Northern British Columbia is deep and wild. It’s a place where old railroad towns and mining communities are slowly being discovered by skiers as home bases for zones untouched, unexplored and disproportionately blessed with healthy storm systems and near-bottomless snowpacks. New Hazelton, BC, a small community along the Skeena River, 40 miles north of Smithers, is one such place. Located on the eastern edge of the Coast Range, this area has long been known by loggers and miners as an insanely productive snowbelt. Moist systems from the Pacific Ocean push up the Skeena River and meet the cold arctic air of the province’s interior, depositing copious amounts of dry, fluffy snow. And it’s here where Jevon Zyp, a long time professional in the cat ski industry, decided to set up his own operation, Skeena Cat Skiing, the only cat skiing outfit in all of Northern BC.

Based in the Babine Range, a subrange of the Skeena Mountains, Skeena Cat Skiing operates on the second largest cat skiing tenure in all of North America, with 32,000 skiable acres around Mount Thomlinson and Gail Creek. Here, high- alpine bowls around the hulking Mount Thomlinson spill into steep, old-growth glades. It’s a tree skier’s paradise with perfect terrain for both storm skiing and bluebird days. This far north, the snow stays cold, and because you’ll share the huge expanse of Skeena’s tract with a maximum of 24 skiers per day, there’s no shortage of fresh turns to be had.

Now in its fourth season of operation, Skeena continues to explore further into its tenure. Each year it adds more cat roads to better navigate the terrain, access new zones and milk more vertical for guests.

Skeena has packages for any budget. A single day here ranges from 8 to 12 runs and up to 16,000 feet of vertical bliss. The full-service, all-inclusive option will have you set up in the cozy Suskwa Lodge in New Hazelton, where each day of skiing can be ended with a cocktail and a professional massage if that’s your kind of thing. The more à la carte, daily package is a cost-effective way to experience backcountry skiing without having to tour. Whether you go big on the all-inclusive package or keep it mellow, it’s guaranteed you won’t be paying heli-style prices.

Despite its remote location, getting to Skeena Cat Skiing is relatively easy thanks to twice-daily flights between Vancouver and Smithers. From there, it’s only an hour drive to the lodge. When you arrive, Zyp will likely be there to greet you along with delicious homemade fare and a selection of quality BC wines. Skeena’s tight crew of employees go out of their way to make every stay memorable, providing world-class cat skiing with a down-home atmosphere. It’s an experience that blends equal parts solitude and funky-community vibe, topped off with a ridiculous amount of pow.

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