So KHMR is a great hill, and it's the one I have my season pass for. It's a long way from Calgary but I still make the drive because the hill is worth it. But there seems to be a problem. There is only one way to the top of the hill: the gondola. People used to complain that it was slow before, but guess what, it's even slower now!
There's some problem with the doors, where they won't lock into position properly. It's literally impossible to get to the top without the gondola tripping out, and it's getting worse. I was annoyed last year, but just assumed they would fix it over the summer. They haven't, and it's really starting to slow the lift lines down.
How hard can it be, they have basically 1 piece of equipment to maintain to keep the hill running and they seem to have failed. Please fix the gondola!
Other than that, a great hill for advanced riders.
No childcare organized again for Christmas holidays which is deplorable and no idea when it will open. I am not sure who at rcr manages Kicking Horse but they clearly do not understand that they are throwing money away and turning people off from a truly wonderful hill with amazing terrain. A 10 day vacation and not being able to ski with my husband once is not ok. At least last year they had a list of people to call to babysit. This year nothing and no apology. Good old rcr.
I skied KH for the first time on March .10. It was a glorious sunny day.
I was absolutely blown away by the stunning views of the Purcells & Rocky mtns. The double black terrain was unbelievable, truly Warren Miller stuff. And the Purcell powder, simply outstanding. I will return for sure.
Being from Calgary I'm close enough (3 hours door to slope) to do KH (Kicking Horse) as a day trip but I generally make it a 2 day trip. Accomodations can be had for under $60 per person with double accomodations and if you want to pay under $50 you can do that as well.
Having skied a lot at Fernie, Nakiska and "the Lake", I had to get new skis to handle the more difficult terrain at KH. In other words, as an advanced skier, it was easier to get into more advanced terrain at KH than the other resorts and there is more of it. The powder skis I used at Louise needed to be upgraded to handle the steeps and trees at KH. Not that Louise is a bad hill and I have to admit, the new skis work great at Louise as well but my skiing and equipment needed upgrading for KH.
The groomers at KH are, well, groomers. If you like them, similar to groomers at other areas. Difficulty levels are similar to Louise or Fernie (that'd be "more" difficult than Nakiska).
Taking the Grand Kids (who can ski blacks at Nakiska) to KH is fun, there is some nice intermediate terrain for them. The blacks and double blacks are beyond them at this point (although in a couple of years it'll be reversed, I'm sure).
Making a weekend of KH is fun, driving up after work on Friday, staying overnight in Golden, up and at the hill for 9:00 AM on Saturday, then again staying overnight and skiing the next day till 4:00, give or take and driving back to Calgary is certainly a full weekend but a ton of fun.
Something I have noticed, at all resorts in the Canadian Rockies (and KH perhaps more so), is that Saturday is the busy day. 2 weeks ago there was a 20 minute wait on the gondola on Saturday yet only a 2 (yes, 2 minutes at most) wait on Sunday. So, wait times are dependent upon when you ski.
It will be nice if they decide to open up more terrain (by putting in some kind of lift, perhaps to Rudy's peak).
Kicking Horse offers advanced ski runs for the avid skier and a new beginner ski area that rivals most big mountain resorts for the ski school and what it offers to the family with young children. This lower mountain and chair lift have great groomed and ungroomed blue runs that should suit all skiing levels. The gondola quickly takes you to the top of a great mountain, restaurant and some of the best views and ski areas in North America. The resort offers a very intimate experience and a great place for kids to learn the true love of skiing. After skiing in most major North American ski resorts I can think of no better place to take my family.
Kicking Horse is a great hill. Definitely for the more advanced skier; the bowls, glades and chutes are awesome. The snow stays soft even days after a dump and you can still find lines in the trees untracked. The lift system is not the best, only 2 of use and the chair is slow and pretty short. The gondola is good and not bad for lines but skiing the bottom half of the mountain is a bit tedious at times. T1 & T2 are a hike but the terrain is awesome. The resort is a bit dead at night with only a couple of places to get a beer after dark.
Great skiers hill, tough but fun!
KH (Kicking Horse) is a fantastic mountain, and has the potential to stay that way with considerable lift expansion. Now the RCR owns the resort the locals pass disappears, there is no lift expansion (this year anyways) and the lift lines will be way longer than last year. On a powder day it was not uncommon to have lifts lines in the morning taking longer than 30mins and 20min+ for the rest of the day. That was last year! 2012-2013 will likely see 40% (guess) more skiers which means longer lift lines. To pay $90 for a lift ticket and wait half you day in the lift line, no matter the terrain, it's just not worth it. RCR needs to put in two lifts to get the traffic spread out, and then KH will be the best mountain out there.
I have done a few ski trips to Kicking these past two years and I've fallen in love with the place. There is just so much amazing terrain here. For those used to Louise, think for the chutes off the summit platter, but steeper, more snow, gnarlier drops, and way, way more of them.
This is an expert hill, no question. About half of the runs on the mountain are double black. There are two peaks, T1 and T2, that you can hike to, which gives you access to awesome chutes and glades, making it well worth the effort.
Kicking on a powder day is beyond words. Steep and deep. Just traverse down one of the ridgelines and drop in for some incredible tail surfing. Then cruise the black runs down the bottom half of the mountain.
From what I hear the last two years have been exceptional for snow, so I guess I've started exploring this mountain at just the right time. Regardless, Kicking has some of the best terrain around, and when it gets snow, it's unreal.
Unparalleled, epic, amazing. Use any of these words to describe KHR.
If you really want to challenge your limits and your legs KHR is your best bet. You could try a different chute every hour for 10 days straight and still not have skied or ridden them all. Not for the faint of heart.
There's not a lot to say that hasn't already been said, but KHMR has by far the best, steepest & most accessible advanced terrain to be found in western Canada. Living in Calgary it's a long trek out there, but Lake Louise & Sunshine simply can't compete.
There is very little traversing, so I'm not exactly sure what some of the other comments are talking about. From the gondola simply ride along CPR ridge and I'm sure you'll find something tricky enough to be a challenge. From the Crystal Bowl heading up Stairway and over into Feuz bowl there's always fresh powder and some amazingly technical terrain. Heading the other direction there's bowl over & super bowl to choose from, with Terminator ridge offering expert terrain beyond any hill I can think of.
I think most of the negative comments are due to the difficulty of the terrain, the interesting parts are not easy, way beyond the capabilities of a beginner/intermediate rider who would end up riding cat tracks all day. If you're a good rider though, and up for a challenge, KHMR is the best around.