on our website for more information and any updates – https://skifernie.com/covid-19/winter/.

Please keep in mind that early season conditions do exist on the mountain. Take your time and continue to pray for snow.

Thank you!

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Culvert City

If you follow us on any of our social media platforms, then you will see all that our Resort has to offer through the summer and winter months. What you don’t always see is all of the work that goes in behind the scenes to make it happen.

We have a lot of Crews – Trail Crew, Bike Trail Crew, Lift Ops Crew, Lift Maintenance Crew, Saw Crew, Brush Crew, Shop Crew, Patrol Crew – who all work together through the summer and fall to make it all come together.

This summer, our Trail Crew, who are the Swiss Army Knife of employees (they can do anything that’s needed on the mountain), have replaced the old wooden culverts with sparkly (👈 my word, not theirs 😉) new ones.

This culvert at the bottom of Lower Bear at the Boomerang Chair was installed in 1984.

HISTORY LESSON – Back in the ’80s, to make a culvert the Trail Crew used their only machine, the skidder.  They would find a couple of the huge old Larch trees (24″-36″ diameter) that were lying around in the forest and lay those along either side of the creek.

They would then place timber – mostly from Cedar trees (12″-16″ diameter) – across the Larch to cover the creek. They had a gin pole rigged on the back of the skidder so that they could pick the trees up and back them into place.

Along with a peavy, and some brute force, they could build a bridge over the creeks that would then be buried with dirt. Most of these culverts lasted about 30 years before the top logs began to fail.

That brings us to this past summer; it was noticed that the culvert near the Boom Chair was starting to fail, so our team went in, dug the whole section up, and replaced it with a new one. No trees were harmed in the making of this culvert.

One of the biggest changes happening at the resort is going down in lower Currie Bowl. This past spring, May 31st to be exact, we had very heavy rainfall that followed some very hot weather, and a consequential mudslide in Currie Bowl. As the debris flowed down, it damaged and plugged multiple culverts. Our Trail Crew, along with assistance from Fiorentino Bros and Ground Tech Engineering were able to get in there to repair the culverts.

Turning adversity into improvements, the spring mudslide remediation enabled us to improve the exit from Currie Bowl and widen the Gilmar trail.

From 👈 to 👉 with wonderful assistance from Fiorentino Bros and Ground Tech Engineering.

As we move closer to winter, we will continue to bring you updates from around the resort, and the work that goes in before we can open our doors lifts.

 

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Elope to the Mountains

Have you always dreamt of getting married in the mountains with breathtaking views all around you?

The world may have changed, but the magical mountain views at Fernie Alpine Resort have stayed the same!

We know that it’s an uncertain time, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still have your dream mountain wedding – it just has to happen on a smaller scale. Our team has worked hard this year adapting to the changes and developing protocols that are in line with the government orders to ensure that you, your guests and our staff stay safe while you and your partner celebrate the beginning of your new life together.

Your happily ever after starts here…

A highlight for us this year is the newly developed Elopement Package that caters to the small and intimate weddings. We understand the appeal of small, intimate weddings with only your closest family and friends in attendance. Rest assured that you can still have all that our magical mountain settings have to offer. We have loved seeing the creative ways that our wedding couples have brought together their intimate ceremony and have the mountain wedding that they have always dreamed of.

Our Wedding Guide provides you with information on all of the available options. Whether your wedding is intimate or extravagant, rustic or elegant, there’s a magical mountain setting to create the wedding of your dreams.

Our Catering Guide provides you with all the options available for your food and beverage needs. Have your heart set on something that’s not in here? We can get you working with our catering team to customize a menu.

We look forward to talking to you about all the options that we have available and finding what works best for you!

Our weddings are now booking into summer, 2022 with but do still have limited availability for next summer so please visit our wedding page, and contact Stacey Charest, our wedding coordinator, for more information.

Stacey Charest
Weddings & Groups Coordinator
Phone: (250) 430-7163
E-Mail: [email protected]

 

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O’Bellx comes to Fernie Alpine Resort

RCR is proud to partner with MND Safety Solutions on a Remote Avalanche Control System (RACS) for the installation of an O’Bellx hydrogen exploder for the Dancer 5 slide path off of Polar Peak at Fernie Alpine Resort.

