Jasper / Ski area

Its northerly latitude—the most northerly ski resort in Canada—means it can get extremely cold with temperatures plummeting to 12˚F (-11˚C) in December. It can even be -40˚F (-40˚C) in January so be warned. The natural bowl area is dominated by Marmot Peak at 8,570 feet (2,612 m), linked to Caribou Ridge (7,525 feet/2,293 m) along one face, and to Marmot 2 at 8,300 feet (2,530 m) along another ridge called The Saddle.

Beyond Marmot 2 is Peveril Peak at 8,793 feet (2,680 m). Marmot 2 then descends down to Cornice at 7,484 feet (2,281 m) to the newly opened Eagle Ridge. The latter development contains Eagle East and Chalet Slope, with 20 new trails created by selectively removing hundreds of trees from the two mountain faces on Eagle Ridge. These developments have significantly improved Marmot Basin’s high-end terrain, and have opened up some of the best adventure terrain in the Rockies.  Together, these faces make up over 1,500 acres (608 ha) of skiable terrain, along 84 trails, and 3,000 feet (914 m) of vertical. Marmot offers an amazing variety of terrain for all levels of skier or rider—the terrain is pretty evenly split between novice, intermediate, advanced, and expert trails—from high alpine, powder-filled bowls and immaculately groomed trails through to beautifully spaced gladed trails through the trees. The longest trail is 3.5 miles (5.6 km). However, not all the areas are lift-served. You have to hike and traverse some distance from the Knob chairlift (the highest) past the Saddle to gain access to Peak Run and other summit trails.

But wherever you are on the mountain, you can see the whole basin from any single vantage point, and there are consistently spectacular vistas of Jasper National Park’s surrounding mountain peaks, as well as the beautiful Athabasca Valley spread out below the ski area. Marmot also remains one of the least crowded resorts of its size and has one of the best lift-capacity-to-skier ratios in North America. The Day Lodge at Marmot is called Caribou Chalet and is located at 5,590 feet (1,704 m), while the highest lift ascends to approximately 8,200 feet (2,500 m) giving a vertical drop of 3,000 feet (914 m).