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D’Arcy McLeish

To Heck With Ski Mags & Their Resort Guides… Here Are Our Favorite Backcountry Ski Areas on Earth

Brought to you by SCARPA Resort skiing has its place, but nothing compares to untracked snow as far as the eye can see, no crowds, no punters, no lift lines, and no manic insanity on a pow day. Backcountry skiing will always trump skiing in the resort. Not to mention that working for your turns is something especially sweet. Something […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | February 8, 2021
1 Comment

Ski Patrol – A Real Job

It happens to ski patrollers at every resort. A guest gets on the chairlift, sees the crosses on the jacket, and asks: ‘So…do you guys just ski around all day? Do they pay you for that?’ I usually don’t dissuade them. On most days, I do just ski around, and yes, they pay me for it. Occasionally though, I am […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | June 12, 2020
20 Comments

How To Hike and Find Powder Days After a Storm at Alpine Meadows, CA

squaw valley, Ron Cohen, Andy Wirth

Brought to you by Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, CA There’s magic when it snows at Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, CA. Both mountains combine to offer up some of the best inbounds terrain of any resort in North America. But even when the storm settles and the usual suspects get tracked out, Alpine Meadows offers something a little further and a little deeper […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | January 26, 2020
1 Comment

Ski 100,000 Vertical Feet At Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, CA & Have A Shot At A FREE BC Heli Skiing Trip

[Sponsored By: Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, CA] How does 4 or 5 days of heliskiing in British Columbia sound? Ya, we thought so. Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, CA is having a killer season. With a 90+ inch storm that just pummeled the resort it’s been face shots and a pow frenzy there for the last week. And it’s still snowing. So even […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | January 25, 2019
3 Comments

Squaw Valley Aerial Tram – 50 Years of ‘The Monster’

Brought to you by Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, CA When you first drive into Squaw Valley, the first thing you notice is a giant granite cliff that overlooks the base of the mountain. It’s a spectacular piece of terrain that absolutely dominates the view. The Tram Face, as it’s known, would be enough to wow visitors, but when you look […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | December 6, 2018
3 Comments

7 Reasons to Quit Your Job & Become A Ski Bum:

Ok, so maybe I’m longing for winter a little. First, it’s been hot here. So hot, in fact, that much of the province is under an extreme fire danger rating. Second, all I seem to see on social media these days are reports and videos of people shredding never ending deep pow in South America and New Zealand. So I’m in the mood to ski. That deep seated, powder addiction has crept back to the surface of my consciousness. Because of that, I thought I would feed that fire a little for anyone contemplating a life in the mountains, away from their office job, where they can ski every day.

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D’Arcy McLeish | July 11, 2018
21 Comments

Valle Nevado, Chile – Going Beyond the Boundary

Valle Nevado, Chile is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and while it’s often touted as one of the best resorts in the Southern Hemisphere, with epic terrain and an awesome infrastructure (and amazing food, wine and accommodations), one of its true gems lies beyond the ski area boundary. And the options are truly endless, with everything from boot packs […]

D’Arcy McLeish | June 1, 2018
0 Comments

The Ikon Pass – Historic Big Mountain Destinations & The Biggest Legends

[sponsored by Ikon Pass] The Ikon Pass is the means to ski and ride some of the most iconic destinations in North America. Places like Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Mammoth Mountain, Alta, Snowbird, Deer Valley Resort and Big Sky Mountain Resort. It’s a curated list out of big mountain history. It’s not just the terrain, it’s […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | May 1, 2018
0 Comments

80 on 80 – An Ikon Pass Road Trip

[sponsored by Ikon Pass] The Ikon Pass provides access to 26 iconic mountain destinations. Twenty-six places that offer some of the best snow and terrain in the world. Places like Mammoth Mountain, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, Alta, Snowbird, Big Sky and Jackson Hole, to name just a few. Winter road tripping has never had so many easy options, and from […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | April 26, 2018
0 Comments

Valle Nevado Ski Resort, Chile – 30 Years of Good Food, Fine Wine and Blower Pow

[sponsored by Valle Nevado] It’s been 30 years since Valle Nevado Ski Resort opened its doors. One of the more iconic resorts in the world, Valle Nevado sits nestled in the Andean Mountains in some of the most spectacular terrain in the Southern Hemisphere. The season down south is just around the corner so after you get your fill of […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | April 26, 2018
0 Comments

