When was whistler established

He learned English in a month, built his Whistler home in one summer and left a legacy his family continues today. There's a thriving community of artists and musicians that call the Coast Mountains home - dive into the unique mountain culture on your visit. Enjoy peace of mind and flexible cancellation policies with our Book With Confidence program.

Tourism Whistler Contact View Cart. Home Discover Whistler About Whistler Whistler History Whistler History The Whistler area is not only a place of scenic wonder, but also a region that is rich with a fascinating history and cultural background. First Nations History Modern History The Coast Salish First Nations people inhabited the land around Whistler for many thousands of years, hunting and gathering and living a nomadic lifestyle long before European settlers arrived.

Alta Lake was the original name of Whistler but the settlers start calling the area "Whistler" because of the shrill whistle sound made by the western hoary marmots who live among the rocks. They hear about Whistler's spectacular beauty. The journey from Vancouver to Whistler these days is a short, kilometre 75 mile drive on the beautiful Sea to Sky Highway. Whistler becomes a base for logging and mining. The abundant fish stocks make Whistler a summer resort destination long before it is considered a winter destination.

Winter travel becomes possible when a gravel road to Squamish is carved from the cliffs of Howe Sound. The failed Olympic bid made Whistler somewhat of a household name. The mountain offered skiing 7 days a week, spectacular views, the longest ski season in Canada, seemingly endless terrain, and huge west coast snowfalls. This photo is of George Benjamin outside one of the most renowned dwellings of the era, Tokum Corners. Photo and info source: Whistler Library blog.

Throughout the decades, the grandeur and excitement of Whistler has inspired a lot of couples to spend their honeymoons at our beautiful valley hideaway. The most famous honeymooners in Whistler are undoubtedly former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and his bride, Margaret. They surprised the media with their secret wedding in Vancouver, and afterwards drove directly to Whistler for a three day stay. Franz Wilhelmsen hired Jack to run Whistler Mountain at the ripe old age of 28, a decision that turned out to be a resounding success.

Jack was a marketing and management savant. Don made substantial contributions to the development of Whistler for over 50 years and was truly part of the fabric of this town. Don was a passionate outdoorsman. He strongly believed in the value of getting out into the mountains and was one of the first people to champion summer enjoyment of the alpine, creating trails on Whistler Mountain and Rainbow Mountain.

Don was the instigator behind building the Russet Lake and Wedgemount Huts, and drew what was probably the first ever hiking trail map for Whistler Mountain, in In , it was announced that the World Cup in skiing would be held on Whistler the following February of Programs and competitions were created in support of alpine, freestyle, and cross-country skiing.

Photo and info source: Whistler Blackcomb. Snow was so rarely seen that season, that the weather made the front page of the Whistler Question every week until the mountain was forced to close on January 19th Photo and info source: Whistler Library Blog. Back in a group of free-thinking, creative souls began publishing the Whistler Answer. In its first iteration the Answer ran until and it made a short revival in The Answer provided an alternative voice for a growing community full of ski bums, squatters, hippies, and other counter-cultural types.

Even its title was irreverent, a playful response to the Whistler Question, the only serious local paper at the time. Early in Whistler residents and newly appointed RMOW Council agreed upon an official community plan which placed the new town centre on top of the dump at the base of both Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains.

Eldon Beck, an American landscape architect who had made a name for himself working at Vail, Colorado, was the mastermind behind the original village stroll design. Construction of the village we know now began in Amazingly, in the early days of Whistler Mountain there were only a handful of paid ski patrollers. In there were just five. Neighbouring Blackcomb Mountain opened for business on December 6, , it featured 5 triple chairs and an additional 1, vertical metres 4, feet of skiing.

When snowboarding was in its early days, many ski resorts shunned the one plankers, but not Blackcomb Mountain. Not only did the resort allow snowboarders on the lifts, but it also built terrain parks and special features catered to snowboarders.

In , Blackcomb Mountain put up the prize money and the labor hours to build the first ever boarder cross course, which was the brain child of Steven Rechtschaffner and partner Greg Stum. Snowboard Cross is now an Olympic event. Snow Country magazine named Whistler the top resort in North America for the first time in In , Snow Country again awarded Whistler the No.

Whistler Blackcomb has gone on to receive this prestigious accolade numerous times, including this season and last Until , Whistler Mountain and Blackcomb Mountain were separately owned, operated and marketed resorts.

That year, Intrawest, who had purchased Blackcomb a decade earlier, also bought out Whistler Mountain Ski Corporation to form what is now the largest ski resort in North America.

After the purchase, Intrawest immediately began major upgrades and build outs, including the replacing the old Peak Chair and Garbanzo Express with high-speed quads. In , Intrawest began developing Creekside area with a new village layout. Inspired by what snowboarders were doing in the terrain park, two Whistler freeskier coaches, Mike Douglas and Steve Faring convinced Salomon to develop the first twin tip: the In , Whistler rider Ross Rebagliati won Gold at the first-ever Olympic snowboarding event, which was a giant slalom race.

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