Alpine Resort Offers Elevated Summer Adventures with New ZipTour and expanded Mountain Biking

MT. WASHINGTON, BRITISH COLUMBIA – Chair lifts start spinning again this Saturday, June 27th for opening day of Mt. Washington’s summer operations, including the new Eagle’s Flight ZipTour – Vancouver Island’s longest zip line experience. The ZipTour spans a total length of 2,313 meters (7,589 ft) with a breathtaking drop of 415 metres (1,364 vertical feet) including a first step off the top platform that puts riders more than a hundred feet above the ground doing 100 kph almost instantly.

The Eagle’s Flight ZipTour is a $4 million, four-stage course that starts with a ride up the Eagle chairlift to the top of Mt. Washington and finishes back at the Alpine Lodge, providing a whole new bird’s eye perspective of the surrounding terrain. The braking technology of the ZipTour allows cable spans that are longer, steeper, and more dramatic than a typical zip line canopy tour.  Guests can control their speed of descent dynamically – meaning the option is there to open the throttle for thrills, or to ease back to take in the spectacular 360-degree alpine-to-ocean views. 

“The ZipTour makes it possible for everyone to experience the beauty and thrill of Mt. Washington, whether you are a skier or not,” commented Dean Prentice, General Manager at Mt. Washington Alpine Resort. “We’re excited that the addition of the ZipTour and the further expansion of our lift-accessed mountain bike trails allows us to offer experiences of a true year-round destination.  After reopening our Bike Park in 2016, we have witnessed huge visitation growth including Bike Park season pass sales increases of more than 50% each year. Continuing that expansion with even more new trails this year, and the completion of the Eagle’s Flight ZipTour, we are excited to open for summer on June 27th.”

Guests who visited Mt. Washington last winter likely spotted the ZipTour platforms patiently waiting for summer. Designed as a shared experience, the tour runs two parallel zip lines providing the opportunity for friends and family to interact while soaring through the air together.  The tour starts with training sessions at the practice zip line, followed by a chairlift ride to the top of the mountain and short scenic walks between each of the four-stages. The final side-by-side aerial flight leads back to the base for a dramatic entrance onto the roof of the Alpine Lodge above surrounding activities. The ZipTour is a very social activity that can easily be enjoyed while practicing safe distancing in an outdoor environment.

“The experience of the Eagle’s Flight ZipTour really is incredible,” remarked Beth Nowak, the Resorts Manager of Summer Programs, “We cover a wide range of the mountains landscape over the four zip lines and the views are unbeatable. I’ve been running lots of practise lines training our guides to get ready for opening day, and the weightless feeling you get soaring over the treetops never gets old.”

While the ZipTour is certainly a major new attraction, it is not the only thing new at Mt. Washington this summer.  For lift-accessed downhill mountain biking, the Bike Park’s Trail Crew has been hard at work on new features perfect for beginner and advanced riders alike. Upgrades include a brand-new Green flow trail, Panda Gardens, offering up epic alpine views in the lush old-growth forests. The 2020 bike season also brings updates to the Skills Centre, completion of the Black flow trail, Upper Helter Skelter geared to advanced riders, and a new intermediate Blue flow trail to be completed soon. Guests who are new to downhill biking can give it a try with a Learn to Ride lesson and rental package, Ladies Nights and Camps, as well as a variety of other Programs and Guided Rides available for all ages and abilities

“We’re excited to bring some new programs into the Bike Park this summer,” continued Nowak, “We noticed more younger riders in the community and wanted to introduce programs geared to help ages 7-12 progress their mountain biking skills. We have a child’s Learn to Ride package, a new four-week Free Ride Program, and 3-Day Adventure Camps that include a variety of kid-friendly outdoor activities including mountain bike skills.”

In addition to the ZipTour and Bike Park, Mt. Washington’s team is preparing to open on June 27^th for scenic chair lift rides and hiking, as well as retail, restaurant, and hotel operations. The Resort will be following best practices and safety precautions as outlined by the BC Provincial Health Officer, WorkSafe BC, BC Restaurant & Food Services Association, the Canada West Ski Areas Association, and BC Hotel Association.

