Happy Belated Valentine’s day from Sun Valley Heli Ski Guides! While the West Coast continues to wish for La Nina, the Idaho backcountry continues to provide high quality skiing! Here is recent footage from groups out skiing the Castle and Placer Creek drainage in the Smoky Mountain Range. It does not get any better than this, come find out for yourself!
A great write up recently published on Sun Valley Heli Ski Guides, in the Local Buzz Section of Sun Valley Magazine’s website. This was part of our Flying Circus day, where we parked the ship on top of Bald Mountain and escorted one run and done skiers to our Baker Creek area for some tasty powder. Ray was one of the lucky 16 to get a seat in the ship and enjoy a great day in the Idaho Backcountry.
A Day of Dreams: Sun Valley Heli-Skiing with Epic Quest – Local Buzz – Winter 2012.
Looking good in Idaho
Sent in by Tyler Ferris of Sun Valley Heli Ski:
Right now, Sun Valley Helicopter Ski Guides can boast the best heli-skiing this side of Canada.
While other operations in the lower 48 are waiting for another storm or two to start up, SVHS was blessed with a couple of big ones at the end of 2011. The snowfall in our remote terrain doubled from 2 to 4.5 feet. On our first day of operation on January 6, stability was rated “fair” and skiing was rated “good” to “very good”. Groups skied several extra runs.
It may look thin on Sun Valley’s Balm Mountain web cams, but as often happens the jet stream came straight from the west and dropped two times the snow in the Smoky Mountains, the hidden gem of SVHS.
Ok, how can SVHS offer great skiing with only 4.5 feet? The secret is the terrain. Runs are typically long and consistent with few cliffs or dramatic breaks. There are open slopes and great glades of trees. Every aspect has a skiable line.
In the heart of this skiers paradise is the Idaho Smoky Mountain Lodge. Right now you can have a private “Canadian Style” heli ski experience right here in the US. Check out the footage from our opening weekend below!
Sun Valley Heli Ski Guides began winter operations with groups skiing on 1/7/12. Recent storms over the new year deposited significant precip in our remote terrain and we can boast some of the best skiing in the lower 48.
It’s that time of year. Snow is starting to fall in Alaska and in our favorite resort communities and we’re going on tour! Come join us for fresh photos, videos, drinks, great food and good times as we celebrate the oncoming winter season. Check out the tour schedule below. Want to attend and event? DROP US A NOTE and we’ll send you an official invite!
A beautiful Indian Summer ended abruptly this week with 2 feet of snow at upper elevations. Rain down low perfected the bike tracks and trails. Fall colors still survive but the staff is busy preparing for the shift of seasons, well aware we could be closed out any day. Snow up high inspires us to prepare to welcome winter guests to our private powder paradise in one of the snowiest regions of Idaho!
After receiving more snow in the last 30 hours than in all of February, 31 inches to be exact, the guides found it too windy to fly today. Fortunately, Bald Mountain’s bowls provided what can only be termed heliskiing for the price of a lift ticket, at least for a few runs. I was lucky and fast enough to be at the head of the crowd to snap a shot of Mayday bowl with only a few tracks from the Ski Patrol. Sun Valley’s Bald Mountain is a great plan B!
Plan B, Mayday Bowl
We meet below the tram at the cafe, frustrated and over-caffeinated. We are hemorrhaging cash, craving adventure and skiable snow, and trying to salvage a precious ski vacation. Give up or get creative?
9:35am
Make a few calls and hear that the snow and weather is better to the west, in Sun Valley. Call over to Sun Valley Heli Ski to check on availability and snow conditions. Reports favorable.
9:45am
Call to Independent Jets in Teton Village to check on availability and pricing for a King Air… response favorable (and surprisingly affordable). Aircraft is available and ready to go.
10:00am
Our crew decides to go for it, and calls Sun Valley Heli Ski again. They warm up the heli, rally the troops, and make arrangements. We go to our rooms and suit up for skiing, slipping a toothbrush into our pockets.
12:15pm
King Air C90 wheels up from Jackson Hole. Weird wearing ski boots on an airplane… we’ve got skis stacked in the aisle.
Loading Up
Terrific flight past the Grand Teton
1:00pm
Wheels down in Sun Valley. Met on the tarmac at Hailey Airport by the Sun Valley Heli Ski helicopter.
Hop in the heli, and we are off…
1:30-4:30pm
Back-country shredding!!
Adrenaline levels return…
Happiness returns, stoke is high, grumpiness gone.
4:30pm
Land at the remote Smoky Mountain Lodge. Pure backcountry luxury!
Welcomed by the lodge team, Dire Straits, and PBR.
Followed by steaks, birthday cake, and shenanigans.
8:30am
Breakfast is on the table. Wake up!! A nice start to the day…
9:30am
Warm up the heli – we are going skiing again!
10am – 2:30pm
MORE POWDER….
3:00pm
Fly the heli back to Sun Valley Airport, transfer gear from the ship to the plane, and fly back to Jackson for our regular flights home.
Many thanks to the terrific team from Sun Valley Heli Ski for pulling this off on about an hours’ notice. It was an epic trip, requiring an amazing display of spontaneity, logistics, and hospitality. We all sat on the plane home incredulous that you pulled it off, so happy that we grabbed life by the horns and went for it…
MAKE THE CALL!
Ethan, John, Nick, and Craig
The one lift tour is one of the great products that Sun Valley Heli Ski offers. For those who like to earn their turns, but are eager to explore terrain off the beaten path, the helicopter combined with the experience of our seasoned guide staff makes a HASTA tour an ideal choice. The day starts off in the morning with a helicopter ride to a highpoint within the 750,000 acres of the Sun Valley Heli Ski permit. From there, your guide and group will spend the remainder of the day skiing and touring back to a pre arranged road pick up point. For an extra fee, a helicopter pick up can be arranged. Some backcountry experience and familiarity with ski touring is recommended. This trip requires the use alpine touring/randonee equipment which is not provided.
Have a look at a video put together by local Sun Valley resident Greg Martin on a recent one lift tour of the Lake Creek Headwall area:
One Lift Tour from Greg Martin on Vimeo.
We had the great pleasure of hosting the Tony Robbins group in Sun Valley this past President’s Day weekend. We also had the mixed blessing of snow, more snow, and snow again. This made it difficult to stick to the planned itinerary, but some folks from the group stayed for an extra day and we got out into the fresh powder for some amazing runs.
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