Nakiska is Canada's Weirdest Ski Resort

[@Skier72]

This turned out so well, glad to have been a part of it!

[@nathanjanuszewski]

Bro knows everything in the Banff Kananaskis Region

[@cattymajiv]

Oh sure. This is nice for you to have, but it came at an insane price for taxpayers, just like the neighboring golf course, which was built for the same stupid reasons. Both were and STILL ARE a waste of crazy amounts of money! It must be SO nice to be one of the elite.

[@nathanjanuszewski]

@@cattymajiv he meant the video. Not the resort lmao.

[@Skier72]

@@cattymajiv Lol I'm not one of the "elite" (more like a university student in debt). I'm not saying that Nakiska didn't come at a big cost to taxpayers in the 1980s, but I'm not sure why that should hinder me from purchasing a seasons pass there with my own money in 2024? Also, by saying that Nakiska still is a big waste of money, are you implying that the ski resort is government subsidized? It most certainly is not.

[@unpopularopinion459]

Huge fan of both channels! Well done!

[@Johnforreal]

Yay finally a video on Nakiska! This is my home hill and where I’ve skied for most of my life so glad to see a Peak Rankings video on it!

[@DarkDramon]

You forgot that Nakiska's family season pass is only $900 (early bird), so the resort gets heavily flooded with season pass holders on the weekends, even worse when it has snowed heavily the night before the long weekend.

[@karl_m3013]

$319 for all access Senior's pass this year

[@johnpooley3]

A family pass is a really cool idea

[@Wallstreetavarice]

You say "worse" but this is the BEST feature of Nakiska. Without Nakiska, I can't imagine how busy Louise and Sunshine would be - and they are already plenty busy.

[@DarkDramon]

@@Wallstreetavarice haha, true, I guess it depends on how you look at it. I do agree with how heavily trafficked ski hills get the more options the better to help smooth out the visitors. And I agree sunshine and louise get soooo busy on the weekends it's pretty much a deterrent to make it out there consistently.

[@121212aslan]

family pass is around 1300 at this time (mid july), curious when does it cost 900?

[@stoutlager6325]

Nice. Nakiska is indeed weird and not only for the reasons mentioned in the video. There are additional quirks. I find it uncomfortable to ski a full day at the place because many of the runs have of a sideways tilt to them you have to constantly fight. Meaning your turns are all right turns to stay on the run: right turn, straighten which makes you go left because of the angle, turn right etc.

[@jeffbrown321]

Yea a day skiing off-camber the whole time kinda sux. I don't mind it once in a while, but seems like a lot of the oldest resorts have more runs like this; like they're all slalom or downhill race runs where you're expected to do more sidehill as opposed to wanting to stay more consistently in the fall line.

[@Richard-Burdett-Bow]

Snowboarder here and I don't find it off chamfer.

[@jacobiwolf77]

It's called a double fall line

[@cattymajiv]

@@Richard-Burdett-Bow We wouldn't expect a boarder to understand.

[@amsivertson]

@@Richard-Burdett-Bowthe term is ‘camber.’

[@darrensmith9143]

Good video. You are far too generous with your rating for snow. Chinook winds hammer Nakiska and the thaw / freeze cycles make for some of the worst conditions i have ever skied. The fact that Nakiska was even built (funded by government) for the Olympics is testament to the fact that government never does anything right. Such an embarassment to have the Olympics here when there were world class ski areas 30 - 60 minutes further west. Even the now defunct Fortress Mountain just down the road (which was still open in '88) had far, far better snow. I used to get a season pass at Nakiska when they used to sell them for (incredibly) around $100 CDN a decade or more in the past. I wouldn't ski there for free again. On top of the terrible conditions, awful overpriced food I also had my skis stolen there while I had lunch. Nice work on the video.

[@cattymajiv]

The entire Kananaskis developement was such a collosal waste of money! Equalled only by the subsequent theft of the entire 6 BILLION dollars in the Heritage Trust Fund, whichwas hushed up as much as the govt could do, and was never even investigated! Who cares if cabinet ministers embezzle every cent that it took the whole province a decade to save? There is much more to it, but I will restrain myself. Let it suffice to say that Nakiska and Kananaskis are still a waste of money.

[@daveb5874]

I feel the same way. Gave them a chance with a Family Pass for a couple of seasons. I have no plans to ever go back.

