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| Lake Louise Inn |
One of the best ways to ski Lake Louise is to stay right
by the hill in order to get first dibs at overnight snow and really take
advantage of all the après
ski in the iconic village of Lake Louise. It’s not huge, more a hamlet, but it has everything
you need from a selection of shops (including an old-fashioned candy store and
Wilson Mountain Sports, which incidentally stocks Kari Traa, one of my fave brands), cafés (notably Laggans for cakes), an affordable hostel, and several ritzy restaurants
(especially at The Post Hotel & Spa and Deer Lodge).
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| Pool and hot tub area at Lake Louise Inn |
At the eating epicenter of Lake Louise is the Lake Louise Inn which actually houses three of the village’s restaurants – an Italian, Timberwolf Pizza and Pasta (my pick), Legends Restaurant for breakfast buffets and posh dining and, the locals’
favourite, Explorers' Lounge, which features late-night
Karaoke on Wednesdays and a Country Music event on Saturdays along with a
Canadian-themed affordable menu including bison, wild boar and elk. Add to this a huge indoor swimming pool,
three hot tubs, and beautifully-appointed apartments of all sizes, and the Lake Louise Inn is a great choice for couples, families or groups of friends.
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| Epoch Times sharing space with The Rocky Mountain Outlook at Lake Louise Inn |
Set in a woodland grove, festively fairy-lit at night, the Lake Louise Inn appeals to locals on a weekend staycation, international
tourists (including an increasing number of Chinese visitors as indicated by
the stand of Mandarin newspapers in the foyer), and keen skiers and
snowboarders from all over Canada drawn by Lake Louise’s reputation for great
early snow, a five month-plus winter season
and back bowl bonanza. Gathering
in the heavenly hot tubs after skiing, you get to chat with all these touring
types, sharing stories and secrets about Lake Louise’s 4200-acre terrain and 145 runs.
Whether a couple on a romantic retreat or an extended family
with grandparents in tow, the Inn has an apartment configuration that works. For us,
it was a one bedroom top-floor condo that was big enough to stay for the whole
season (unfortunately we only had two nights). Drip trays for wet boots, lots
of storage closets and handy hooks to hang damp ski gear - all signs of thoughtful accommodation
for skiers’ specific needs (even though high season and highest occupation at
Lake Louise are actually in the summer). Other favourite features were the cosy
fireplace, Ski Canada magazines on the coffee table, balcony, comfy king bed, big
TVs in both bedroom and living room, and really luxurious modern bathroom with
heated floors, a jetted tub and a spacious walk-in shower. Along with a
well-planned open-concept mini kitchen, the décor is good enough for the ‘after’
on an HGTV reno show. Luggage carts – just like at airports but without payment
slots – line the reception area but most apartments have ample parking right in
front.
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| Christmas cheer at Lake Louise Inn |
Another thing I liked this December was the holiday uniform worn by reception
staff – ‘ugly Christmas sweaters’. Actually they were all very cute and colourful
and added to the fun and festive vibe. And of course the regular free shuttles
to the hill are priceless when avoiding parking lineups (there are shuttles to Lake Louise from Banff too).
Bonus for SkiBig3 day ticket and passholders: 15% off food and drinks with
dinner at all three of the Lake Louise Inn restaurants. Don't forget to use your pass perks - so many just get left unclaimed!
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| Christian Falardeau at the top of the six-pack Top of the World Express chair at Lake Louise |
This December Lake Louise was honoured by a visit from
Justin Trudeau - a former ski and snowboard instructor at Whistler - who stayed at remote Skoki Lodge and also skied the resort. He
joins a long list of premier patrons seeking an secluded ski getaway, including Will and Kate in 2011. Another celeb
skier was my powder pal, Christian Falardeau, ace sport photographer
and columnist for Zone Ski.com, who skied there over Christmas with his wife,
Vanessa. “Larch
and Ptarmigan are my favourite slopes. The quality of snow on these back mountain
sides is always better than the front,” says Christian. “Less people go
there - tourists tend to stick to the front side, closer to the main lodge. And
you also get the best view of the Rockies on the back side.”
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| Torchlight Descent from Whitehorn Lodge - courtesy of Christian Falardeau |
Instead
of Mexico this year, they decided on a skiing Christmas, with Vanessa taking a
group lesson at Lake Louise on Dec 24. That evening, the couple joined in one
of Lake Louise’s foremost après ski events, the
Xmas Eve Torchlight Descent and dinner which I also enjoyed a few years ago with my family. “We took the 3:30pm last
gondola to the summit for a freshly groomed descent to
the Whitehorn Bistro, located mid-mountain for two hours of après-ski,”
Christian describes. “At 6:30pm we turned on our frontal lamps and
headed down to the base of the mountain. The conditions were extremely cold but
the night was awesome.” A huge Christmas banquet with dancing followed, with
shuttle buses back to all the Lake Louise and Banff accommodation later on. This iconic event
is held at signature intervals throughout the season (upcoming Jan 26 and Feb 14) and is bucket list fun!
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| Action pic from December at Lake Louise - by Christian Falardeau |
Christian
has skied Lake Louise five times since discovering it in 2013. “I started to
ski in 1998 in the Ottawa region. Back then, the mountain vertical was about
500 feet. Then I moved in Montréal in 2006 where I discovered Mt-Tremblant. At
that point, I really thought this was big mountain skiing... until I came to
ski Lake Louise.” He’s now hooked on the Rockies and also fits in a few trips
to the Alps each season.
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| Me in Rossignol JC de Castelbajac garb and trusty Temptation 84 skis at Lake Louise |
My own two ski days at Lake Louise were postcard perfect – blue
skies with occasional mist, warmish temps for December, and soft snow left over from a decent dump that week. Fave run (as always) was Lynx,
fave bowl area Brownshirt, fave (short) hike Mineshaft, and, on the front, Meadowlark was magical. As it was mid
December, Christmas shopping and office parties had depleted numbers, leaving
the snow less trammeled for lucky me. The snow there has continued to be
consistently good with cold temps over the holidays keeping it light and
enabling mega-snowmaking for the higher traffic areas - 381cm snowfall at the back, 146 cm snowdepth so far. As I have
been shouting out on social media since mid December, the snow is abundant in
Western Canada this winter!!🏂🏔⛄❆⛷🎿
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| Lake Louise back bowls off the Summit Platter - by Christian Falardeau |
