Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
Subscription Form

Get notified of the best News

Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn
22K Followers
25K Likes
5K Followers
1K Followers
Mountain Life
Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
  • In This Issue
  • Photography

Cliff Jennings: 50 Years of Whistler Gold

  • November 23, 2015
  • Ben Osborne
Total
19
Shares
19
0
0
0
0
0
Total
19
Shares
Share 19
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0
Cliff Jennings_portrait session for Mountain Life Magazine story Near the small cabin on Alta Lake (by Wayside Park) where he first lived in 1968, rent was $45.00/month.
Cliff Jennings, 2015, near the small cabin on Alta Lake where he first lived in 1968. Rent was $45 per month.

If you see a bit of extra smoke wafting through the Whistler Valley this winter, it’s probably not a sit-in at Rebagliati Park, but rather the aftermath of all the birthday candles Whistler is blowing out this year. Winter 2015/16 marks 50 years of ski hill operations in Whistler, and Cliff Jennings has skied here for every single one of them.

Cliff worked for Whistler Mountain before the lifts were built. He and wife, Vivian, managed one of the first lodges in town. He helped establish Whistler Search & Rescue in 1972 and was one of the first Municipal employees when the Muni was created in 1975. And he’s still here. So to celebrate a half-century of pow turns, house parties and all the adventure that comes with life in a mountain town, we asked Cliff to share some photos and memories of those early years of Whistler. And like so many of us, his story begins in one of those viscous Coast Mountains autumn rains.

Story by Feet Banks :: Photos by Cliff Jennings

Watch the full movie celebrating Whistler Blackcomb’s 50th Anniversary here.

 

Gelande contest off Ridge Run 05

Gelande contest off Ridge Run 08

 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS
“I’d read an article about a new ski hill out west and drove from Edmonton. It was late October 1965, one of those absolutely torrential rainstorms. The road north from Squamish was still under construction and you had to drive across the Daisy Lake Dam—just water everywhere. Eventually I came to a big dirt parking lot with foundations going in for the gondola barn. I asked about the boss and someone pointed me to a guy filling sandbags. I was just out of engineering school so I asked if there were any jobs available—he handed me a shovel. Whistler Creek was going wild and they had just poured the concrete. I worked construction; that was late October and I never saw the peak of the mountain until early December. It was a stormy year.”

 

Gelande contest off Ridge Run 07

IMG0005 Helicopter bottom of Decker

IMG0002 Brian Rowley, Bobby Walsh on Peak

 

SNOW DAYS
“The next year I ended up running the grooming. We had one snowcat and a 450 John Deere tractor with wide tracks that we used mostly for clearing snow out from under the lift towers—Red Chair was built too low. We’d clear a path and in a few days the wind and snow would fill it back in. We got a lot of snow that year, the T-Bar opened in mid-January, but only for a couple of weeks until it was buried again.”
“One time I got a call from the RCMP—they were transporting a prisoner from Pemberton and were trapped in the snow. They needed to get somewhere to secure the prisoner, so I had to pick them up in the snowcat and drive them all to Function where the Malloch and Moseley Logging company offices had a secure room they could lock him in. I remember passing by cars that were totally buried. All you could see were the aerial antennae sticking up.”

 

IMG0010 Heli Flight to Van-Table Mtn & Garibaldi

Alta Lake cabin on winter night

 

OPENING DAY 1965
“Whistler Mountain opened officially in mid-January. I had been building the upper T-Bar and turned an ankle, so that day they had me at mid-station of Red Chair yelling at people to keep their tips up. I also had to keep people on the upper mountain as the runs below Midstation had been cut but not cleared and were covered in fallen logs just below the snow. It filled in eventually though. That opening season was pretty dicey, except on weekends when things would liven up. There weren’t many facilities and not a lot of accommodation, Highland Lodge and Cheakamus Lodge and that was it maybe. From Vancouver, the drive up could be anywhere from three hours to over half a day.”

