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BREATHTAKING VIEWS: (Left to Right) Jared Hamm, Eric Filewich, Leigh VanDenBiggelaar and Adrian Belland drink in the scenery at Allan Creek, Valemount. —photo by Wayne Hamm

LIVIN' ITUPIN VALEMOUNT: Eric Filewich slices through the powder at Allan Creek, Valemount. —photo by Wayne Hamm

We have all heard the old saying, "It's a dirty job, but somebody has to do it." I received an invitation last fall from the folks at the Holiday Inn in Valemount, B.C., to come sledding and stay at their resort. Luckily, my employer—Riverside Honda & Ski-Doo in St. Albert, Alberta—encourages staff to ride and will assist with the adventures. The icing on the cake for this trip was to have my son Jared Hamm and his buddies Adrian Belland, Eric Filewich and Leigh VanDenBiggelaar to ride with.

We arrived at the Holiday Inn on Friday night and were immediately made to feel at home. The Holiday Inn is on Highway 5, just one kilometre south of the town of Valemount. It was very reassuring to find there was secure parking for tow vehicles and sleds. We settled in and I cozied up with a book in front of the stone fireplace in the lobby, while the guys went to the pool.

Playtime at Allan Creek
On Saturday morning we had a great buffet breakfast at the Holiday Inn's Summit Grill, who will also prepare trail lunches for sledders upon request.

The Allan Creek parking lot is a short 33-kilometre drive south of the Holiday Inn on Highway 5. The parking lot is large and well maintained and there are grooming fees in place. The trail ride up to the cabin is nine kilometres in distance; up and back, it was smooth and refreshing—good job, guys!

The weather was beautiful; it was sunny all day long and the views up top were breathtaking. When we first left the cabin, the area had been well tracked up. We went in search of untracked snow, riding into many valleys and ranges with names such as Avalanche Valley, Rabbit Hill and Premiere Range. We found lots of untracked virgin snow and all managed to get stuck to varying degrees. During our lunch break Eric took out his avalanche probe and probed the depth of the snow where we had stopped: we were sitting on top of at least eight feet of snow! We burned all our fuel and arrived back in the parking lot at 5 p.m. What a great day!

Exploring Clemina Creek
It was snowing when we arrived at Clemina on Sunday. There was approximately six inches of fresh snow in the parking lot and the visibility definitely could have been better. We rode the trail for 19 kilometres and stopped at the warm-up cabin. It had been many years since I'd ridden Clemina, and none of us were familiar with the area. That was not a real problem though, as there were regulars at the cabin who were more than happy to give us directions and pointers.

We rode into areas known as the Wind Tunnels and Goat Ridge Bowl. There was at least 12 inches of fresh snow up top, but we chose to ride around the treed areas because visibility was poor. As best as we could tell and from what we were told, Clemina is a great ride in the sunshine. In fact, Clemina is the venue for Valemount’s annual hillclimb event.

Rolling out the welcome mat
Valemount, B.C., is a full-service community that really goes out of its way to cater to sledders. If you want to ride some great mountains and feel at home when visiting, Valemount is the place to go.

Thank you to the folks at the Holiday Inn—we'll be back! And thanks to the folks who groom the trails—they were in top shape. I’d also like to thank Riverside Honda & Ski-Doo in St. Albert, Alberta—a first-rate Bombardier dealer with a large service department and all the parts and accessories you need.

Ican't put a value on having the opportunity to sit back and watch my son and his buddies riding and enjoying themselves; I guess I'm getting sentimental in my old age. Thank you, Valemount, for a great weekend.