I have been very lucky to ride snowmobiles all over the world from Greenland to Alaska to the USA as well as in my backyard of British Columbia.
Whether is was the incredible scenery, superlight powder (in some cases almost too much of it) or the amazing people I got to share it with, all of the places have been spectacular.
There is one place, though, that ticks all the boxes and that is a little place deep up a back road in Scotch Creek, BC, called Grizzly Lodge. Scotch Creek is in Interior BC and has some of the best sledding anywhere.
The Lodge – all 12,000 square feet of it was built in 2004 by some Europeans who wanted to start a cat skiing operation. Even though the local guides told them it could not compete with the ultimate operations that were currently nearby, they forged ahead, and sure enough two years later it was bankrupt.
Adam Trainer stumbled across the lodge some years later and was sad to see that it had been slightly abandoned with animals living inside. Instead of leaving it to die, Trainer, a motivated BC sledder, made the right moves and with some incredibly hard work, turned it around. What you see today is 12 years of incredible hard work that has the lodge able to house 28 guests in style with gourmet food, a dry room, hot tub, massage, full entertainment system, bar and wifi—although one of the best things here is you can step way off the grid if you want.
The People – Really these days it is all about the service and the people and I have yet to visit a place that does it as well as Grizzly Lodge. What’s their secret? Their secret is, well that there is no secret, just good BC down-to-earth hard-working people who love where they are and what they are doing. What can I say? It’s contagious. If you cannot have a good time here, then I don’t know what to tell you. Yes our group is pretty wild, and yes I am the guy who has had my Ski-Doo Summit 175 hanging upside down over the bar with me attached to it. Trainer and his crew are very patient and accommodating, however we have the utmost respect for this magical place. We have never broken a single dish in our nine years of our Greater Vancouver Powersports Dealer Ride led by our Captain Mike Skiba. This is a place to come, have fun and leave it in better shape than when you arrived.
The Riding – This will be my ninth season visiting Grizzly Lodge and with every snow condition imagineable over those years, I have never once been disappointed in the riding. In our sport, snow conditions are ever changing but if you like deep powder, tight and open tree riding, steep climbs or wide open travelling adventures you can do it all here. There is literally no limit to the fun you can have in every direction from the lodge and one of the best things is that you are literally 10 minutes out the door to the high BC alpine. This means you can escape for the whole day or ride and sneak back to the lodge for lunch or to gas up for more good times in the afternoon. We also always make sure we get in one good night ride and the best part is it’s usually just you and your group enjoying that whole zone. Awesome.
What You Need – Grizzly Lodge has everything to make your trip memorable so really you just need riding and safety gear, clothing for lounging in the lodge/hot tub, your Cyclops Gear camera and a fun attitude. They will take care of the rest.
Everything Else – It’s all online at www.GrizzlyLodge.ca.
(ED- Norona is a Ski-Doo Team Rider who loves adventures and exploring new zones. @davenorona)