“Our main goal is to bring guests enjoyable experiences in a safer environment this summer and into next winter,” observed Prentice. “Maintaining the health and safety of our team and our guests remains a top priority, and there has been a lot of time spent preparing each aspect of the Resort for summer operations.”

Guests will observe diligent cleaning and sanitization practices around the Resort and can expect to practise 2 metre (6 foot) physical distancing when on property. Visitors are encouraged to spend time outdoors in the fresh mountain air and to only enter the Resort facilities when necessary, following one-way traffic and other posted signage when they venture indoors.

“We’re following recommendations from the BC Health Officer, so everyone should expect to stay within their household group and to remain 6 feet apart from others as a precaution for everyone’s health and safety,” mentioned Prentice. “Sanitizer stations will be present at key touchpoints and guests and staff are encouraged to make use often.”

Prentice continued, “We’re very pleased to be able to offer an expanding variety of outdoor experiences guests can enjoy, and we hope Vancouver Islander’s will choose to elevate their summer in the alpine this year. With our neighbouring surroundings in Strathcona Park, the opportunities for adventure while distancing are endless.  After a day of hiking, ZipTouring, mountain biking, or even just riding the chairlift, we hope guests will be ready to switch gears after their adventures and simply sit back and enjoy lunch or drinks at the end of the day on the Courtyard Patio breathing in the fresh mountain air while enjoying the spectacular views.”  

To plan your vacation and find more information on visiting Mt. Washington this summer head to www.mountwashington.ca

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MT. WASHINGTON OPENS TODAY WITH MILLIONS IN IMPROVEMENTS
Snowmaking to top of Whiskey Jack, new restaurant, and new mobile app highlight changes

Friday, December 20, 2019 – MT. WASHINGTON, BRITISH COLUMBIA – Winter has made its appearance at Mount Washington Alpine Resort and after a few recent snowstorms, the Resort will open for skiing, snowboarding, Nordic and snow tubing today. The season debuts with over $7 million in new capital investments made in 2019 to create improved guest experiences on the slopes, in the lodge, and even on guests’ smartphones. 

Mount Washington spokesperson Kayla Stockton noted, “A few storms have rolled through this week leaving us with a good base to kick the season off with improvements in technology, a new snowmaking system, and a great new dining option. With snow in the forecast and snowmaking in effect, we’re looking ahead to a great holiday experience for our guests.”

The Resort will open with terrain for all ability levels including all runs accessible from the Whiskey Jack lift, the full Easy-Acres beginner zone, as well as the Tube Park and limited Nordic operations. Night skiing will also be in operation as of Friday. Mountain Operating Hours will be 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. throughout the holidays, and more terrain will open as snow conditions allow. Discounted lift tickets will be available at the kiosk Opening Day at $49.

Guests can celebrate the start of the season with a Season-Opener Après Ski Party kicking off at 3:30pm Friday in Ted’s Bar and Grill, presented by Vancouver Island Brewing. The event will feature Vancouver Island Brewing seasonal draft pours, door prizes, and live music designed to have guests dancing in their boots.

Moving into the holidays, Mount Washington is celebrating with events for the 12 Days of Christmas kicking off Saturday December 21^st with photos with Santa, Christmas cookie decorating and a performance by kids’ favourite, Captain Thunderpants. Holiday events will take place everyday throughout the week with annual events like Elves Ski Free on Christmas Day, the Boxing Day Torchlight Parade, and more festivities leading into New Years Eve celebrations.

Stockton mentioned the mountain's packed snow base is now sitting around 63 centimetres, with 18 centimetres of new snow falling in the last 48 hours. Mount Washington’s new snowmaking infrastructure will augment natural snow, with concentrations of effort in the Easy-Acres beginner zone as well as the blue run Coaster, off the Whiskey Jack chairlift.

“There is an art to snowmaking,” says Dean Prentice, General Manager of Mount Washington Alpine Resort. “You can’t just turn on the snow guns at zero degrees and expect an even snowfall across the slopes.  Weather conditions are important considerations for snowmaking, and you have to factor in temperature, humidity, and wind.  Generally, a wet bulb temperature of -2° Celsius is needed.”