 

Gelande contest off Ridge Run


MILLION DOLLAR TURNS

“Our favourite run was to climb up Little Whistler, down to the Saddle and hike around to the south side of the Peak, looking down at Cheakamus Lake. Then we’d drop into the main bowl off Upper Highway 86. One Friday the thirteenth, there was a huge avy in there that cleaned open some space in the trees below, and you could ride that path, then follow the creek bed under a tree and go left and down through big timber until you’d hit the logged area and out. It was 5,000 feet of untouched. It was interesting because I showed some slides at the museum last year and there was one of the tree that had fallen over the creek bed, and as I was explaining the run, a young snowboarder kid in the audience came up, a little bit shocked, and said, ‘We go right there.’”

 

Gondola & Old T-Bar

Highland staff heliskiing 01-Blackcomb Glacier

 

MARKETING 101
“Heli skiing started in 1967/68: Pacific Ski Air working with Okanagan Helicopters. I was a guide and the owners weren’t around on weekdays. Our main drop-offs were Trorey, Tremor, Decker and the Blackcomb Glacier. Two drops and then we’d drop you at the Peak for glory turns down Shale Slope while the whole ski hill watched. [Peak Chair wasn’t built until 1986 – editor.] On a sunny day we’d ski down to the bottom of the Gondola and walk up and down the line yelling, ‘who wants to go heli skiing?’ That was marketing, we’d get people, but the locals would just hike.”

 

IMG0103 Chute off Little Whistler-Bobby Calladine

 

BLACKCOMB
“When Blackcomb first opened there were no dual mountain passes available so a lot of locals stayed with Whistler. Doug Wylie, Lindsay Wilson and I went up on some of the early days and it was wild—really great fall-line skiing. The runs were much more fun back then, they hadn’t harmonized them yet so you would catch huge air off the road crossings. Now it is all smoothed out. They also had a lot of gladed areas, Gandy Dancer [Now called Ross’s Gold – editor] used to have a lot of trees but a big windstorm came through one winter. All the trees left standing were no longer protected by other trees so the winds flattened everything.” “What worked for us on Blackcomb was there was hardly anyone there at first, and before the high speed chairs came in it was fifteen minutes faster to get to the top than if you were uploading on Whistler, so you could get a lot of good vertical. And every time a new lift went in it was explore time, places we used to have to hike to were now immediately available.”

 

Ski out through Wedge Crk 03-CJ

Sun Bowl-Brian Rowley

 

RAIN TO THE TOP
Ironically, it was a terrible snow year that really helped to boost Whistler’s popularity as a ski destination worth the trip. “I think it was 1970. We got rained out, but the base stayed up top. All the Vancouver and Seattle areas were fully washed-out with no base, and ours was the only one that stayed, so when the snow came we were the only option with a base and people started coming up. I guess that was our first year of attracting a real international crowd. A decade later, the first year that Blackcomb opened, it was another rough snow year. There was no 7th Heaven yet, so you couldn’t access that extra elevation. We still fared better than anyone else though.”

 

West Bowl Albert Klopfenstein &

 

THE MERGE
“When the mountains merged I think it was good and bad. It was good to combine marketing efforts, but one thing I miss is Blackcomb leant itself much better to First Tracks Breakfast because when they let you out you’d have 5–7 runs that have a steep enough pitch for a 30 to 40–centimetre day. One of my best First Tracks ever was with my nephew and my son, and by 11 a.m. we had 20,000 feet of vert—all powder—just on the main runs. Depending on when the groomers had been through we’d have 15 to 40–centimetres of fresh on top of groomed. These days, the merge is good because people come here and have two hills to choose from. And with the PEAK 2 PEAK, a lot of us thought it was so stupid and of course now we all use it. It really helps if you have a bad snow year down low.”