[@blakeallender1]

Here is a little tip: Make friends with the patrol, and if the day is on your side, they might just let you lift up to the top to get to some of the bowls. Coming from someone who may or may not have skied those areas...

[@PeakRankings]

😯

[@nathanjanuszewski]

well it depends on what you ski. Trust me, no one is getting on that platter without AST1 but you can probably do womens and stuff like that.

[@humanbeing2420]

@@nathanjanuszewskiWhich means what, exactly? I mean, in English.

[@nathanjanuszewski]

​@@humanbeing2420 I mean that you are not getting on the platter

[@homealone5087]

​@@humanbeing2420 AST1 is an avalanche safety certification

[@quikesteve]

While living in Calgary my favorite was Sunshine, but Nakiska is great for a day trip in the middle of the workweek. Like taking a personal day from work on an average Wednesday take the car at 8am and be skiing by 9 at Nakiska and be home for dinner. I would avoid Nakiska on weekends and holidays since it's packed.

[@cattymajiv]

Since that's all it's good for, it's a huge waste of money. But this govt has always been amazingly incompetent. They gerrymandered the electoral boudaries to such a huge extent that 1.2 million rural voters are able to control the elections. The 3 million city people have no voice at all. So the idiots in the Conservative party are able to continue mismanaging the province to a COLLOSAL extent. They robbed us of every cent of the 6 BILLION dollar Heritage Trust Fund, and never even investigated its disappearance. One day it's there, next day it's gone. Oh well. No big deal. Carry on! They are HUGE F*cking crooks!

[@karl_m3013]

I call Nakiska a big Blue Mountain for those from Toronto. I ski 20-40 days there for $319 for a full seniors's pass bought early last year. Great value. Arrive early and ski the Silver chair which generally has 2=4 freshly groomed runs off it. I ski for 3 hours and I am at my desk by 1:30 PM. It is my training hill. Louise is much better when it has snow. Of course, if I am skiing in May, I go to Sunshine. I am surprised Fernie is so low on your list. When it has snow, it is epic. .

[@Richard-Burdett-Bow]

Great cruising mountain for groomers. Better than lake Louise or sunshine in a lot of cases., and often less icy.

[@Dodger1999]

But with 5 times the vertical as Blue Mountain, better snow and more challenging.

[@bradkubota6968]

Great that Blue Mountain is mentioned. This is like a taller (narrower) version. The best comparison for me is the horrible snow. Full grooming runs. Who ever laid out the chairs was an inept clown. You ski up off the lift and ski up onto the lift. Waste of terrain. Only upside is it thins the crowds at the real Mountain Resorts to the west. Would be nice if fortress could re open.

[@cattymajiv]

I heard Fernie is great, but when I went there, at great cost in time and $, it was sheer ice everywhere, for a whole week. So disappointing! Lake Louise would be the best hill in many ways, but it has horrible snow almost all the time. The lower altitude that makes it more easily accesible from town also causes a great deal of melting and refreezing. Most times I've been there it was 1 big slush and mud bowl. BUT when the snow is fresh and the temps are cold enough for it to last a whole day or more, it's the most beautiful hill in all of Canada that I have seen or heard of! (I have not been to Whistler Blackcomb, but the idea of all those people is not enticing to me.) Such a beautiful experience! If only we could predict the weather, we could reserve hotels on those nice days when the snow is snow, not water or ice. But mountain weather is so unpredictable that even 1 day to the next can't be predicted. And accommodation in Lake Louise is the most expensive in the south east Rockies area. If you stay in Banff, you face a very long drive. BUT if you happen to get lucky, and get good snow and colder temps, Lake Louise is a magical place! I don't live very near, so I fear I will never be able to see that magic again, but those who do get that lucky are so blessed!

[@cattymajiv]

@@bradkubota6968 Yes to every point you made!

[@GlenAndFriendsCooking]

Both my wife and I worked there the winter of 90-91, I was a liftee on Olympic, and she worked as a Snow Host. Back then (at least) it was great place to work, and employees had a pass to all of the other Western resorts to ski free. The winter I worked there the upper platter was running and staffed.

