Standbys available:  $299 Adult, $199 Teen (with adult):

• Thurs 27 Dec: 4 seats Expert     
• Fri 28 Dec: 5 seats Advanced
• Sat 29 Dec: 1 seat Expert
• Sun 30 Dec: 4 sets Intermedite
• Mon 31 Dec: 4 seats Intermediate

Call (250) 362-2271 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  to book -
Christmas Gift Certificats available

Standby seats available: $299 adult, $199 teen with a parent:

23 Dec: 6 seats "advanced"    
26 Dec: 7 seats "intermediate/advanced"

Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  to book

Standby seats 18 December, Expert group:

$299/seat!
4 seats for $1099
6 seats for $1499
8 seats for $1599

Come and enjoy the best season-start we've ever had - we've already been running for 2 weeks, and there's lots of snow up there!  Photo below was taken yesterday afternoon.

I was looking for a good day for a video shoot... but looking at the 14-day forecast, there's just nothing but snow:



We already have 132cm at the study plot halfway up - nearly 150cm at the top and over a metre at the bottom, and there is another 35cm in the forecast before the weekend, and 40cm more during the weekend.

We didn't have snow like this last year until the middle of February - it's going to be a great weekend out there for skiing!  Maybe too snowy for good photos, but I can deal with that!  Coverage is good, and we have a couple of good bowls open - if you give us a couple of days notice, we'll open up some more for you.

Full cat this weekend is $2399 - that's only $199 if you have a group of 12, and still a super deal with a group of 7 or 8!

Big Red Cats has about 150cm of snow at the top, and we're open for business, with our first trip going out on Saturday 24 November - more photos will be posted after that trip, but in the meantime the photo below was taken yesterday.

You may have heard about the mythical $199 cat seat and wondered why you never heard about it in time to book it - well, here it is!  Book a full cat rental from now until 14 Dec for just $2399 - that's just $199.95 per person if you have a group of 12!

Understand it is pre-season, so we don't have access to all of our terrain yet, and can only take out one group per day, but we're good to go - how long can it take for you to gather 11 friends and get your pre-seaon powder fix?

Better than the standby rate!

Subject to availability, book 3 nights lodging at the Red Shutter Inn and 3 days cat skiing for just $999!

3-17 Jan only

Per person double occupancy - $49/night single surcharge or agree to assigned roommate.

Add extra nights including cooked breakfast for $59/night

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Shot taken 13 January 2012...

If you've been looking for an entry level CAA avalanche course, Keith Robine is a BRC guide and a Professional Member of the CAA who has been teaching AST 1 and AST 2 courses for years.  A combination of classroom training, outdoor training, and cat-assisted ski touring, the courses run in December and early Jan.  See more info at this link

Red Mountain has announced that they will be installing a new chair on neighbouring Grey Mountain - adding another 1000 acres of skiing to the resort, and lots of sidecountry access as well.  According to their press release, "RED is elevated to the top three-percent (3%) of all resorts in North America for skiable acres (2,682!)" I've seen them out there cutting the trees, and I've seen the chairs sitting at the bottom waiting to be installed next year, so I know it's a sure-thing - but get this - they're cutting the runs, but won't have the chair in - so this year they're using a cat to shuttle people across!  Take the Motherlode chair up, explore Granite for a while, then ski across the top towards Grey Mtn, and the cat will shuttle groups over to the top of Grey!  Then ski back to the base and do it again.

More info at Red Mountain's website.

Big Red Cats has had an excavator out, making better snowcat roads to better access some more of our north-facing terrain.  
And thanks very much to Atco Lumber for creating some more open spots to ski as well!

The first snowfall of the season was 10 Sep - of course it didn't stick around for very long, but Kieren and Kauri got excited about skiing, as they toiled away with chainsaws improving the cat skiing at Big Red Cats.  Kieren thought it would be an easy year of chainsawing, but once he got out there he just couldn't help himself - he's so excited to be offering a better experience out there again this year.

Big Red Cats has welcomed another couple of snowcats to the fleet!  To be honest, one will become an organ donor for parts for other cats, so we'll still have 5 cats with passenger cabins (running up to 4 per day, with the 5th as backup, and to rotate through for preventive maintenance), and another road builder cat.  Pisten Bully 300's are fast and powerful machines, and we have lots of them, along with our year-round master mechanic Richard Streadwick and his assistant Dana, to keep them going reliably all winter.

Winter is coming.  I can feel it.  The days are shorter, there's frost in the morning, the phones have been ringing, and Big Red Cat and I unwrapped this season's new skis in the last week.  Mostly Rossignol S7's, because that's what most of the guests preferred last year, with a couple of S7W skis for the ladies and some S3's for teens.  Kauri and Kieren will be busy mounting the bindings as soon as they're done glading the new runs.

Date-specific January "gap" specials, including 2 nights lodging in the luxury "Big Red Lodge" at Red Mountain and 1 day cat skiing: (extra cat skiing or lift tickets to Red may be added on 2nd day). In Fri 4 Jan - Cat Sat 5 Jan Out Sun 6 Jan: $349 each with group of 12 or $389 each with group of 8 In Tues 8 Jan - Cat Wed 9 Jan Out Thurs 10 Jan: $349 each with group of 12 or $389 each with group of 8 In Tues 15 Jan - Cat Wed 16 Jan Out Thurs 17 Jan: $375 each with group of 12 or $399 each with group of 8 In Wed 23 Jan - Cat Thurs 24 Jan Out Fri 25 Jan: $425 each with group of 12 or $450 each with group of 8

Click here to read the full article by Patti Lefkos  in North of 50 Magazine, describing her experience with an intermediate group at Big Red Cats, with photos.

