Tip: If your eyelashes are frozen, you’re probably doing it right.
Words & photos :: Bronwyn Biro
When the mountains turn white, a new kind of adventure begins. From frozen lakes to untouched powder, winter opens doors only the brave will dare enter. For the bold and the curious, here’s a winter bucket list worth freezing for.
Hut-to-Hut Ski Traverse: Big Views, Bigger Blisters
Where to go: Bow to Yoho Traverse or Wapta Traverse.
The icefields stretch into a frozen highway, crevasses threading beneath your skis. Distant peaks glow orange in the fleeting daylight. Each hut sits like a tiny fortress on the ice. Reaching them means long hours of skinning and kick turns with a pack that seems determined to test your patience.
Reality hits around hour three of day one. You’re somehow sweating in -15°C and your hip flexors are filing complaints. By night, you’re melting snow for water, counting the days left, and trying not to eat tomorrow’s chocolate ration.
Tip: Pack light, but never skimp on warm hut shoes and extra chocolate.
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Aurora Hunting: Cold Toes, Big Lights
Where to go: Lake Minnewanka, Vermilion Lakes or Peyto Lake.
Aurora chasing involves stepping into the darkness, leaving behind the warm glow of civilization to scan the sky for dancing ribbons of colour. Time seems to slow. You realize you’re part audience and part participant, waiting spellbound as the sky performs its quiet, ephemeral magic.
Often, you’ll spend hours standing in the cold for nothing, shifting to keep the feeling in your toes. Auroras are unpredictable. Parking lot headlights are not, and they ruin photos every time.
Tip: A Kp index of five or higher is your green light. If the forecasts confuse you, follow a local aurora hunting group and head out when everyone is losing their minds.
Auroras are unpredictable. Parking lot headlights are not, and they ruin photos every time.
Ice Climbing: The Screaming Barfies
Where to go: Johnston Canyon, The Junkyards or Weeping Wall.
Frozen waterfalls hang like crystal drapery, their spires catching the weak winter sun. Every swing of an axe and every front-pointed step reminds climbers of the mountain’s unforgiving edge, yet there is warmth in the shared struggle. Ice climbing tests skill, patience and nerve.
Even seasoned climbers warn about the “screaming barfies.” When blood rushes back to numb hands, nerves overreact and send sharp pain signals to the brain, excruciating enough to make some climbers vomit. Nothing says fun like frozen fingers, adrenaline and the occasional blood-curdling scream.
Tip: Bring warm gloves, hand and toe warmers, and a heavy parka for belaying/breaks. Don’t overgrip your ice axes. And rotate them to keep blood flowing.
Backcountry Powder: Big Dreams, Bruised Egos
Where to go: Rogers Pass, or BC’s Powder Highway.
There’s something magical about earning your turns in the backcountry, chasing untouched pockets of powder. The silent rhythm of a skin track, the freedom to choose your own line and having the mountains all to yourself make each descent feel electric.
Backcountry skiing is equal parts beauty and chaos. You’ll fall, but soft snow will only bruise your ego. Avalanche terrain demands focus, weather changes quickly and navigation can be challenging. These days aren’t just about the snow. They’re a reminder that nature always gets the last laugh.
Tip: Take an avalanche safety course and check avalanche.ca before you go. I was once told, “If it looks fun to ski, it’s not safe to do solo,” and that usually holds.
Chasing Winter
Every item on your winter bucket list, from climbs to skin tracks to nights under the aurora, is a chance to test yourself. The challenges, mishaps and frozen toes will fade, leaving only the stories you’ll tell long after the snow melts.
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