Valemount
A first-class experience
An Alberta sledder describes his amazing weekend of snowmobiling in Valemount
by WAYNE HAMM
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| IT’S WARM INSIDE: Snowmobiler Wayne Hamm enjoyed visiting this beautiful cabin while riding in the Westridge Area; pictured is Hamm’s tour guide, Don Heberling. |
It was cold and snowing: what a great weekend to stay home, light a fire and keep warm—or not.
What do sledders do on such a weekend? We sledders sure are a different breed: when it’s cold and snowing we go snowmobiling in the mountains to see what Mother Nature has to offer. This is just what I did on a weekend in late January with my friends Angie Ritter, Evan Ritter, Don Heberling, Trent Hoffman, Matt Dyck and Mike Kells.
The wonders of Valemount
We headed to the Upper Westridge area, just a mere 3.5 kilometres south of Valemount. (When you see the beginning of the large electricity transmission towers and power lines, turn right; it is a two-kilometre drive in, with lots of room to unload.)
Don, who is a service adviser at Riverside Honda & Ski-Doo in St. Albert, Alberta, was to be our guide this day. It was snowing and -12° C. We rode into many alpine bowls and did lots of tree riding in bottomless powder.
Some of these folks were new to the mountains and it was priceless watching them ride, get stuck up to their ears and be awed by their surroundings.
The sun popped out for an hour and what a sight: the bottomless powder, snow-laden trees and untracked snow. We all ventured off in different directions and laid tracks on every hill we could. We did not stray far from one another though, keeping in mind that there’s safety in numbers. We didn’t let the group get split up; a turn here, a turn there and you can easily get lost.
There is a beautiful cabin in the Westridge riding area where we stopped for a fire and to warm up. Remember if you use the cabin to show respect for other users and take your garbage with you.
A welcoming stay
The Terracana Ranch Resort was our home base for the weekend and it was an excellent choice. It is located on Highway 16 approximately 15 kilometres south of the Y where Highway 5 heads to Valemount. There are beautiful log cabins situated on 500 acres in the valley, with views on all sides of the Fraser River and the Rocky, Cariboo and Monashee mountain ranges.
The all-you-can-eat meals and the superior service at the Terracana is something this city boy had never experienced before. After a fun-filled day and a first-class dinner, I enjoyed a massage from an on-staff registered masseuse. What can I say? Wow. These folks are so considerate and sledder-friendly that they even request that all riders contact them at the end of their day to ensure they got out safely. I will definitely be heading back to the Terracana.
Thank you to Riverside Honda & Ski-Doo for helping to make this trip a success, and thanks to my sledding buddies—it was a great adventure. |