[@chossmedia]

While it did get last in western Canada I'm honestly not sure if you were hard enough on it. Snow at 5 seems too high, it's VERY icy. Some sections that they can't groom become a massive sheet of polished ice. The glades usually have a huge amount of rocks and roots exposed. Crowd flow at 5 is also too high, it's so busy at the base it's insane. A half an hour wait for a chair deserves WAY WAY lower than a 5 when the runs are as short as they are. It would be different if you were skiing for a long time after the lift but you aren't. And it goes get this busy at the base frequently. Some bottlenecks on greens and blues near the base are also horrifically busy to get down, you need to go so slow to avoid everyone. Facilities 5 is also too high. I went on a busy weekend and the upper mountain restaurant literally ran out of food at 12:30pm and closed. This made the other food places twice as busy. They only had 1 lift ticket booth open and my friends had to wait in line for two full hours to get their day pass. They almost waited so long they considered buying the afternoon pass because it was 11:00am already by the time they got their day pass. I would have put it in last by a much larger margin

[@darrensmith9143]

Exactly right.

[@cattymajiv]

I've heard this, but never been there. The video nearly convinced me to try it if I'm ever nearby. But at that price, and with what you've said?! Thank you for saving me from a big mistake!

[@bdamned_]

Should have been a big deduction for no terrain park. You are exactly correct, management is outdated and caters to ski racers only. The culture there is very bizarre, never seen so many Jerry’s in one place… hoards of them. If you are a novice or beginner that doesn’t associate with the cool kids, Nakiska is your spot.

[@joshborax8764]

They used to have a park, but closed it when Covid hit and never reopened it. It was actually a decent park at the time so it’s frustrating that they refuse to build it again.

[@cattymajiv]

What's a Jerry?

[@bdamned_]

@@cattymajiv Jerry/gaper in the ski industry “ While the origins of jerry remain fairly unclear, the term gaper comes from the gap occasionally seen between the helmet and goggles of a beginner or inexperienced skier. Both terms refer to an individual who exhibits a true lack of understanding for their sport.” Also known as a kook.

[@bdamned_]

@@joshborax8764 we actually complimented them on the park that season.

[@marcusplyon]

For those who lived in Alberta prior to the 1988 Olympics, there was overall disappointment in the bad decision making and choosing the location of the ski hill. Due to its horrible location, the conditions are usually icy, which has led to probably more deaths on the ski hill than most other resorts. It's a crap ski hill. But, thanks for the realistic review.

[@deadskimountaineer]

The B-netting and the fact that they inject a few of their runs contributes to the injury (and death) rate.

[@cattymajiv]

You've both said pretty much what I did, but you stated these things so much better! The absolutely collosol waste of money did seem unbelievable at the time, but it soon faded, in comparison to the later loss of the entire six BILLION dollar Heritage Trust Fund! That theft was never even investigated, never mind explained to us! They just shrugged, and implied that it was fine for cabinet ministers to embezzle billions of dollars. Yet the people here are STILL brainwashed idiots who will kiss the ground that the MAGA right wing cult walks on, and believe their lies, no matter how crazy they are! I gotta get out of this horrible place. The skiing is inaccessible, and the people are unbearable! 💩😈💩😈💩

[@AaronEslinger]

Agreed. Almost died my first day. Don’t recommend.

[@jaydowell8165]

💯 Fortress should have been expanded an got the Olympic funds. Would have been a far better investment. No motorized but track ski equipment is ok? Sleds should be able to access Fortresses terrain. After this past winters closures in Boulder Mtn an the bridge pull at McBride we’ve lost over a million square Kms of accessible ride area.

[@paulwestenberger3710]

@@jaydowell8165Fortress would have never hosted the Olympic events. The runs are not long enough. One of my favourite resorts of all time is Fortress but it definitely isn't made for world class downhill skiing.

[@NilezII]

Definitely a difference between what makes an area good for recreation or good for racing. I went by Whiteface last week. Recreational skiers sometimes complain about icy, windblown conditions, but racers WANT it icy. Conversely, Park City had a problem of TOO much snow for racing. No one pays much attention to the weather reports in Big & Little Cottonwood Canyons because it seems to snow a foot any day of the week at random. Great for recreation, pain in the butt for racing. If it snows 8" during a race event, the racers at the end of the line get screwed out of fast conditions.

