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Thunder Meadows

Fernie’s Thunder Meadows hut is somewhat legendary in its own right. In fact, bringing the idea of the hut to reality is what prompted the formation of the Elk Valley Ski Touring Association, now the Fernie Trails & Ski Touring Club. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, groups of ski tourers regularly crisscrossed the area between Island Lake and (then) Snow Valley Ski Resort in the remote areas of the Lizard Range.

This avid recreational use by a large number of locals and visitors solidified into a plan in the early 1990s to create the current shelter, thereby enhancing the potential for ski touring in the area. Prior to this, about a dozen locals constructed Thunder Meadows’ first hut in 1978, which burnt down in 1980. The second temporary hut was built in 1980 and then decommissioned when the newer structure was built. A secondary but equally important motive for constructing the newer hut was was to provide shelter for those who required it in case of sudden extreme weather changes.

The Elk Valley Ski Touring Association successfully lobbied the provincial government for a Special Use Permit for the Thunder Meadows area. Essentially, this permit granted special usage privileges to the group, and in 1993 EVSTA volunteers built the hut. The impetus for applying for the permit, in addition to the construction of the hut, was the recognition on the part of the association that commercial ski operations in the area would gradually expand into traditional public recreation areas.

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Orca Road and Orca Bridge Volly Party

The Fernie Trails and Ski Touring Club spent a day clearing Orca Road and clearing a more obvious route to Orca Bridge. We’re stoked for another great ski touring season!

2024 Summer Cabin Improvements

Every spring, the Fernie Trails and Ski Touring Club reviews the cabins and plans improvements for the summer and fall. These upgrades go above and beyond the annual cleaning and restocking of supplies, such as firewood, propane, and other essentials. Preparing the firewood involves bucking and splitting, followed by several helicopter flights to each cabin […]

How and when to Book the Cabins

How and when to book the Cabins are frequent questions and this post is intended as an overview to assist you. Thunder Meadows and Tunnel Creek cabins are bookable as a whole cabin only online for overnight stays by members. This is not exclusive as the cabins are also available for day use. Day use […]

Club Hut Booking Policy 2024

Recognizing the valuable volunteer efforts required to operate and maintain the backcountry hut system, the Club offer early access to hut bookings for volunteers. Here’s an overview of our booking policy: Volunteer Access: • Active Volunteers who contribute their time and skills to the club have early booking privileges. • Volunteers must maintain a current […]

2023 Cabin Improvements

Every summer the Fernie Trails and Ski Touring Club directors, members and friends volunteer their time to improve our backcountry cabins. The dedication of the volunteers and the support the club receives from various organizations is commendable. The organizations include the Columbia Basin Trust, RDEK Area A, the City of Fernie, Home Hardware, Fernie Alpine […]

Thunder Meadows Summer Renovations

Our love and commitment to improving the cabins never ends. This July a new roof, a new woodshed, a fresh inside coat of paint and a clean up happened at Thunder Meadows. Thank you to all the volunteers who dedicated their time and to Home Hardware Fernie and the Columbia Basin Trust ReDi Grants for […]

Cabins Open with Tunnel Creek Rebuild

The Thunder Meadows and Tunnel Creek Cabins opened today for overnight stays for the season! Current bookings are up to January 31 and February to April will be available for online booking on January 15 @ 6am. Harvey Pass is a warming hut for day use only and is a popular day ski and snowmobile […]

Grizzly Hibernating in Thunder Meadows Cabin

Fortunately this is a ploy to get your attention however it could be a reality. Yesterday during a wood delivery to Thunder Meadows we found the cabin and toilet doors open with snow blowing in. Fortunately we visited before the structures filled with snow and/or had a grizzly move it. Please latch the doors and […]

Cabin Bookings Details-Updated

On November 1, 2022 at 6am MST Thunder Meadows and Tunnel Creek bookings go online for the period from December 1st to January 31, 2023. On January 15th, 2023 Thunder Meadows and Tunnel Creek bookings go online for the period from February 1st to April 30, 2023. The cabins can only be booked by Fernie […]

