Destination: Silver Star, B.C.
Family-friendly adventure abounds!
Story by Niki Yonkow
Photos by Dane Doerflinger
Photo at right: The author and her family load the car after a ski adventure at Silver Star Mountain Resort, B.C.
Going on a ski vacation with children can be a challenge. Just the thought of packing all the gear and anticipating varying family opinions on what to do every day made me want to lay down with an ice pack on my forehead.
But, Silver Star Mountain Resort in B.C., Canada, has something for everyone and they make it easy.
We arrived at Silver Star on a Friday afternoon. My husband and two girls (ages 10 and 12) couldn’t wait to get out of the car and enjoy the bright sun after leaving an overcast Seattle six and a half hours earlier.
We checked into our two-bedroom apartment at the Firelight Lodge, which would be our home for the next three days. We barely had time to catch our breath, unpack and take in the view of the slopes before our girls begged us to go outside and explore.
Up and Running
Silver Star Mountain Resort offers up plenty of activities for family fun, including ice skating, Nordic skiing, bowling and more.
Silver Star offers an all-inclusive ticket that allows guest access to the tubing run, the groomed outdoor ice-skating pond, 55 kilometers of cross-country trails, and of course, the ski lifts.
The girls had seen the tubing run from the parking lot so that was where they headed first, racing ahead of us. While the kids zoomed down the tubing slope, we could have relaxed at Pin Heads, the bowling alley and cafe across from the tubing slope. We chose, however, to join the fun—holding onto each other’s tubes as we careened down the slick and fast run, spinning and screaming the whole way down.
“Let’s do it again!” cheered the girls. Up and down we sped until our stomachs demanded dinner and our cheeks turned rosy in the evening chill.
That night after a home-cooked meal of spaghetti and meatballs, and an evening of sitting in front of the fireplace with Okanagan wine, we watched snow drift lazily across lit-up evergreens.
Morning Treats
Instead of making breakfast the next morning, we pulled on our snow boots and took a short walk through the new snow to Bugaboos, a bakery located in the Silver Star Village that seems to be a favorite with the red-jacketed ski instructors.
And who can blame them? The bakery case was full of flakey pastries filled with fruit, custards and chocolate; thick sweet gingerbreads; savory croissants and a selection of gluten-free goodies. Our food came with mugs of hot chocolate for the girls and double-shot lattes for my husband and me.
Fun for Kids and Parents
We had enrolled the girls in group ski lessons for the morning and met the ski instructors at the Adventure Center. As the group headed to the slopes, my husband and I looked at each other, feeling a little lost.
Three skiers enjoy the views from the top of a run at Silver Star Mountain Resort.
We smiled realizing that we would have the whole morning to ski any run we chose, without our children. We skied hard all morning, picked the girls up at lunch time and spent the afternoon with the girls who showed us what they had learned—our 10-year-old made a big leap learning to carve her turns.
Snow-Catting to Dinner
After a long day of skiing we were ready for a hearty meal. We decided on a special Saturday night dinner at Paradise Camp located on the backside of Silver Star near the top of Powder Gulch Express chair lift.
During the day, Paradise Camp is a rustic lodge for cold skiers to sip hot chocolate and gaze at the spectacular Monashee Mountains. But, at night, the lodge transforms into an inviting, intimate dining room.
We boarded a snow cat at the base area. The only view out the window was snow illuminated in the headlights of the cat. Inside, the snow cat was cozy and we shared it with a group of high-spirited women from Australia who were on an all-girls ski-week vacation. Blowing snow and freezing temperatures were no problem for our snow-cat driver who delivered us smoothly to the door of the lodge.
Decadence in Paradise
The wait staff greeted us with smiles at the door, and we stepped out of the biting wind into a warm dining room with candles and table cloths.
My husband and I started our dinner with local Okanagan pear cider and the girls had Shirley Temples.
We had a hard time deciding from the varied menu featuring starters such as steamed mussels and roasted butternut squash bisque. Main course choices ranged from winter lamb shank to vegetarian Wellington.
After much indecision I selected the Okanagan chicken supreme, my husband chose the wild B.C. Salmon and the girls opted for the bison ragu.
Although I did not think I could eat another bite, my family convinced me we had to at least share the vanilla bean and Bailey’s crème brûlée for dessert.
Family Skate-Skiing Lessons
The next day the whole family got on the ski slopes early to catch first tracks after the overnight deposit of fluffy white snow.
In the afternoon, we took a skate-ski lesson with Dennis, one of the many experienced cross-country ski instructors at Silver Star. My husband and I are intermediate skate skiers, and the girls had not yet tried it. Dennis was as good at giving my husband and me tips as he was at teaching our girls the basics.
After some initial instruction, Dennis took us on a loop to the Mountain View warming hut.
“I like alpine skiing better because you don’t have to walk,” my 10-year-old told me. She was reluctant to do anything that she thought was close to hiking, but Dennis had her laughing at his demonstration of the “turtle” method of getting back up after one has fallen and we completed the loop with everyone smiling.
On the Road
The next morning, our last, the sun shone bright and we knew we had to get in at least a couple of hours of skiing before we headed back to Seattle. The girls wanted to do something on their own, so my husband and I caught a few turns and the girls ice skated on the pond near the Fireside Lodge.
After packing the car and heading down the road to Vernon, B.C., I mused at how many things we had done and how fun and easy this family ski vacation had been.
“Did you girls have fun?” I asked expectantly. No answer. I turned around to look and found both girls fast asleep.
Niki Yonkow is a Seattle writer. She spends most winters making turns at Stevens Pass with her family but hopes to return to Silver Star soon.
