Kimberley Alpine Resort
Kimberley Alpine Resort is a ski resort in southwestern Canada, located in Kimberley, British Columbia.[3]
| Kimberley Alpine Resort | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Kimberley Alpine Resort Location within British Columbia  Kimberley Alpine Resort Kimberley Alpine Resort (Canada) | |
| Location | British Columbia, Canada |
| Nearest major city | Kimberley (adjacent) Cranbrook – 30 km (19 mi) |
| Coordinates | 49.685°N 116.014°W |
| Vertical | 751 m (2,464 ft)[1] |
| Top elevation | 1,982 m (6,503 ft) |
| Base elevation | 1,231 m (4,039 ft) |
| Skiable area | 7.28 km2 (1,800 acres)[2] |
| Runs | 80 |
| Longest run | 6.4 km (4.0 mi) |
| Lift system | 5 total (3 chairlifts, 1 T-bar, 1 magic carpet) |
| Lift capacity | 6,452 per hour |
| Terrain parks | yes |
| Snowfall | 400 cm (160 in) |
| Snowmaking | 10% |
| Night skiing | yes |
| Website | Ski Kimberley |
In the Purcell Mountains on the northeast face of North Star Hill, Kimberley's vertical drop is 751 m (2,464 ft) with a summit elevation of 1,982 m (6,503 ft) above sea level.[1] The ski season commonly starts in mid-December and runs until early April.
The resort maintains 80 runs (with 20% beginner, 42% intermediate, and 38% advanced trails) and five lifts: a high-speed quad chairlift (the North Star Express), a triple chair (the Easter), a double chair (the Tamarack), a T-bar (the Owl) and a magic carpet, leading to an hourly lift capacity of 6,452.[1]
The ski area opened 72 years ago in 1948 as North Star with a 245-metre-long (800 ft) rope tow; a T-bar installed a decade later was over 1.8 km (1.1 mi) in length, vertically climbing 460 m (1,500 ft) in eleven minutes.[4]
Management
The ski resort is operated by Resorts of the Canadian Rockies Inc., which also owns Fernie Alpine Resort, Nakiska, Mont Sainte-Anne, and Stoneham; the latter two are back east in Quebec.
Resort's base in 2012
View from the top of the North Star Express chair lift
References
- Resort of the Canadian Rockies (2007). "Kimberley - Mountain statistics". Archived from the original on 2007-03-06. Retrieved 2007-04-12.
- Canada-Ski (2007). "Ski Kimberley statistics". Retrieved 2007-04-12.
- Williams, Dick (December 28, 1961). "Kimberley slopes cleared". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 9.
- Williams, Dick (December 8, 1959). "New lift capacity brightens North Star skiing facilities". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 9.