Lack of snow can’t dampen the enthusiasm of the team at the Sea to Sky Gondola as its winter season begins.
That’s because the summer visitor numbers were well ahead of expectations, and the parking lot and trails have continued to be filled with visitors since the reopening Thursday, Nov. 27.
“People see Squamish as a destination. Before, Squamish was a drive-through market,” co-founder Trevor Dunn, the general manager and one of the three principals, told The Squamish Chief on Friday.
“The summer was fantastic. It blew our expectations away.”
Dunn said 200,000 to 300,000 visitors had been anticipated for the first year. “We’re ahead of that,” he said during a media event Friday afternoon. A busload of journalists from Vancouver and as far away as Montreal was whisked up to the summit and walked the Spirit Trail with Dunn and staff, but the event was cut short due to high winds. A public tree-lighting ceremony scheduled for that evening was postponed to Friday (Dec. 6) between 5 and 6 p.m.
Dunn said the winter season is expected to be quieter than summer; only 20 per cent of total visitors are expected during the winter season, which runs from Nov. 27 to April 30. “It’ll be a lot quieter,” Dunn acknowledged.
But with the gondola’s elevation of 885 metres (3,000 feet), he expects snow to cover the ground soon so that new winter activities can begin.
A new tubing park with four to five runs 400 metres long is being built, as well as a viewing platform over the tubing park. Tubing will cost $5 for two hours. On Friday, the park was still dirt, awaiting the first snowfalls.
The gondola will also provide access to out-of-bounds areas for “very experienced backcountry skiers,” said Dunn. “We definitely recommend a guide.”
Gondola staff will be consulting with the Canadian Avalanche Service and Search and Rescue regarding the backcountry skiing, he noted.
“Some days, the Canadian Avalanche Service will tell us it’s not safe.”
Also new will be children’s storytime on Fridays in December, Santa visiting Dec. 6 and 7 and Songs of Christmas Dec. 13 and 14.
All winter, there will be snowshoeing, snowshoe rentals and guided tours on Panorama trail off the new $22-million gondola, which opened May 16. The gondola features a 9,000-square-foot lodge with a restaurant for visitors and a private area to host weddings and other special events.
“I think a lot of people realize that we’re a good four-season destination,” said public relations specialist Elyse Mailhot.
The gondola is already “one of the most visited sites in B.C.,” said Dunn, who was freshly back from the Canadian Tourism Industry Association awards held in Ottawa last week. Although it has been in operation less than a year, the gondola was one of only five attractions in all of Canada nominated for Innovator of the Year.
“It’s one of the top five new things to do in Canada,” he said. “We opened in May, so getting national attention so soon is great for Squamish.”
The gondola serves a diverse group of visitors aged 2 to 90, with about 20 per cent from the Squamish area, 45 per cent from Metro Vancouver, and the rest from across Canada and around the world, Dunn said. Visitors include people with limited mobility to “some of the most fit athletes on the planet.”
Most people, however, are looking for an easy walk and time with their family. The tube park will provide a place for family fun, said Dunn. “It’s hard to find places to go and play in the snow in the corridor.”
Gondola staff also plan to keep the Spirit Trail plowed and put gravel down when possible to give visitors an easy place to walk. Nature can be intimidating to some visitors, Dunn acknowledged. “The more we do something accessible and safe, the more people will come up.”