[@themtbskingmistersmith6536]

Love nakiska. Home resort since I was a kid. For the whole permanently closed thing upper alpine thing. For upper north axe it's a natural animal highway for the park and was only permitted to be used for the Olympics. "I've seen mountain goats on that crest a lot as well.". Also it out of bounds and not patrolled. You are skiing back country at that point. Second for the bowl / platter lift. The snow pack in k-country is extremely unstable dew to the natural warm winds in the area. There are avalanches on that slope all the time !! Again in the 80s they got away with the start being up there because the run was a few meters two short for FIS at the time. Really happy to see a review of one of my favorite resorts. Also disclaimer. This is what I've bin told throughout the years. So if.i am wrong. Please let me know.

[@deadskimountaineer]

You are more or less correct.

[@user-yl5rl7tg2j]

Funny how at every other resort, avi techs use a gun, helicopter or simply walk up the terrain. they keep that lift there to keep patrol happy and give them incentive to work there.

[@beepboop1569]

it's incomprehensible for the european mind to think that someone could come and forbid me from skiing down somewhere haha. ski patrol is such a strange idea

[@cattymajiv]

This is an excellent review of a some what dubious skihill. It accurately presents the pro and cons in a very accurate and complete way. Kudos! I will definately watch more of their videos. Very well done! A big thank you for leaving the chart at14:40up for long enough for us to get a good look at it, or to easily pause and read it. Most videos flash text on the screen so fast that it's a big challenge to even pause it, which is is very disruptive to the experience of watching a video. Usually, by the time you've realized you need to pause to see something important, 2 or 3 other text things have also flashed by already, making it difficult and very disruptive to pause and read 1 or more of them. I wonder why on earth most video makers are so afraid of adding time to a video, especially when in most cases, in order for us to actually read the text, it would only add another an extra second or two for each instance of text! What's going on with these video makers? It's not like even the youngest people can read them when they flash by so fast. So I'm extremely impressed that this video maker left the chart there for so long, while continuing to talk about very relevant things. I was able to take a good look at it, and decide whether or not it would be worth the trouble to pause the video. We usually are not given the choice, so we either miss important things by not pausing, or we waste our time pausing to read stuff that didn't matter. HUGE KUDOS to this video for giving us the choice! I have never been so impressed by a video review of a ski hill! Thank you SO MUCH for this!

[@stynnieuwenhuis9999]

Looks better than I thought. I always ski sunshine and Louise. Looks fun for racing

[@frasersgrove4838]

I tried to learn how to snowboard there in the late 90's. Nice hill when you aren't flying into trees or slamming your head...

[@SavouryLobster]

I live in the bow valley and have for most of my life. If you're visiting the area, Nakiska is the best ski hill in the area! Everyone who visits should go. Just kidding, Ive been to Nakiska once and will never go back. Its a terrible resort unless you're a ski racer.

[@jask320]

Nakiska is a nice place to learn, close to Calgary. I like it

[@willbuckler1723]

As a local it’s great for beginners to mountain skiing and a bit of a warm up for the bigger resorts, it used to be a cheaper option but that’s changed it’s definitely hit or miss for conditions I’ve had terrible and perfect days

[@jimalden3182]

Like the reviews when they have a specific cool feature of the resort analysed such as the old trails or banned slopes

[@jaydowell8165]

Fortress was a far better hill. Some kinda bs that Nakisha even went through. Icy wind blown usually the conditions unless ya catch it after a dump. Not worth the lift fees.

[@ericjlehr]

I hope that Fortress will come online again!!!

[@jaydowell8165]

@@ericjlehr it’s a cat ski op now. Don’t ask me how the bridge was deemed ok for cat skiing customs but not good enough for the skiers. Should be a shed ski area like Goldens Quartz Creek. Perfect terrain for it.

[@dmcneil6113]

Used to catch a bus to Fortress mountain and get a lift ticket for $12. Fortress was a great ski area, just not as big as Sunshine and Lake Louise, it had a different vibe.

[@Bluebottlenose]

I like the two CLD-260’s they have. Their two out of base detachable lifts - silver and Olympic are Doppelmayr cld260’s, and they were built in the late 80’s. Very cool technology.

[@humanbeing2420]

Yep - each one is powered by a small nuclear reactor.

[@Bluebottlenose]

@@humanbeing2420that’s not ENTIRELY true

[@darrensmith9143]

These were the first high-speed chairs I had ever seen back in '88 when I was there for the women's downhill.