 

The O’Bellx Unit will provide the Fernie Alpine Resort Snow Safety Team with a remote control device to stabilize the Dancer Slidepath which runs from the top of the headwall off of Polar Peak, down into Lizard Bowl.  This will improve safety for our Ski Patrol and provide confidence for opening the Lizard Bowl.

The O’Bellx will be operational for the 2020-21 Season.
Thanks to AvaTek Mountain Systems Inc., MountainTek, and  6point Engineering who are onsite performing the installation process.
We are very excited to have this new state of the art RACS system here for demonstration and use here in Fernie.
Watch the following video for a demonstration on how O’Bellx works.

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NEW Uphill E-Bike / Enduro Route

Why take the chairlift if you’ve got an e-mountain bike! New this summer, we now allow uphill bike traffic (e-mountain bikes* or regular mountain bikes) on our specified uphill route at the Fernie Alpine Resort Bike Park.

E-mountain bikers will love the convenience of quick laps on this uphill only route, which accesses the Elk Side downhill trails as well as Lower TNT (from Rock Landing only) on the Timber side.  Your laps can be short – deke off at access point A to rip down Honeybee, Eville, Holo Bike and Phat Larry’s – or take the longer pedal on up to access point B or C to access the rest of the DH trails in the bike park.  Of course, those who like to pedal under their own power are also welcome!  It’s a great way to stay and get fit, and enjoy the adrenaline of our DH trails too!

Uphill riders MUST have a valid Uphill E-Bike/Enduro ticket, or mountain bike season pass/day ticket in order to access our bike park trails.  Please visit Guest Services to purchase your ticket.

*E-mountain bikes permitted in the bike park are Type 1 (pedal assist) e-mountain bikes.

Please note that the uphill route is open only during regular bike park hours:

Monday – Friday:  10:30am to 4:30pm (to 7pm on Thursdays)

Saturday & Sunday:  9:30am to 4:30pm

Please visit our website’s bike park trail map to see the new uphill route.

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We Welcome You Back!

Hello Fernie!

As our Summer Season opening was announced last week, I want to take a minute to tell you where we are as a resort and how we got here.

First of all, everyone at Fernie Alpine Resort shares in the admiration, respect and concern for our medical community and essential workers. Many of us have spouses, partners, parents or kids who are working long, stressful hours to help make sure we are safe and cared for if needed.

The last two and a half months have been the strangest in my 48-year career, and we all know how much the stress and uncertainty have affected our families and our community.

After deciding as a company to cease operations on March 16th, our community, our team and frankly the entire mountain tourism industry have worked tirelessly to get to the exciting announcement that we will be opening for summer operations on June 27th.

All of us at FAR want you to be able to enjoy the mountains, lakes, rivers and pathways that define our home. Our team put their efforts into high gear to figure out a way forward since that crazy day in March and now feel we have a summer program we can be proud of while ensuring the safety of our guests and our staff.

Some things will be very familiar at the Resort while other aspects of our summer operation will feel different, even strange. But rest assured, with an abundance of caution and a goal for a safe, sustainable program, we will offer Mountain Biking, Hiking and Sightseeing seven days a week from June 27th to September 7th. Legends Mountain Eatery will be open for dining and relaxing, and Bike Rentals and Retail Goods will be offered.

We will continue to confer with Fernie’s local Health Care community about our operations and ensure that we are in step with their needs and guidelines.

Opening a mountain resort during these times is a complicated, challenging exercise, one in which every aspect of human interaction needs to be thought through.

Some of the changes you will encounter this summer are:

