“Backcountry ski tour operators of Canada, unite!” could be the slogan for the newly-formed Backcountry Lodges of British Columbia. Spokesperson Tannis Dakin proprietress of Sorcerer Lodge in the Selkirk Mountains says, “backcountry lodges in B.C. face a lot of similar problems, and so we thought it was time to get everybody together to see if we could solve these issues in a more unified way. We were successful in signing up all 26 lodges and operators, which I was very happy about.” Topics identified by the fledgling group as needing attention are procuring liability insurance, negotiating land tenures with the BC provincial government, and writing up a common waiver form for all operators. Dakin says that other initiatives include responding as a group if and when accidents occur.

Selling the very idea of backcountry skiing is also part of the group’s mandate. Backcountry skiers in the United States will see the results of a co-operative marketing initiative undertaken by the new group this winter, as 17 members signed on to be listed in a full-page advertisement running throughout the season in Couloir and Backcountry magazines. In Canada, the group had legendary ski mountaineer Chic Scott pen a story in the current issue of Explore magazine. “Some of the operators have small marketing budgets and usually rely on word of mouth to fill their spaces. The backcountry ski industry has been affected negatively by global travel trends like 9/11, SARS, and increased airport security. The co-op advertisement is just another way to get our message across.” Alas, that doesn’t mean that there are spots available at too many lodges for, say, the second week in March!