The Grand Targhee Bike Park – Riding The Tetons

[sponsored by Grand Targhee] The first thing that happens when you come to ride the Grand Targhee Bike Park is your jaw drops from the views. It’s a fairly serious problem, too. The Tetons are some of the most spectacular mountains in the world and trying to concentrate on keeping your bike in control while taking in the views is […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | April 10, 2018
0 Comments

Design Your Dream Winter With The Ikon Pass:

[sponsored by Ikon Pass] What if you could curate the perfect winter? What it would it look like? Would you stay in one place or move around? There are a few ski passes out there that can help with that, of course, but many of them fall just a little short. So many feel somehow…limited. But there’s one pass that […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | March 27, 2018
0 Comments

Introducing the Ikon Pass – Uniting North American’s Premier Mountain Destinations

[sponsored by the Ikon Pass] There’s something to be said for celebrating individualism. Something to be said when a company allows for each of its parts to show their colours and be themselves. In the ski world, this is often lost when one of the big corporations takes over a local resort, but one company is going out of its […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | March 8, 2018
2 Comments

A Letter to Warren Miller

camera movie

Dear Mr Miller, I could never address you as Warren because I still see you with my adolescent eyes—the eyes of a budding dirtbag who never thought making a life as a skier was possible. You were a titan in the ski world, and while I never had the privilege of meeting you, you have been with me since puberty. Related: […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | January 28, 2018
0 Comments

The Soul of Skiing Lives At Grand Targhee, WY

[sponsored by Grand Targhee] It’s a busy world out there in the land of skiing. Resorts seem to keep growing, getting bigger and more crowded every year. On a powder day, the mega resorts get tracked out in an hour. And the lineups at some of those big resorts have become a little our of control. So what’s a dirtbag […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | January 22, 2018
1 Comment

Intuition Liners – 25 Years of Making Ski History

[sponsored by Intuition Liners] In the early 1990s, a local Whistler Skier, Byron Gracie, began tinkering with his ski boots. He looked at the junky liners that came in boots at the time and thought there had to be a way to get both better performance and comfort out of your average ski boot. He figured that the key to […]

D’Arcy McLeish | December 12, 2017
0 Comments

Sierra-at-Tahoe, CA | Easy to Get to, Awesome to Shred

[sponsored by Sierra-at-Tahoe] When you think of skiing in Lake Tahoe, it’s often the big corporate resorts that come to mind. The glitzy vibe and the relentless crowds at the marge resorts, but Tahoe has a real gem that likes to fly a little under the radar. Not only is it an intimate, friendly local affair, but it gets huge […]

D’Arcy McLeish | December 6, 2017
1 Comment

Image Quest Powder Tour, Japan – Education Through Experience

[sponsored by Le Grand Adventure Tours] What would you say if there was an opportunity to book a ski trip where you could learn and develop skills as an action sports photographer, journalist or athlete all while shredding some of the deepest snow on earth? We live in a world where our digital interconnectivity allows us more and more opportunities […]

D’Arcy McLeish | November 22, 2017
1 Comment

The North Face at Alyeska Resort, AK | Can You Ski It?

[Sponsored By: Alyeska Resort] Tucked into the northernmost rainforest in North America, Alyeska Resort sits above the town of Girdwood Alaska, about 45 miles South of Anchorage in the Chugach Mountain Range. Alyeska is one of those undiscovered gems in the ski world. It’s not the biggest or the baddest and doesn’t have that glitzy pro skier cred the way Squaw or […]

D’Arcy McLeish | November 13, 2017
8 Comments

Shred Sick Backcountry Terrain in Chile and Argentina In One Trip This Summer with SASS

[sponsored by SASS Argentina] Thinking of going to South America to ski or ride this summer? Are you looking for something more than just resort skiing? SASS Global Travel has been taking people on full service, big mountain backcountry adventures in Argentina and Chile for years and they take care of everything so all you have to do is show […]

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D’Arcy McLeish | July 25, 2017
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