 

Whistler Bowl-Bill Chaplin & Brian Williams

 

WHISTLER KIDS, MOUNTAIN LIVING
Vivien Jennings: “I arrived in November of 1966. It was pouring rain, then snowing and I didn’t see the Peak until Christmas Day. Cliff and I met at a pyjama party at the Cheakamus Inn in 1968. After we got married, we ran the Highland Lodge from 1970 to 77. Things were picking up by then. We started having children and we’re still here. We might be the longest consecutive residents; Cliff always said he wasn’t going to give up skiing, so I said ‘once you’re 70, we’re leaving.’ But when he turned 69, we started getting grandkids in Whistler…”

Cliff: “Now I look forward to getting up the hill with my grandkids. That’s my bucket list, to ski with all my grandkids. So far I have with 7 out of 8. Not bad.”

 

From the new Mountain Life Coast Mountains.

Watch the full movie celebrating Whistler Blackcomb’s 50th Anniversary here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Total
19
Shares
Share 19
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0
Related Topics
  • Cliff Jennings
  • photography
  • Vintage Whistler
  • Whistler
  • Whistler 50th
  • Whistler Blackcomb
Ben Osborne

Previous Article
  • The Great Outdoors

The World’s First Crowd-Sourced, Real-Time Platform for Avalanche Safety

  • November 19, 2015
  • Ben Osborne
View Post
Next Article
  • In This Issue
  • Photography

Skiing and Surviving in One of the World’s Most Isolated Places

  • November 24, 2015
  • Ben Osborne
View Post
You May Also Like
Ben-Poechman-Blackcomb-Mountain-ANDREW-STRAIN
View Post
  • Photography

Gallery: Celebrating a Coast Mountains Winter that Doesn’t Want to End

  • Mountain Life Media
  • May 3, 2022
Skiing-the-Chief-North-Gully-Chris-Christie-pano
View Post
  • Photography
  • Skiing

Behind the Photo: Skiing the Chief’s North Gully

  • Mountain Life Media
  • April 4, 2022
View Post
  • In This Issue
  • The Great Outdoors

ML Launches Mushroom Life

  • Sarah Bulford
  • April 1, 2022
Ryan-Carter-surfers-walking-Lake-Huron-Ontario
View Post
  • CLIMBING
  • Ontario
  • Paddling
  • Photography
  • Skiing
  • Surfing

Paddle, Climb, Surf, Shred: Winter in Ontario

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 22, 2022
ML-Coast-Mountains-the-Optimism-Issue-TEMPEI-TAKEUCHI-photo
View Post
  • Photography
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding
  • Trips & Expeditions

Feet First: Silver Linings & Staying Alive

  • Mountain Life Media
  • February 18, 2022
ML-CM-cover-graphic
View Post
  • Features
  • Mountain Lifer
  • On The Trail
  • Photography
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding
  • Stay & Play
  • The ML Interview
  • Travel
  • Trips & Expeditions

ML Coast Mountains: The Optimism Issue – Out Now

  • Mountain Life Media
  • February 11, 2022
fox-Quebec-Lemay-Jean-Christophe
View Post
  • Features
  • Mountain Lifer
  • On The Trail
  • Photography

Connecting the River to the Mountains

  • Mountain Life Media
  • February 3, 2022
View Post
  • Photography
  • Skiing
  • Videos

