[Closed] Canada BC area - float plane / helibiking recommedations?

Friends have done Mount Cartier in Revy and loved it. They are very handy riders though and said it was tech. (By handy I mean podium placing in Canadian National Enduro races). Talking to the guide (when he was driving us up Martha Creek which I highly recommend) you need to do something like Martha creek first as a skill check. They sometimes get people up the top who end up walking down quite a lot.

Being the Canadian way a lot of the decent riding is just normal shuttling (pick-ups etc). Plenty of that to be done all over the place and it's still good and noticeably cheaper.

Another ride I've not done but intend to go and do is T4 off the back of Golden... you take the Gondola up and then ride off the back in some steep wilderness terrain.

I'm going to Retallack lodge this year which is supposed to be amazeballs but obviously can't comment subjectively just yet.

Fernie has some DH trails but they're all pick-up not helicopter rides.

I may as well ask at this point... are you coming through Calgary and would you be interested in some locals to show some highlights?

Thanks Sweaman - we're flying to Calgary, but not staying there. We've got a week with Sacred Rides in Alberta and BC, then dropped off back in Calgary. I'm planning on getting tips from them on where to go next, though we do have a few days booked in Whistler. Revelstoke sounds a must, and friends have really recommended Nelson (though it's a bit out the way).

Other advice greatly appreciated. I'll look up Martha Creek, and we will be driving through Golden / Kicking Horse

I realise the floatplane thing is a bit of a novelty, and shuttling is the norm.

Pretty sure we're up to Mount Cartier, though no idea if it's a good ride. I've spent months in the Alps outside of bike parks riding tech footpath type trails.

Which Sacred rides trip are on on? (Just so I can work out what else to recommend)

[url= https://www.trailforks.com/trails/martha-creek-downhill/ ]Martha Creek on Trailforks[/url]

Nelson is really good but it is a bit of a ways away.

Did one(helidrop) in Whistler a few years back. Was a really good experience.

Dropped off high enough that we noticed slightly reduced oxygen levels. Had a good 50/60 minute decent. Nothing overly techy just good riding.

Any recommendations? So far I've been looking at Warner Lake and Spruce Lake with Tyax, but unless you pay a hefty premium to fly from Whistler, they arent very accessible (for us anyway).

I've done both those trips a couple of times and will be doing so again late July. Yes, getting there is a major PITA (which has the benefit of keeping volumes of riders down but you won't be alone on summer weekends on those trails) but it is doable with a regular car. It's 6hr trip from Vancouver with varying degrees and quality of dirt road depending on which route you take, so you need to bolt of another couple of days/rides to justify the travel time. There are quite a few other trails in the Chilcotins you can do as a day trip without the float plane expense. There's also some trails in Bralorne and Lilloeet you could combine into a mini-road trip, and Williams Lake isn't too far out of the way.
PM me for more advice about the Chilcotins if you want.

Many years ago I also did a helidrop from Whistler onto Rainbow mountain (opposite side of valley to ski hills). I don't know whether the helicopter operator still does that trip but, the same mountain now boasts a specific climbing trail and a new descent (Lord of the Squirrels) so there shouldn't be a need for a helidrop anymore!

OP: it's worth asking, but when does your trip start?
It was an epic year for snow over in south western BC and it's likely gonna be quite a few more weeks before the alpine trails are clear of snow

BC Singletrack trip with Sacred Rides, August and not massive elevation, so no snow issues.

Whistlers rainbow helindroo is still running. It's a very different catchment to riders prepared to climb up into subalpine.
The rainbow drop now uses skid mount racks so the price has come down.

Chilcotins, look at a multi day trip in the park to maximise the flight.
Fly Whistler to Lorna, 2 nights in the chilcotins and fly back tyax to Whistler. The drive is doable, but over the Hurley on regular tires and there's a good chance you'll be buying a new tire. Round the long way.. no idea, I've always taken the direct route and hoped momentum plus 10ply tires will work out 😉
Bald face and retallak might be worth a look too.

Drop us a line if you need anything Whistler wise.

The drive is doable, but over the Hurley on regular tires and there's a good chance you'll be buying a new tire. Round the long way.. no idea

My mate's car blew up on the Hurley and they were stranded out there overnight 😯

I've done the long way from Lillooet in a little Chevy rental car. It's 100km mostly on dirt roads so takes a fair old while (best part of 3hrs I think) but perfectly doable in a regular car. 4x4 would be speedier though!

As above the Chilcotins riding is exceptional and it's worth doing a longer ride with an overnight hut after your Tyax float plane drop. Has to be the coolest start to a ride ever!

@Agent Dammit - Nice itinerary from Sacred rides. August is the earliest some trails open so you've timed it well. This is sweamrs on Frisby ridge in Revy in late July in a low snow year...

[img] [/img]

Near Calgary though they've missed a couple of must do's on my list if you have the time.

Moose Mountain - Okay so I'm biased as I'm on trail committee for this area but plenty a ton of riding and even some shuttling. [url= http://mmbts.com/trails/ ]MMBTS Site[/url]

Their last ride (PV/JP) is fantastic but in the same area are a couple of other options that are just as nice. This is a photo of me from last night on Razors edge and there is also Mt Baldy and Mt Hector. [url= https://www.trailforks.com/trails/razors-edge/ ]Trailforks-Razors[/url]

[img] [/img]

If you have time and the weather is good JumpingPound / Cox hill is a classic ride that has alpine riding and a tech descent.

[img] [/img]

I've done rainbow mountain helidrop and tyax float plane. Whilst both were good, I'd say Tyax is more awesome (a full day's riding after the ride, rather than a few hours). We drove up with some cheap tents/sleeping bags from the local costco, camped the night, flew, rode for 8 hours, camped again then drove home the next day. If you're taking a big bike it might be worth having something smaller as a spare 🙂

Thanks, getting a really good feeling about this trip. I'll have a look at the Rainbow Drop, looks like Tyax schedule doesn't match ours.

Happy to climb, not taking a dh bike, but not happy to trash our hire car.

I did the Revelstoke helidrop on Mt Cartier last September.
I'm no riding expert and thoroughly enjoyed the descent - it was testing, long and techy in places and I only walked a couple sections once we got into the woods.

The first 50 seconds of this really poor gopro footage is from that descent...

Can you get a shuttle up Mt Cartier? Looks a good descent, but the sort of thing that could be more accessible (I'm thinking the leaks 2000m above Lake Garda that doesnt need a helicopter). Maybe we should suck it up and try and get on a multi day trip, but Sacred Rides has blown a lot of the budget.

I'm pretty sure you can't shuttle Mt Cartier. If you need a helicopter that's because it's the only way not because it's faster or cooler. I do know people who have pushed up for 8 hours to ride down....

Martha Creek does (I think) give a similar experience from a shuttle though.

Maybe we should suck it up and try and get on a multi day trip, but Sacred Rides has blown a lot of the budget.

Based on this and other threads it sounds like this is a once in a lifetime thing so I'd say go for it but... once you've visited you might find yourself wanting to come back. 😕

There is no road/track up Mt Cartier so no shuttle. There is not a lot of space even for the helicopter to land - and with gusty winds it made for an interesting landing 🙂