This was easily one the best ski trips I've ever done! Any adventure with the Treadway family is a worthy one. I started skiing with Tessa Treadway long before she became an mother of two wild boys. Tessa is definitely one of my favourite people, so I obviously adore her little guys Kasper & Raffi and I will jump on any chance I get to hangout with them.

Kasper is probably the bravest 3-year-old kid I've ever met. In the winter of 2016 I spent several days chasing him around Whistler Blackcomb with my camera. I was able to capture a few bangers of the tiny little guy and we ended up with photo spreads in Powder, Backcountry, The Ski Journal, and Forecast. Hilarious! And awesome. I made it a priority to get out on another trip with the Treadways again this winter.

Kasper on the pages of Forecast Magazine! November 2016

Dave and I brainstormed a bunch of ideas for family friendly ski trips. Dave eventually came up with a brilliant idea: head up to the Cariboo/Chilcotin Range and check out all the mom-&-pop ski hills in the area! This would be a great opportunity to get Kasper and Raffi out of the mainstream ski resort vibe, and back to the roots. We're talking T-bars, double chairlifts, outhouses, day lodge characters, extra large cinnamon buns for $1, and lots of poutine!

We pitched the story to a bunch of ski magazines but none of them felt that the content would be extreme enough to run in their publications. Fair enough. We needed to think more mainstream. Dave and I pitched for weeks and weeks, we were about to give up on anyone wanting to run our story. And then at the last minute, we landed 3 feature stories with The Globe & Mail!

The Treadway's and Globe writer Carrie Tait started the adventure at Mt. Timothy in Lac La Hache. I couldn't make it to Timothy so I joined them at our next stop, the Tweedsmuir Ski Club. Tweedsmuir is basically halfway between Williams Lake and Bella Coola, on the top of the Chilcotin Plateau. You drive, drive, and then keep driving, forever it seems. And then load all your gear onto a snowmobile and then head a few km's up a snowy trail into the little ski haven!

Kasper and Dave slept in a snow cave at Tweedsmuir Ski Club!

The Tweedsmuir Ski Club is a community run, not for profit ski hill. For the people, by the people. The ski hill consists of one rope tow, which only spins on Saturdays.

Next up, we checked in with the Treadways' friends in Tatla Lake. They have a gorgeous lakefront, mountain view Ranch. Visiting with the horses and hearing stories about life on the Plateau was a great way to spend a down day.

Last but not least, Troll Resort! Troll is located northeast of Quesnel and is home to the longest T-bar in Canada.

Troll provided the classic mom-n-pop ski area vibe. The locals were so inviting, they housed us, fed us, and showed us all their sweet spots on the mountain! They even took us out for some after hours renegade cat skiing in a full blown snowstorm. And then they threw a banquet for us, because why not I guess? I loved everything about Troll.

Thanks to Destination BC, Geoff Moore @ Cariboo/Chilcotin Tourism, Troll Resort, Timothy Ski Club, Tweedsmuir Ski Club, Carrie Trait, The Globe & Mail, and the Treadways for an unforgettable trip to Central BC!