[@JoeHartman80]

Woot! I just went to Quebec to ski Mont saint anne. It’s a nice mountain.

[@theoutsider6191]

I was skiing in Panorama resort in the late 2000s and the guys there told me that Nakiska got sued by a parent of a kid that paralysed himself skiing their park. Apparently they had poor transitions... Not sure how true that was, but the guy i was talking to was a surveyor, who was checking the design of the park at Panorama following a paralysation....

[@Capitanvolume]

The low season pass cost makes it appealing to families and people that are learning. It gets busy on weekends

[@williba24]

From the UK, we visited Banff to ski all 3 resorts and lucky for us we were introduced to Nakiska on our first of 15 years skiing in Alberta. It is only 50 minutes from Banff on the highway, exit where you see the wigwams and casino exit 155. We were informed to miss the weekends so we did. Quiet during the week only problem not all lifts were on but still enough to ski in a day. Enjoyed the Poutine at the resturrant, it has a shop with everything you might need and lockers for your gear.

[@mattiatorX]

Just a quick correction, upper grand trunk is just a nickname, the run appeared on trail maps for many years as “Bearspaw”. Strangely the cat track was often drawn out of those maps but Bearspaw was still listed, I guess as hike up? Anyway yeah, Nakiska I think is the dog of the Calgary-area resorts with how icy and busy it gets, but I suppose saying "well it's not as good as worldwide #5-ranked Sunshine or #10-ranked Lake Louise" isn't really that much of a black mark. It’s great if you only want groomers and below treeline ungroomed runs, with fast lifts. In my youth it was always seen as the "next step" mountain, you'd learn the basics at WinSport, then move up to Nakiska to move through intermediate and basic advanced terrain. Personally though, I would go to Mt. Norquay any day over it, similar prices for much better terrain in my opinion, and no crowds. Sunshine Village absolutely has much more interesting low-intermediate through low-advance terrain with way better snow. However, I should note that I haven't been since the last terrain expansion in 2009 which added a bunch of ungroomed glade terrain. Maybe I'll give it a shot during the 2024-25 season. Even the old hidden savings of not needing to pay to park isn't a thing any more with the conservation pass. Y'all need to try Castle Mountain next! It's the last of the big Alberta resorts, until Fortress finally manages to reopen one of the twenty years they've been saying they will.

[@Pieman2889]

what happened to skiers 1-71?

[@PeakRankings]

@Skier72 care to respond?

[@humanbeing2420]

I'll bet they are all older than Skier72 and that some of them (skiers 1 through 24 or so) are no longer with us.

[@Skier72]

Good question 😂

[@Ben_Stewart]

Bring back Fortress.

[@sadrevolution]

Bring back Wintergreen, lol

[@46ntwo46]

Both were my hills growing up....man i miss fortress.

[@stevec2890]

Fortress rocked Skied at least 60 times a year there

[@BenBELIEVES]

I actually just went skiing there yesterday because I live just outside of Calgary

[@R1j0hn]

As a former resident of Calgary, I was thinking the whole time "Lake Louise & Sunshine are FAR nicer than Nakiska"... And I was about to close the video around the 14-minute mark, but wanted to see your rating. I concur with your rating chart @ 14:43 !

[@cattymajiv]

Nakiska is sh*t in comparison to EVERY other hill!

[@wfo_cycles]

Great place to train for alpine. I probably have more kms skiied here than any other mountain but an absolutely dismal location for free skiing

[@nicollekalivoda9454]

Used to go to Nakiska and Fortress mountain on school field trips. Lots of fun (25 years ago)!

[@HamBown]

Awesome review dude. I went to Norquay for the first time this year and was pleasantly surprised. It is similar in a lot of ways. I was chatting with someone about Nakiska at the time, as I've never been. I grew up skiing primarily at Sunshine and am interested in the spots that I haven't been to.

[@bertblankenstein3738]

From a hiking perspective, the area up high does have a seasonal closure (Apr 1 to Jun 21) for wildlife (Bighorn Sheep). Centennial Ridge, Olympic Summit and further on Mt Allan. Outside that time one can hike there.

