Mount Norquay

Trip Date: March 2017

It's not everyday that I get to write about a ski/snowboard resort, but I recently had the pleasure of visiting Mount Norquay for the first time and keeping with tradition (see Delirium Dive as my most recent snowboarding post) I will share a blog post about the hill. I tend not to write every time I go snowboarding as it would be pretty monotonous and boring, but whenever I get to visit a hill for the first time I like to share my experience on this blog.

Mount Norquay Trail Map

Mount Norquay is located in Banff National Park and is considered one of the Big 3 resorts along with Sunshine Village and Lake Louise, although Norquay is considerably smaller than the other two. It has 60 runs spread over 190 acres of terrain. The earliest ski runs date back to 1926 and the original lodge opened in 1929. Mount Norquay is only 10 minutes from downtown Banff and is approximately 130km from Calgary. We ended up at Norquay to support the Canadian Cowboy Ski Race, which is a major fundraiser for the Canadian Pro Rodeo Sport Medicine Team, the founders of which are Christine's co-workers.

The summit of Mount Norquay is shrouded in clouds, but you can see the race course for the Cowboy Ski Race

Even though they had 4cm overnight the warm temperature made the consistency of the snow something like wet cement. On top of that it rained on and off throughout the day, so we were completely soaked before lunch time. That didn't stop us from enjoying ourselves and exploring what the hill had to offer.

Those lifties think they're so funny!

About to drop in on a run

Although not politically correct the tree-covered mountain is Stoney Squaw and it sits between Mount Norquay and Cascade Mountain

You can see the Banff town site in the background and that little hump is actually Tunnel Mountain

A quick GoPro selfie on one of the runs

Jeff, Sarah, and I riding the lift

Although Mount Norquay is not my first choice when it comes to ski and snowboard resorts I can see the draw for families as it's smaller and quieter than its larger neighbours. Due to the unfavourable conditions I would like to come back and see what it's like when the snow is good.