The latest phase of Mount Washington’s long-term snowmaking project came together in the past few weeks, with final system testing and infrastructure commissioning now completed. Over the summer and into fall, the Resort’s reservoir was expanded, a pump house and wet well were built, high voltage electrical was installed as along with the necessary pipes and hydrants. The Resorts new snowmaking system will include two Techno Aplin TR8 tower mounted fan guns, six carriage mounted TR8 fan guns, and four V3 Air and Water Lances. Over the past two years, testing has occurred at the base of the mountain to help decide what effective combination of snowmaking equipment and automation would be most effective at Mount Washington.  Primary machinery testing occurred in the Easy-Acres beginner zone and allowed for the Resort’s Free Discovery Days program to move ahead beginning December 9^th this year providing guests new to skiing or boarding with the opportunity to try the sport. Over the past week machinery testing has continued with snowmaking in the Whiskey Jack zone, on the blue run, Coaster.

“The primary idea is to hit the areas progressively from the beginners’ area - starting with the bottom of the mountain,” Prentice said. “The other thing that’s important to cover night skiing terrain.” The Resort will continue making snow to support natural falling snow as weather conditions permit.

Last season, Mount Washington introduced RFID technology for accessing the lifts on the mountain. The RFID system provides guests with hands-free access to the lifts and magic carpets courtesy of a pass reader next to the lift line that can detect a guest’s pass, even if it is in their coat pocket. The new system also allows lift tickets and Season Passes to be reloaded online with the new MYMW Card, available fort a $5 deposit.

“Our main goal with the RFID investment is to improve the guest experience at the Resort,” explained the Resort’s Director of Sports and Guest Services, Mike Manara. “The system should greatly reduce ticket line-ups and should speed up lift lines.  Plus, once guests have their new MYMW Card, they can reload it online before coming to the resort. After the initial visit, everything is direct-to-lift, and they never have to stop at a ticket window again.”

In keeping with the technology upgrades, Mount Washington will launch a new mobile app this season that will give skiers and riders the most useful mountain and resort information such as an interactive trail map displaying groomed and open trails, lift schedules, GPS tracking, a calendar of events, and a resort map identifying where various facilities and services are located. The app will also offer push notifications so guests can take advantage of special deals or announcements that occur at the ski area.

The tech-savvy GPS feature of the app will track your location on the resort map so your friends can find you, let you know how many vertical feet you skied for the day and your season total, and it will even show you personal records for vertical and distance as well as a leaderboard so app users can see how they compare to other skiers and riders are performing. Download the new app in the iTunes or Google Play stores.

It’s not all about technology, though. There are enhancements in the culinary offerings at Mount Washington this year with the Hungry Marmot Express transforming into The Cantina, bringing flavours of Mexico to the mountain. The Cantina will feature authentic style hand-rolled burritos and bowls, churros, and a licensed area serving a selection of Mexican style beer and canned cocktails. The Resort will also host several ticketed specialty dinner events throughout the season, including a Beer Pairing Dinner presented by Vancouver Island Brewing at Raven’s Lodge on January 24^th, 2020.

For more information Opening Weekend terrain, weather conditions, hours of operation, specific event details and more, visit www.mountwashington.ca

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ABOUT MOUNT WASHINGTON

Mount Washington Alpine Resort is located just 30 minutes from the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island, British Columbia and hosts over 300,000 visits per year.  In the winter, guests enjoy five chairlifts and five carpet lifts accessing over 1,700 acres and 1,657 vertical feet of alpine terrain.  The resort also operates 55 kilometers of designated cross-country skiing and 25km of snowshoeing trails along with a dedicated Nordic lodge, Raven’s Lodge.

Summer activities at Mount Washington include lift-accessed mountain biking, a quad bungy trampoline, scenic chairlift rides, disc golf, miniature golf, boardwalk chess and checkers, shopping and dining as well as the NEW Eagle’s Flight ZipTour built throughout spring/summer 2019. The resort also plays host to over 40 weddings per year plus numerous group and corporate events.

Off-island visitors can use WestJet, Air Canada, Central Mountain Air, and Pacific Coastal Airlines which provide air service to the Comox Valley Airport (YQQ) or they can fly right into Comox Marina via Harbour Air.  Additional carriers serving the Victoria Airport (YYJ) from Seattle include Delta Airlines and Alaska Airlines.