TUNNEL CREEK PARKING ADVISORY – Updated

The RCMP caught the scumbag! It’s unfortunate to report that the Tunnel Creek parking lot has been subject to fuel theft. Even worse, the culprits are drilling fuel tanks causing expensive damage to vehicles. At this time we suspect it’s happening late at night however it’s not confirmed. PLEASE report any suspicious activity to the […]

Hut Etiquette

The Alpine Club of Canada recently requested pieces of hut etiquette from their cabin users and they tallied up the responses and published the most requested pieces of hut etiquette. Their results are common sense and do apply with exception that our Fernie cabins are rented to groups only. Here is what was suggested, read […]

Tunnel Creek Renovations Planned for 2022

The FTSTC is planning for Tunnel Creek renovations the summer of 2022. The plan is to replace the existing Tunnel Creek bunk house with a superior structure that matches the existing day use structure. This renovation on the hut would increase the quality of overnight stays and improve the day use experience. The footing and […]

Injured Skier at Tunnel Creek

Fernie Search And Rescue was activated on December 5th by a 911 call to respond to a report of an injured skier at Tunnel Creek Cabin. The two skiers had overnighted in the cabin and were due out that day. With very little flying time remaining, Fernie SAR Techs responded via helicopter for a rapid […]

Orca Bridge Completed

The weather cooperated, materials came together and a great group of volunteers came out to complete the Orca Bridge this past Saturday. With some help from Assent Helicopters the bridge was completed in only a few hours. The Orca Road Bridge is the preferred ski out from Thunder Meadows and is on Island Lake Lodges […]

Early Season Backcountry Skier Death

Konan Wendt, of Invermere, was out skiing for the day with three friends on Monday when tragedy struck on Robertson Glacier, Kananaskis Country. Robertson Glacier is a popular early season destination for backcountry skiers that is comparable in early season traffic to Fernie’s Harvey Pass. Wendt suffered a serious head injury when pitched forward into […]

Tunnel Creek and Thunder Meadows Bookings

THERE IS AVAILABILITY IN APRIL AND BOOKINGS ARE NOW OPEN FOR JULY 1 TO THE END OF OCTOBER. THERE ARE A FEW DAYS IN APRIL AVAILABLE AND THE TOURING CAN BE VERY GOOD. MAY CAN ALSO BE GOOD AND WE’LL CONSIDER OPENING FOR MAY DEPENDING ON CONDITIONS. The Fernie Trails & Ski Touring Club’s 2020 […]

Tunnel Creek Active Trapping

Tunnel Creek’s licensed trapper sent us a note advising of active trapping in the Tunnel Creek Area from November 21st to December 31, 2020. Backcountry adventurers share access in Tunnel Creek with a licensed trapper, trapping for fur bearing animals under the BC Wildlife Act. We ask you to please respect the trapper and his […]

Fernie Ski Touring Club Cabins Close

Unfortunately the Fernie Trails & Ski Touring Club will be closing all cabins effectively immediately due to the immediate threat of Covid-19. These cabins include Thunder Meadows, Tunnel Creek and the Montane Hut. We ask you to please respect the closure. Island Lake Lodge has also shutdown operations as of March 18, 2020. Please refer […]

FTSTC Funds FTA

The Fernie Trails & Ski Touring Club (FTSTC) presented the Fernie Trails Alliance with a cheque for $4000. The cheque represented 50% of 2019’s collected membership funds, the remaining 50% will be used for FTSTC trail maintenance projects. The FTSTC introduced the new Fernie Trails Winter & Summer 2019 membership last year. This years 2020 […]

Winter Cabins Update

We have more firewood split and ready to transport than ever before. Why? So we don’t run out like we have the past two winters. Locating and transporting firewood in March is not fun. The skiing was good. Volunteers Welcome This Saturday we need help loading wood at 8:50am on Anderson Road. Look for the […]