Central Anderson Peaks
Image Credit: Submitted/District of Hope
January 25, 2024 - 7:00 AM
Kamloops and Okanagan skiers may not flock to the proposed South Anderson Valley Mountain Ski Resort, even though it will be quite near the summit of the Coquihalla Highway.
That’s because the massive development, being promoted by Nlaka’pamux (Spuzzum First Nation), will only be accessible from the Fraser Canyon.
But, if it goes ahead, it could have the long-term effect of funnelling Lower Mainland skiers to places like Big White, Silver Star and Sun Peaks.
“More ski resorts, more lifts, more places to learn, that’s always good,” Michael Ballingall, chair of the Thompson-Okanagan Tourism Association and senior vice-president of Big White, told iNFOnews.ca.
“The long and short of it is, anyone who is going to invest in snow and snow sport that has a good model for beginners and intermediates, that really is where the bread and butter of a ski resort is,” he said. “If you look at (Lower Mainland ski hills) Cypress and Seymour and Grouse, they’re the reason why Whistler, Big White, Silver Star and Sun Peaks are so successful, because they teach a lot of skiers.”
And that’s just the type of hill South Anderson is going to be.
“While the potential alpine ski terrain will cater mainly to beginner and intermediate skiers, the scenic value of the site and proximity to YXX (Abbotsford) and YVR (Vancouver) airports will likely attract Canadian visitors from outside of BC as well as some international visitors,” a report from Spuzzum First Nation that was presented to the District of Hope council earlier this week, said.
The 7,415 ha site is accessed along a 27-km long logging road from Highway 1 near the Alexandra Bridge Provincial Park, about 44 km north of Hope.
Upper ski terrain.
Image Credit: Submitted/District of Hope
The plan anticipates three phases of development, culminating with 11 lifts able to accommodate 9,000 skiers per day.
By comparison, the report says, Silver Star has 12 lifts, Sun Peaks 13 and Big White 15.
South Anderson is at a lower elevation than these other hills, with the base at 1,005 metres. Silver Star is at 1,155 metres, Sun Peaks at 1,255 metres and Big White at 1,508 metres.
At its peak, South Anderson will reach 1,730 metres. Big White’s top is at 2,318 metres, the report says.
READ MORE: 6 things you may not know about Big White on the resort's 60th anniversary
Eventually, there could be 12,300 “market bed units,” 1,200 employee beds and day visitor parking for 1,100 vehicles.
It’s envisioned to be a “world class” year-round destination with a golf course, hiking and mountain biking in the summer. A modest Nlaka’pamux interpretive centre is proposed and it’s expected to attract 400,000 visitors by its tenth year of operation.
The Spuzzum First Nation has filed an expression of interest with the Mountain Resorts Branch of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport so it still has a few steps to go through.
No one at the band was available to talk about projected timelines but, with the expertise available in the Mountain Resorts Branch and through Canada West Ski Association, development can proceed quite quickly once the master plan is approved, Ballingall said.
Of course, it will still take a couple of years to get lifts delivered from the day they are ordered.
“There’s a massive base in Vancouver that loves to learn to ski,” Ballingall said. “Over the course of the last four years, people that are in my resort today – with kids that are 12, 13, 14 or grandparents with three generations – they all started on those feeder resorts.”
South Anderson access, looking west.
Image Credit: Submitted/District of Hope
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