Lake Garibaldi is a popular area just south of Whistler Ski Resort in British Columbia. With numerous huts in the area and Mount Garibaldi being an active volcano it is a great area for ski touring as well as summer hiking. On the shores of Lake Garibaldi is the Burton Hut which can sleep 6 people comfortably. With relatively easy access it is well worth visiting.

What do you do when the weather is bad and you are hunting for a place with better snow conditions? We decided to leave the comfort of the Cascades and head North to Canada. Jason Hummel, Adam Roberts, Hannah Carrigan and I met up with Holly Walker in Whistler before driving off to the trailhead.

Arriving at the trailhead we joked how all of us were wearing bright colours and had become skittle skiers.

Heading out to Lake Garibaldi

The approach was a race agains’t light as it was a semi long approach and we were breaking trail the whole way. Soon enough we made it to the shores of Lake Garibaldi just as the sun was setting. Knowing that the hut was a few kilometres on the other side of the lake we got out our headlamps and prepared to be skinning in the dark.

We arrived at the Sphinx Hut an hour after sunset as the stars loomed above. Immediately we took out our shovels and started digging out the entrance. Getting inside it felt like a freezer but we were happy to have shelter for the next few days.

Ski Touring from the Burton Hut

The next morning we woke up to clear skies and made our way out to check out conditions. While everything looked great there was only a few inches of snow on top of firm conditions. This was made worse with unstable snowpack so we would have to choose mellow slopes to ride.

The higher up we got the more the snow was wind affected and we finally reached a point where it wasn’t worth going much higher. Looking off to the side there was a spot that looked like it held good wind loaded snow so we made our way to the point where the snow went from good to horrible above.

Knowing that this was the best we were going to get we decided to hang around for a while taking in the views and goofing off.

Heading back down to the shore line of Lake Garibaldi we milked our turns for the camera. What looked great on film wasn’t nearly as good in real life but the scenery was amazing.

Finally back at the Burton Hut we sat around laughing and having a good time before leaving the next morning. It was a brief trip in hopes of finding good conditions but in the end it wasn’t much better then the Cascades but all was good because there was great company.

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