  1. When you arrive at the Plaza or Lizard Creek Lodge, you will see signs and team members asking you the basics: Are you experiencing symptoms of COVID-19? Have you been out of the country in the last 14 days? Do you live or work with anyone who has any symptoms?
  2. The purchasing of lift tickets, food and bike rentals will be handled at our ticket windows or Guest Services Desks in the plaza.
  3. You will be able to purchase meals and drinks at the ticket windows and receive a voucher to give to your server at Legends. These will already include taxes and gratuities.
  4. Our vast selection of seasonal gear will be available in the Retail Cabin, now reserved for you to have the time you need to make the best choice in apparel or equipment.
  5. You can buy your lift ticket and bike rentals at the ticket window and hand over your rental voucher in the bike shop, now located in the Slopeside Deli.
  6. You will be riding the Elk chair by yourself unless two or more people from the same household are together.
  7. Your tickets will be scanned through a distance and barrier system.
  8. Line ups will be spread apart to meet provincial health guidelines.
  9. Thursday Night Races will go ahead. The event will take longer so that we can ensure safety but will still be super social and fun!
  10. We do expect there to be longer wait times during busier periods and hope that you understand the necessity of this process. Our commitment to providing top-notch trails will remain the same.
  11. Dining and drinking will be offered both indoors and outdoors, and tables will be spread apart to ensure our guests and staff safety.
  12. If dining at Cirque Restaurant or Legends Mountain Eatery does not fit, we can deliver delicious meals, beverages, beer, wine, liquors and a complete menu of groceries to your home, condo or room. Our delivery staff are waiting to hear from you! We will deliver your order at your direction to ensure you are safe while visiting us. Our menus will be available on our website. You will be surprised at the depth of choices, but again, our primary goal was to make sure you are safe and comfortable.

The smiles will be real, the appreciation great and the welcome warm. We are proud to be a part of this community, and we will always be there.

We do anticipate that changes will continue to happen and will adapt as necessary.

We look forward to a great, safe summer and know that the Ski Season is just around the corner.

All the best!

Andy Cohen and the Entire Team at Fernie Alpine Resort

 

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Community Togetherness

Fernie has always been strong in community spirit. The majority of people that you ask in town will tell you that they moved here for the snow but stayed for the community. When the threat of COVID-19 first arrived in Fernie, it didn’t take long for the townsfolk to stand up. We have come together and, through many community initiatives, to support those in need, the best we can.

Help If You Need It

The taskforce, Elk Valley COVID Support Team, was created to help keep our community stay safe by minimizing social contact while providing essential physical, emotional, and spiritual support to those who are isolated or quarantined due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

They aim to ensure people’s essential needs are taken care of including:

– Picking up and delivering groceries and medications

– Emotional support through phone call check-ins

– Pastoral care such as pastoral counselling, prayer and grief support

You can visit their website www.evcst.com for more information, to volunteer or donate.

Shop Local

I love seeing all of the brilliant ways our local businesses have come up with to move their stores online, by phone order, and even providing delivery. 

Many of our restaurants are now offering take out services and freezer meals. If you are able, this is a great way to continue to contribute to the local economy and take the worry out of what’s for dinner tonight.

Fernie Catering Co has been curating goods from the local food community to create Artisan Food Baskets. They are amazing! What’s included changes every time, but you can follow along on their Facebook page to grab one for yourself and support local businesses. 

Images from Fernie Catering Co Facebook page – @ferniecateringco

 

Music Will Bring Us Together

Shred Kelly hosts a weekly Saturday Night Cocktail Party on Facebook Live. Every week features different musical guests, and for one hour, they shower us with good times, funny chat and great music.

We may be a small city, but we have a mighty music scene, and these talented artists are working hard to continue to bring live music to our ears.

It’s a wonderful way to feel a sense of togetherness, have a virtual drink with your buddies, get the kids dancing, and feel like you ‘did something’ on a Saturday night!

The Stream Fernie – Online Events Calendar Facebook page is a great resource that has brought all of the live streaming events, activities, parties, classes, etc. together in one place. From trivia to online exercise classes and library programs, everyone is sure to find the next fun event to attend.

Community Spirit

Can you hear the cheers and horns? From Isabella Dicken Elementary’s teacher parade to the Fernie Birthday Train, you will often see, or hear, the spirit of the community. Having a birthday in isolation can be lonely, so the Fernie Birthday Train is rallying members of the community to join in and help make everyone feel special on their big day. 

Image from The Loaf’s Facebook page

They also organise drive-by appreciation for our essential workers to show gratitude and love by driving by our grocery stores, hospital, ambulance and police station. What an awesome bunch of people!

Lifting spirits is so important during this uncertain time and I love seeing so many windows (on both houses and businesses) adorned with posters and decorations that do just that. I especially love seeing The Loaf’s window display which was painted by the Gadd family.  It is a great way to put a smile on your face.

Need More Info?

Tourism Fernie has a list of our local businesses stating whether they are open, closed or have adjusted hours and online/pick-up purchase options. You can find it here.

It is inspiring to see how we can band together and bring strength and hope to the town.

Brighter days are coming.

 

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