The leap from the security of groomed runs to the challenge of backcountry powder can be daunting. Heli skiing seems terrifying and ski touring requires incredible endurance. So what are those of us slightly over 30 and still up for a new adventure to do? Paula and Kieran Gaul of Big Red Cats near Rossland, BC have just the ticket to ride.

I’m precariously perched on a slippery bench inside what seems to be an aluminum box. I jam my knees against the seat ahead to prevent sliding forward as we rattle along in the red piston Bulley cat. We jiggle gently over every rut of the snow-packed corduroy road. Hemlock branches brush the steamy windows. 

There are 12 of us; most aged 25 to 35, and two couples in their 60’s and 70’s, from Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the US. As usual, the majority are men. 

“How many times did you fall yesterday?” I ask the 30-something guy sitting behind me. “At least ten,” he says with a laugh. “Most of us tasted snow.” I begin to feel more comfortable. A seasoned resort skier but backcountry neophyte, I am as nervous as I am excited about the day ahead. At 60, I’m afraid to be the only one who falls, worried about being the person who will hold up the hard core powder hounds and terrified of losing control and hitting a tree.   Click to go to full article 

We're pleased to announce that Kieren has passed the final level of the Canadian Ski Guide Association training, and is now a Level 3 guide!

Every 2 years (for the last 20 years) the Canadian Ski Guide association holds a 9 day long exam for ski guides that want to lead or supervise a cat or heliskiing operation operation.    The exam involves terrain selection, group management, rescue, crevasse rescue,  transceiver search and much more.    The crevasse rescue was held at 9,000 ft in the northern Monashee range.   This course was hosted by Mike Weigle Heliskiing.

The Level 3 qualification allows guides to supervise a cat or heliskiing operation.   The level 3 takes a minimum of 6 years to complete and involves:

• 6 years of mentoring from senior guides - in an apprenticeship model
• 3 levels of guide exams and training
• The highest level of courses and Certification from The Canadian Avalanche association.
• Canadian Ski Instructors Alliance Level 1 -2 course
• Current 80 hour 1st aid course

Big Red Cats' Paula and Kieren Gaul. Kieren packed in his Sydney gig in treasury finance to set up the Big Red Cats Skiing operation in Red Mountain Canada and never looked back. A former member of the Australian Ski Team, Kieren grew up in Canberra before moving to Sydney to pursue a career in finance but his love of snow took over and he and his Canadian wife, Paula, now spend the northern winters guiding clients in the backcountry of British Columbia through 18 500 acres of terrain. The envy of their friends, the Gauls have over 250 runs in deep powder for intermediates to experts in their own backyard.

Click here to read the entire article featured in the Syndey Morning Herald

Here is the link: http://www.aftenposten.no/reise/article2204251.ece

The above link is to a review in a Norwegian newspaper.  Anyone know what it says?

Article by Rachael Oakes-Ash

Cat skiing is oft referred to as the lazy man's way to see the backcountry. These giant groomer style machines with a purpose built cabin to seat up to fourteen people transport skiers and boarders to the backcountry. Most cat ski companies have a set and limited tender of hectares they can utilised for their guests.

Skiers and boarders take on virgin snow with a lead and tail guide for safety while the cat makes it's way back to the bottom to pick them up and take them to the next terrain. When the helicopters don't fly due to weather conditions the cat can still go out and most guarantee around ten runs in a day.

Canada's Powder Mountain and Big Red Cats offer day trips while Selkirk has lodges for overnight stays. South America's Ski Arpa offers steep and deep powder perfection in the Andes.

Read the entire article here: http://blogs.smh.com.au/travel/archives/2008/07/the_worlds_best_off_piste_ski.html

Good fortune begets great skiing

Bill Jennings
March 28, 2008

To find great skiing, you can prepare to be in the right place at the right time. Or just get lucky. Last week I asked Loulou Kneubuhler to join me for some "research" on Schweitzer's trees. He freed up Friday.

Last fall Ski Magazine rated Schweitzer among the top three resorts for tree skiing in North America. A day there in the forest was on my list.

Loulou and I carpooled to Schweitzer with my friends, Jim Joy and Dave Watling. We picked a perfect day. A storm that dropped a half-foot-plus was playing out. Attendance was sparse.

Schweitzer is rich with terrain – and trees. Choose a glade from any lift. We didn't ski the same trees twice. People will argue about the top three for trees. But the attention Schweitzer has attracted is understandable.

 

Check out this article just published in the UK's SNOW Magazine!

The fine folks at SNOW! Magazine, the UK's largest snow sports magazine, were gracious enough to write a little article about our operation. Flip back to the inside cover, that shot is us too!

http://www.powdermag.com/features/columns/redcats/

RED (GREEN) MACHINE: Corn-fed cats

Efforts to give the ski industry a greener shade have been slow to progress and met with skeptical stares. Whenever a company makes headlines for implementing an environmentally sustainable practice, one must question: Is this “true-green” or merely “green-wash?” Are said changes actually being implemented, or is it just empty rhetoric designed to elicit valuable PR attention?

One outfit in particular, Big Red Cat Skiing located just a few miles away from Red Resort in Rossland, B.C., has paid close attention to other true-green stewards of the environment, like Aspen Skiing Company. Through implemented policies, Big Red is committed to mitigating skiing’s environmental impact.

Though only in its third year, Big Red Cat Skiing has made its position clear by embarking on a path towards a diminished dependence on petroleum-based fuels.