VALEMOUNT, BRITISH COLUMBIA
Sample the champagne
Vinnie Clark says Valemount’s snow is in a class of its own
by KALI LOVE
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THE HIGHEST SPOT: The awe-inspiring mountains, fresh powder, bowls and meadows make Allan Creek a very popular snowmobiling destination in the Valemount region.
—photo courtesy Ron Oudyk |
Snowmobiling enthusiast Vinnie Clark definitely lives in the right place to accommodate his chosen lifestyle. The Valemount area is recognized for its deep and powdery snow, and the town on average receives only 76 frost-free days, making Valemount any snowmobiler’s winter wonderland.
Clark is the owner of Alpine Country Rentals, a snowmobile tour and rental company; when he is not busy working, he is out roaming the mountains around Valemount.
“I like to explore quite a bit and try to find new areas,” he said. “Hillclimbing is definitely on the agenda for sure and finding fresh snow is also very important.”
If finding good snow conditions is a necessity for Clark, then Valemount exceeds his expectations. The area is famous for its champagne snow—light, fluffy masses of soft, white flakes.
“A lot of people refer to it as champagne snow, and that is kind of what we have here,” he said. “In the Valemount area, the powder is one of its own—at least that is what I have found.”
Close to home
Clark has travelled extensively and snowmobiled throughout Canada, touring places such as Whistler, Stewart, Sicamous and Houston, B.C., and his favourite spot to sled is still Valemount.
“My favourite area is Allan Creek,” Clark said. “It’s a local riding area that has a warm-up cabin and it has a little bit of riding for all sorts of riders. A lot of people stay towards the front of the area and you can go way into the back, past the Superbowl, and always definitely find fresh snow.”
A mountain machine
Clark rides a new 2008 Ski-Doo XP 800 and he is very satisfied with the machine’s low maintenance and high versatility.
“It is a nice trail ride but when you do get into the mountains it has plenty of power to climb hills,” he said. “And it is really user-friendly—we rent them here (at Alpine Country Rentals) and I have all sorts of riders from beginners to very experienced people. We get a very good response from the customers that they are a great machine to ride.”
To complete Clark’s dream machine, the only thing he would add to the Ski-Doo that he already owns is more horsepower.
“Just put a little more power into the XP and work on the suspension a little—it is pretty much an awesome machine right out of the box,” Clark said.
Clark is a member of both the Valemount and Area Recreational Development Association (VARDA) and the Timberline Snow Goers Club. He does maintenance and grooming on most of the trails around Valemount for VARDA but said that the Timberline Snow Goers is not a big club.
“It is a very small membership and it has not been active in the past because it is hard to keep members,” he said.
Because Clark is so busy, finding time to go snowmobiling can be challenging for him, but when he is able to get out into nature, his favourite people to go sledding with are the guys he has snowmobiled with for years.
“I don’t get to ride a lot and sometimes it is frustrating if you are riding with people who cannot ride as well,” said Clark. “So there are just days where I know the guys I am riding with can follow me or lead me and we do not have to worry about each other. They are the same type of people that like to go out and find new areas, and look for new areas to ride in. We basically do a lot of tree riding and lots of technical stuff in the trees and creeks. It seems like we are always finding ourselves in challenging situations.”
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