[@orcus79orca5]

I worked a season there, back around 2001/2 ish, looking after the base area, I don't recall ever seeing the crowds as busy then as they were in the video, mid mountain was always empty when ever I went up there for a lunch. Back then RCR was in trouble, and had the hill up for sale, barely had enough equipment to keep things running, had a terrain park then and I think they may have just put in a half pipe that year as well. Also a couple of stunt scenes from the movie "Snow Dogs" were filmed there.

[@seanmcintyre9490]

Really well done!

[@Makeitblue127]

Probably the worst possible location to build a ski resort, panic decision because of the Olympics.

[@BallisticDamages]

My first time skiing as a kid on this mountain, almost died impacting the safety fence near the bronze lift when I came down from silver and couldn't figure out how to slow down 😆

[@double-you3409]

When is the Marmot Basin review going up on YT/Your website? I'm pretty sure its the largest resort in NA missing from your rankings, and its the mountain I grew up snowboarding so it has a special place in my heart.

[@PeakRankings]

Written review within the next few months! Some of the expert terrain didn’t open this winter, so full video review may have to wait a bit- but we will certainly have some Knob Quad footage at least!

[@cattymajiv]

@@PeakRankings Thanks so much! That is the ONLY real skihill accesible to me!

[@DizeezerV]

I've held a season's pass here for the last 4 seasons. Great mountain for the whole family.

[@bradyelich2745]

It is not permanently closed. I rode my motorcycle around the barriers and had the road for myself up to Jasper.

[@ksiler]

The run you called "Upper Grand Trunk" was actually called "Bearspaw." Bearspaw was a black diamond (run #4), adjacent to Upper North Axe on early Nakiska trail maps. Not sure why they named the run and gave it a slot on the original trail map when they never opened it.

[@beeseumz]

Sounds like Ski Patrol just wants their own area

[@cattymajiv]

You conspiracy theorists never stop, do you? It must be awful to live in such paranoia!

[@TrackDayMedia]

When did they start enforcing a conservation pass? Been going there years, have never bought a pass, nor gotten ticketed for it

[@phenix3st]

That run off to skiers left is not called north ax. It’s called legacy. North ax is under the silver chair

[@Off-roading1]

Please do a full review video on magic mountain vermont

[@mjor6406]

It's called Ka na nas kis not kenanaskis. Junior national ski team and Olympians from around the world train there too.

[@liamwalshlennyslemon9361]

And if you don’t ski or you wanna go there in the summer, bellow the hills are miles of walking and hiking trails and some nice water falls.

[@MoarMrBASS]

Back when nakiska had their $200 seasons pass I rode here a lot and had a great time

[@SenseiDecay]

I broke my thumb here 25 years ago, never did like this hill when theres so many nicer mountains close by.

[@quailequin]

as a racer the only thing good about nakiska is racing. if ur looking for park or literally anything else even WinSport is better

[@realfricci]

Please review some of the resorts in New Mexico. Nice vid!

[@PeakRankings]

We have a Taos video up, and we also visited Angel Fire, Red River, and Ski Santa Fe this year!

[@cattymajiv]

We are getting really tired of you spamming here for NM!

[@Raynieryful]

Please review Sun Peaks soon. I've heard it's the second best ski resort in Canada after Whistler

[@Richard-Burdett-Bow]

It's probably not, never been there but out might be for the intermediate skier.

[@sirjibsalot8910]

​@Richard-Burdett-Bow it has been greatly expanded and its worth the trip

[@geoffbird7469]

Anyone else out there have an unfortunate encounter with the abandoned snowmaking gear mentioned here? I collided with a pipe buried in snow last winter. Lots of expensive physio ensued.

[@laneschilling4836]

I was there two days ago!

[@Heurigijdbd]

I wish fortress was still open 😢. At least you can go there with backcountry skis and ski the abandoned ski resort 😂.

[@humanbeing2420]

Lots of negatives with this mountain.

[@ianbowie8121]

Worst hill I have ever been on haha

[@Niklasgosoutside]

I like the way the name sounds

[@JustinTurdoCastro420]

I've had some of my best pow days at Nakiska!

