Snowsure: 3.8
- Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing
- Is often closed due to a lack of snow
- Occasionally suffers from a lack of snow
- Rarely suffers from a lack of snow
- Castle Mountain Resort is snowsure even in the poorest seasons
Visitor reviews for Castle Mountain Resort Ski Resort
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(NOTE: Reviews may be edited by our content team for the purposes of ensuring accurate and relevant information)
(NOTE: Reviews may be edited by our content team for the purposes of ensuring accurate and relevant information)
Latest
November 10, 2011
rick
rick
Castle Mountain
1. slow chairs = quality over quantity. I find Castle is less likely to be skied out because the chairs take so long.
2. the wind acts as precipitation. It doesn't need to snow at Castle to have pow. The wind blows the dry Alberta snow from other areas onto Castle, almost as good as snowing.
3. per square foot or cubic meter, however, you wanna look at it Castle has to be the steepest per run I've ever rode.
4. last May the 75cm overnight blower pow was unreal. You can't even sled into shit like that and I got it right off the blue chair.
Castle doesn't have the bells and whistles that a larger resort would have but I think the true Castle supporters are real skiers and boarders that want an awesome day of shredding rather than goose liver in a chalet. I think everything people complain about at Castle acts in its advantage.
I bought my first season pass for Castle last year and I couldn't of been happier with the choice.
September 21, 2011
Ryder
Ryder
Castle has its own unique settings, more of a local-small town feelings with basic services. Some people LOVE to go there and some don't and it's okay. Castle is NOT comparable to Banff or Whistler to the sense that they do not have a "touristy" services. If you are seeking that, Castle is not the place to be. Castle is more for hard-core skier and boarder with great slopes and has the longest continuous fall line (go to chutes) and when it dumps, you will have the best day of your life. Lift line might get busy when it dumps but that's the same as every resort, other resort might offer you a "fast speed chairs" but that means the hill gets teared up faster too. Castle has its wide range of great slopes that you can always find a untouched line all day long. I guess it's all about the mind set and atmosphere that the resort offers and what you are looking for. If you are looking to ski all day on the great hill, hit the "T-bar" pub at the end of the day to share stories with down to earth people, Castle is the way to go. But if you are looking for a shopping spree and couple's spa with fancy dining, Castle is not what you are looking for. Oh, by the way, cell phone does not work there so it's a great getaway from your everyday life. I am pretty sure they had Wifi at the lodge.
April 19, 2011
Chimo's
Chimo's
April 14, 2011
Chim from
Sweden
Chim from
Sweden
I don't get how people like this place so much, it's really nothing special. I agree with another reviewer, if you are in the area you might as well make the extra hour west and hit up Fernie. You will be at the top of the hill in no time compared to Castle, with their horrible lifts/lineups, and short runs. The upper mountain that everyone says is so great is really just a long traverse, with a short fall line if you decide to drop in anywhere. I do at least twice the amount of skiing in a day if I'm anywhere else other than Castle.
April 11, 2011
jorge
jorge
If Castle suddenly has this many ppl posting reviews this year there must be something to talk about - no, it's not all good, but when it's good, it's as good as it gets, and it's real. If you don't like it, don't bother posting, and just stay away. Nobody will miss you.
And BTW, there's no quad b/c the wind on most days would make it impossible to operate. Many days at the top of Castle are 'extreme skiing' when you consider the snow/wind/temps and terrain. If you're worried about breaking a nail and you need a massage at the end of every day, sorry, Castle is not for you.
April 07, 2011
nick from
United Kingdom
nick from
United Kingdom
To another reviewer, you have no idea what you are talking about..in fact I'm glad you wrote this cuz then Castle won't be as busy and the powder hounds can tear it up....to say castle has the worst quality of snow is unbelievable...you must be skiing on the bunny hill! Please go to Fernie and enjoy the complete whiteouts and the traversing......if you hate it so much why have you gone 10 times???
for $50 what do you expect....
April 05, 2011
beloch
beloch
Castle mountain has a small-town feel to it. While there are probably a few of the usual apathetic Australians sleep-walking through their shifts, there are enough grinning locals to leave you with the impression that you're genuinely welcome. This is definitely one of the friendliest hills I've been to. It's also relatively cheap.
The mountain itself is not gigantic, but it is laid out rather smartly. The Tamarack chair spits you out on a traverse that runs across the entire breadth of the ski area, letting you drop into the very top of pretty much any run you want. The terrain is quite varied and has plenty to suit any ability level.
The chairs, as many have mentioned, are fixed-grip doubles and triples that aren't very fast. Fortunately, the average crowds are quite small. On most days lineups are not an issue. On a crowded day the lineups are painful! The Tamarack chair services practically all of the best terrain on the mountain, and it's only a two-seater!
Timing seems to be more critical to getting the most out of a trip to Castle than it is for other hills. You must avoid crowded days at all costs. Castle seems to get large dumps of snow. In 2011 there have been at least a few over 50cm, and a couple over 80cm. If you can time your trip to coincide with a dump and smaller crowds you will be able to make fresh tracks until the lifts close! Visibility can be low on powder days, but that's often for the best. Sunshine can turn that powder into sticky mush!
The biggest thing this hill needs is higher lift capacity. One high-speed quad going from the base to the top of Tamarack would greatly reduce the time spent on lifts on slow days and probably quadruple the runs you can get in on crowded days. Freshies would disappear a lot faster on crowded days, but that's a small price to pay. It's probably a big investment for a hill that sees relatively little traffic, but I hope they eventually manage to do it.
March 25, 2011
Caesar
Caesar
March 21, 2011
Purlang Chingbow from
Japan - Nagano
Purlang Chingbow from
Japan - Nagano
Castle has insanely long lines, for slow, barely working lifts. And that is not even close to the worst thing about this place. I've been to Castle Mountain about ten times now and I can definitely say it has the worst runs out of any hill I have skied. The quality of the snow is horrible as well, it's just wet, heavy, crusty snow so it's actually worse when there's more. I highly recommend traveling a short distance from Castle to Fernie if you are in the area, it is a much better resort, you definitely get what you pay for, unlike Castle Mountain where I leave feeling ripped off every time.
March 19, 2011
The Real Snow Guy
The Real Snow Guy
The fat on Castle: does 40 years of the driest, best and deepest snow convince those who come for one run to stay and ski for one more day? Probably not! I have skied/rode every ski mountain that has a name to fame and have not as of today found another mountain that can compare to the kind of snow that happens here. For those of you who have a very short attention span in between the skin that protrudes from you "skinny s---l" I would suggest to just get here and enjoy. We do not need so called fast, quad or whatever you describe as getting up the hill. I have seen some of you and you can barely get down the steeps. Just try to keep up! By your response and comments I probably should not have replied to your small talk, keep up the negative and the positive will always win!
Nearest