Technically, I learned to ski at Canada Olympic Park (now known as WinSport), but where I really picked up my skills was at Mount Norquay in Banff. Norquay is one of the closest ski hills to Calgary, which makes it an easy choice some days, and they have the added benefit of running awesome discount days, which works out great for poor me!
The first year that I was back in Alberta after living out east, I got out skiing about 5 or 6 times (which, when you’re a student working two part-time jobs with not a lot of money, is pretty good!). Last year, due to a lack of time and funds, I was only able to get out once, to Mt. Norquay on one of their “Toonie Days”. (For those of you not from Canada, a “toonie” is our two dollar coin – meaning I got to ski for two bucks! Not too shabby.) I found myself in the same boat money-wise this year – between moving out, various trips and other expenses, I just couldn’t afford a $100+ lift ticket, not to mention gas to drive out to the mountains, food and other incidentals!
Mt. Norquay no longer runs their almost-too-popular Toonie Days, however they’ve created a new initiative this year called “#Cool2Carpool“. This event runs one Wednesday per month from December through April, and Norquay donates $2 per ticket issued to various charities.
The idea is that it’s $50 per carload for lift tickets, so the more people you have in your car to divide the $50 among, the cheaper it is for everybody. I was only able to wrangle one pal into going with me, so we just split the $50 in two, but a ski day for $25 each is still a bargain! The goal would’ve been to fill every seat in my 5 passenger car, making lift tickets only $10 per person, but maybe next year…
My friend and I had a great day skiing and exploring the mountain, taking a long lunch at Norquay’s Lone Pine pub, including a few alcoholic beverages and a tequila shot for courage (I was very rusty!) before heading back out for the afternoon. As an added bonus, as #Cool2Carpool days are on Wednesdays, the hill wasn’t too busy since most people were at work! Throughout the day we experienced all kinds of weather – sunshine, snow, wind… That’s Alberta for you.
We made a stop in Banff on the way home for candy apples from the Fudgery and in Canmore for a snack from 514 Poutine (we deserved it!).
Had some fun messing around with slow-motion video and spraying snow at each other too!
If you’re interested in checking out Norquay’s #Cool2Carpool day before the ski season is over, the last date is April 10, 2019.