[@Densmode3dp]

I grew up on this hill. We were there every weekend. My dad was a ski bum in his 20s, and a sponsored (K2) bump skier. He would drag me to the top to hit the moguls all the time. Got pretty good for a kid. He was not happy when I moved to snowboards in my teens 😂

[@unrestrainedfamily9356]

East coast riding in the West. 😂

[@sirjibsalot8910]

If you mean icy conditions then..YES!!😅

[@Danny_Tanner]

bonus find the tunnel under the men's downhill course

[@Isaac804ab1]

It honestly is a pretty good hill for what it is feels more like s non mountain hill but it huge potential if there was money pumped into it

[@goodson77784]

I love your narration voice and cadence.

[@johns3106]

It’s AI

[@georgegrisham6683]

@@johns3106 It's not AI. If you listen closely, you can catch audio editing cuts. Just heavily edited. Most AI voice overs also have way less expression and mispronounce a lot of vocabulary.

[@johns3106]

@@georgegrisham6683 You may be right, but I’m not entirely convinced. I’ve seen other videos from this poster where pronunciations are horribly mangled, including the word “colouir” which any real-life, big mountain ski reviewer SHOULD know how to pronounce, but maybe not an AI program that is trying to apply the standard rules of English pronunciation to a very un-English word…and that’s just one example! Unfortunately for all of us,it’s getting harder and harder to tell the difference between real people and AI.

[@georgegrisham6683]

@@johns3106 It's true, it's harder to distinguish AI from real humans. Also good point about "colouir" I was doing some more looking into his videos, and came across this video of his which I don't think is AI. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHXZpHhtaLmCn5Y

[@paulwestenberger3710]

The reason Nakiska is so busy is the season pass rate. It's cheap!!!! . I taught my son to ski there and it was frustrating at times. They also would close the gold chair for hours for the racers which IMO was idiotic. They also treated their staff like garbage when COVID closed the resorts in March by not returning their calls and hanging up on them. I can honestly say I will never spend another dime at Nakiska. I try to stay away from RCR resorts (They closed Fortress mountain and kept open this junk hill) but I do like Fernie. Anyways great video and Nakiska does its job by keeping people away from the real ski hills in Banff. On a side note the second choice for the Olympic downhill events was Mt. Sparrowhawk . It was further from Calgary so that is why Mt Allen was chosen. It's to bad because Sparrowhawk would have been so much better. I've scrambled up it a few times.

[@kpotter78]

Pretty good video. I'm not sure what your source is for the "consistent cold weather" stat, but it's not accurate. It gets regular Chinook winds that often creates icy slopes.

[@Vikingocazar]

Nakiska SUCKS!!! What a waste of money and effort. Anyone who know snow knows gives this dump a miss! Skiing in the trees is a deathwish. There’s no decent glades. It doesn’t get powder. And the parking lot is often underwater 🤦🏼

[@LaurentiusTriarius]

Do they open the lifts for mountain biking in the summer?

[@dnaug]

No. There are no lift accessed mountains in Alberta. Shuttle at Moose mountain and Baseline

[@cattymajiv]

@@dnaug That's a great thing! Bikes and bikers just rip the sh*t out of the terrain for many yards (or meters) on both sides of the path, decimating the forest. There used to be 4 paths near my place, all roughly parallel, but seperated by forest. Now the entire hillside is denuded of growth. It's one big bald hill where nothing lives. It once had beautiful shaded forest paths, but is now as ugly as heck. I avoid going there, because it breaks my heart!

[@crazypete6913]

Just sucks when the wind picks up

[@Anonymous79896]

Next winter please do a full video on my home hill Magic Mountain, Vermont

[@humanbeing2420]

Wow - viewers here are really clamoring for a review of Magic Mountain....

[@Anonymous79896]

@@humanbeing2420 we are, and we also are the most underrated mountain on the east coast.

[@unrestrainedfamily9356]

I liked magic more then Nakiska.

[@cattymajiv]

@@humanbeing2420 It's the same guy, over and over.

[@cattymajiv]

@@humanbeing2420 We are Canadian here, and don't give a f*ck about Magic Mountain. So stop spamming that garbage.

[@marshalltucker9690]

1:50 Can-Ah-Nass-Kiss

[@martinsiedlecki]

Fortress was always my favorite

[@brycenygard4244]

On a weekday it’s you and the workers.

[@TAZAR_II]

This ski hill has always been a reminder of how well Government led developments can be so marvellously FUBAR'd.