Friday Flick: Squamish Chief North Gully Ski Descent

  • Sarah Bulford
  • January 28, 2022
Featured Posts
  • Relic-The-Beachcombers-Ben-Tour-illustration 1
    Requiem for a Relic
    • May 16, 2022
  • 2
    Helly Hansen Presents: Adventure Planning 101 with Squamish SAR
    • May 16, 2022
  • Dynafit-Sea-to-Summit-Delphi-harbor-revised 3
    Friday Flick: Skiing with the Gods of Delphi
    • May 13, 2022
  • 4
    For the Love of SUP
    • May 10, 2022
  • Full-Circle-Everest-The-North-Face-Nepal-prayer-flags 5
    Full Circle: First All-Black Team Attempts to Summit Everest
    • May 9, 2022
RECENT POSTS
  • Nick-Gottlieb-Pereval-Dzhuku-pass
    Touching the Mountains of Heaven
    • May 12, 2022
  • North-Shore-Betty-rummel_t_0110_BP
    Friday Flick: North Shore Betty
    • May 6, 2022
  • Was-It-Worth-It-Kermode-bear-mcallister_PR
    Was It Worth It? A Wilderness Warrior’s Long Trail Home
    • May 5, 2022
Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn
INSTAGRAM
mountainlifemedia
22K Followers
Finding that picture perfect moment with @sweenyj #mountainlifer
The winter that just keeps on given-er! 🤘#mountainlifer
FRIDAY FLICK 💥 This past March, speed mountaineer Benedikt Böhm @benediktboehm rocked a five-hour sea-to-summit expedition up Mount Parnassus in central Greece. Starting at sea level on his road bike at the village of Itea on the Gulf of Corinth, he climbed up to an altitude of 2.414 metres. #linkinbio to watch the film!
I had no idea what to expect from this trip, neither from bikepacking, a fancy term for cycle touring and a sport I’d never done before, nor from Kyrgyzstan, a country most people cannot find on a map. Carl, who I’d only just met recently after moving to Canada—I’d flagged him down after backcountry skiing after seeing his Montana license plate—had invited me on this trip while on a mountain bike ride. I said no. A few weeks later I figured, “Why not?”
The @rab.equipment  dynamic Cirrus Flex is a soft, lightweight hybrid synthetic insulation for mountain-friendly layering. Keeping you warm and perfectly suited to journey in the mountains. #TheMountainPeople #WeAreRab
"@normhann and I lashed paddleboards to the roof of his truck and headed north along the Island Highway, towards Telegraph Cove. Norm had invited me to tag along on a commercial paddleboard group he would be guiding in the Broughton Archipelago. Despite a long history of SUP expeditions, I harboured some reservations."
To date, more than 6,000 people have summitted Everest, the highest point on Earth at 8,848.86 metres of elevation above sea level. And only a tiny handful of those climbers have been Black.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the rad moms out there! Here’s our Art Director & Head Designer @calypsodesign getting cozy with some sharks. #mountainlifer #mothersday
Making core memories on the trails ✨ #mountainlifer
Just in time for Mother’s Day, check North Shore Betty—a short film about 73-year-old Betty Birrell and her hard-charging life in southern B.C.
Follow

Subscribe

Subscribe now to our newsletter

Finding that picture perfect moment with @sweenyj #mountainlifer
The winter that just keeps on given-er! 🤘#mountainlifer
FRIDAY FLICK 💥 This past March, speed mountaineer Benedikt Böhm @benediktboehm rocked a five-hour sea-to-summit expedition up Mount Parnassus in central Greece. Starting at sea level on his road bike at the village of Itea on the Gulf of Corinth, he climbed up to an altitude of 2.414 metres. #linkinbio to watch the film!
I had no idea what to expect from this trip, neither from bikepacking, a fancy term for cycle touring and a sport I’d never done before, nor from Kyrgyzstan, a country most people cannot find on a map. Carl, who I’d only just met recently after moving to Canada—I’d flagged him down after backcountry skiing after seeing his Montana license plate—had invited me on this trip while on a mountain bike ride. I said no. A few weeks later I figured, “Why not?”
The @rab.equipment  dynamic Cirrus Flex is a soft, lightweight hybrid synthetic insulation for mountain-friendly layering. Keeping you warm and perfectly suited to journey in the mountains. #TheMountainPeople #WeAreRab
"@normhann and I lashed paddleboards to the roof of his truck and headed north along the Island Highway, towards Telegraph Cove. Norm had invited me to tag along on a commercial paddleboard group he would be guiding in the Broughton Archipelago. Despite a long history of SUP expeditions, I harboured some reservations."
Mountain Life
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Advertising

Input your search keywords and press Enter.