At Mustang Powder we have our everyday, bread and butter ski runs, which include everything from large open bowl to steep tree runs and everything in between runs. We also have a number of big exotic ski runs which we are only able to use when we have good visibility and stability. The Monashee Mountains are more famous for continual snowfalls, not sunny days. If the dates of your ski holiday to coincide with clear weather you might well get the thrill of doing one or more of these big alpine runs. This is the sort of terrain that makes Mustang Powder the Ultimate Cat skiing destination.

5th Dimension

Drop-off at 2440 meters

Total vertical drop of 1740 meters (5655 vertical feet)

Best qualities of the run: breathtaking scenery and an extremely long ski run (to our knowledge, it is the longest run in the whole cat ski industry!) We commence the run on top of the Mustang Glacier and drop in to the east, between big rock bluffs.

The steepness varies between 25-30 degrees and just keeps going and going. This run just doesn’t end! Well, eventually it does, and you are at valley bottom where the snowcat meets you with beer and wine for the ride back up to the lodge (we typically do 5th Dimension as the last run of the day).

This is not a run that can be skied very often. It relies on having the right mix of stability, visibility and snow conditions from the high alpine all the way down to the low valley floor.

Side Winder

Drop-off at 2300 meters

Pickup at 1000 meters

Total Vertical drop of 1300 meters ( 4225 vertical feet)

Best qualities of the run: variety! Alpine skiing, tree skiing, an open cutblock with lots of stumps to jump, and a great view from the top. Side Winder is on a North aspect… which means great snow! The Thunder Dome is a spectacular drop off point on the NW part of our ski area. From here you look down on the Anstey Arm of Shuswap Lake, and in the distance you can see Sun Peaks Resort, Dun Peak, the Trophy Range in Well’s Gray park, the south end of the Caribou mountains, and the south end of Mike Weigele’s Heli Skiing terrain. Off the ‘Dome’ we ski to the Northeast and then do a dog-leg back to the northwest, passing under a massive vertical rock bluff. We finish at valley bottom in the Shuswap highlands part of the Monashees.

Contiki

Drop-off at 2120 meters

Vertical drop of 1120 meters (3640 vertical feet)

Best qualities of the run: long, steep fall line skiing. North aspect (great snow). We drop off on a ridgeline and commence our run doing mellow meadow skiing then drop into steep couloir and plunge vertically down the fall-line all the way to valley floor. The narrow part of the couloir doesn’t last long and we can traverse to open glades where there is tons of room to spread out and enjoy fresh tracks.

Medusa-Viper

Drop-off at 2220 meters

Pickup at 1500 meters

Vertical drop of 720 meters (2346 vertical feet)

Best qualities of the run: spectacular scenery; open terrain. The entrance is moderately steep, but then becomes more gentle and rolling as we leave the upper ‘Medusa’ section of the run. The Viper section is beneath huge vertical cliffs that are truly breathtaking. The run is in open alpine terrain from start to finish, which is shaded by the cliffs, so it usually has terrific quality snow.

Twilight Zone

Drop-off at 2160 meters

Pickup at 1680 meters (high pickup) or 1300 m. (lower pickup)

Vertical drop of 480 or 860 meters (2795 vertical feet)

Best qualities of the run: big and beautiful scenery. Fun boulder fields. We climb to the extreme southwest end of our ski area and drop off on a high ridgeline. We do a few short radius turns until we reach the saddle where we descend – with monster slopes on either side. As we proceed lower, the run changes tone and becomes boulder fields and glades.

It finishes with good old Monashee tree skiing.

Mustang Glacier – Pipeline

Drop off at 2440 meters

Pickup at 1100 meters

Vertical drop of 1340 meters (4355 vertical feet)

Best qualities of the run: spectacular views and a long, north aspect run. Once again we drop off at the top of the Mustang Glacier. We head due north and ski the glacier until it funnels into a Pipeline feature that spews out into a big alpine bowl. From here we traverse skiers-left and then finish the run on steep cutblocks down to the valley floor.

Lisa’s Run

Drop-off at 2440 meters

Pickup at 1400 meters

Vertical drop of 1040 (3380 vertical feet)

This run is named in honor of Lisa Kinman who recently died of cancer. Lisa was the massage therapist at Mustang for 8 seasons and was a skilled therapist and an excellent person. All of the staff will miss her very much. Lisa is truly deserving of having one of the best runs on the tenure named after her. We will think of her every time we ski it. The skiers left bowl is called ‘Turkey Nuts’.