[@MrMagnuminium]

I WISH THE BACKSIDE OF WHISTLER WAS STILL CLOSED. :P

[@shanelaird9032]

You mentioned “The Town of Kananaskis” during your lodging segment, there is no such town. FYI I’m a local

[@nathanjanuszewski]

probably meant to say Kananaskis Village

[@PeakRankings]

^Yep!

[@shanelaird9032]

@@nathanjanuszewski but still not a town

[@Haulinbassracing]

Nakista is gnarly

[@nathanjanuszewski]

HOW

[@carsonskiing]

First comment/like/view. Awesome and interesting video!

[@cattymajiv]

Those who claim to be first comment NEVER are!

[@carsonskiing]

@@cattymajiv i was. I saw it 17 seconds after uploaded lol

[@tacsium]

this resort needs to open a lift up to the bowls and it would prosper

[@stephencollins1740]

Hey! My kid and I are in this video waiting in line!

[@LukaWyd]

Please do cypress next season

[@ZACKMAN2007]

I remember going here for tubing

[@joseledesma4776]

No park. It sucks. But I still buy their season pass coz its affordable compared to Lake louise or sun peaks.

[@EJSchuman]

4:52 superb biff

[@Matthew_mtb_ski]

bro i was there two days ago

[@JadeaRS4]

It's the wind. That's all

[@misterslats]

Get up 45 minutes earlier and just go to bloody Sunshine.

[@Richard-Burdett-Bow]

Haha, sunshine blows goats. Actually some days I prefer sunshine and some days I prefer nakiska. Sunshine would be sued and renamed snowsquall village with its flat light above treeline

[@misterslats]

@@Richard-Burdett-Bow You can't sue a company for weather and light conditions dipsh!t.

[@sirjibsalot8910]

​​it generally has better snow, but yes damn it the viz is awful!😅

[@LukasSchroederFilms]

@@Richard-Burdett-Bowconfirmed kook

[@EllenBrenner-su2jv]

You are so wrong on many counts. Every run is groomed every day. Their grooming is spectacular. Because they are a training ground for provincial and national ski teams, the hill relies on snow making to get runs open for early November. Norquay and Lake Louise rely on snow making too. I have experienced icier conditions at those hills than I did all this season (23-24) at Nakiska. And they get many up-sloping snow storms that make the ski resorts in Banff envious. As far as green and blue runs go, ALL the runs off of Silver Chair are suitable for those new to the sport. Also, the Bronze Chair caters to beginners without the distraction of experts speeding by. The Magic Carpet beginner area is ideal for those first starting. Nakiska is the best place for those that want to take up the sport. The jump for beginners at Louise is to great from the magic carpet to the rest of the mountain. Sunshine's magic carpet is way too small and always way to busy for someone to give skiing a try. Just like the other Banff areas, patrollers have the final say when to open more difficult runs based on lack of snow or avalanche danger so don't make it sound like Nakiska is withholding runs on purpose. I have seen patrollers at the other Banff areas enjoying powder while the lifts to the public are closed. I have also seen the other Banff hills open runs with very little snow just to open more lifts and therefore charge more for a lift ticket. When a run is opened at the beginning of the year at Nakiska, it is in perfect condition. True there is no terrain park and if that is what you are looking for then Sunshine and Louise will be happy to welcome you however you will have driven another hour or 2 to get there. In short, Nakiska has a great origin story and since then has made racing accessible to many local teams with ideal conditions. The management makes it easy for the remaining public to enjoy skiing. And, their cost of seasons passes are far more favourable than the other resorts. I give Nakiska 2 thumbs up. Kudos to them.

[@LukasSchroederFilms]

Never read a youtube comment that sounded like it was written by a corporate marketing team

[@SueFerreira75]

Nakiska, the original white elephant.

[@ACPilot]

Sounds like the resort should have a new owner..

[@hoboonwheels9289]

My children learned to ski there, none ski now.

[@PeakRankings]

💀

[@cattymajiv]

What a shame. Too attached to their phones no doubt.

[@Subalpinism]

Nakiska seriously sucks unless you love lycra and ice

[@nickfoster9350]

The snow quality at Nakiska is top tier awful.

[@Crazy_Alex_7667]

8:55 why would they do that

[@nathanjanuszewski]

Keep it running longer.

[@jorgesrt91]

No way Nakiska is rated lower than Norquay overall.

[@cattymajiv]

It's far less good!