Destin-Nation Canada: Adventure with a Capital Eh

by Andrew Burmon Subscribe to Andrew Burmon's posts Posted Jun 27th 2011 08:00 AM

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If Mexico is America's back yard, fenced in places and cluttered with the remains of yesterday's projects, Canada is the front lawn: The north country is green, welcoming and perfect for a roll in the grass.

In the popular imagination, Canadians are guileless and affably naive, but in reality they must be a cagey lot. All those Bullwinkles have squirreled away more than their fair share of natural beauty. Bookended by New Foundland and Nova Scotia and Vancouver Island in the west, Canada is Choc-A-Bloc with mountains, forests, prairies and tundra, most of which are both accessible and empty.

In the winter months Canada offers myriad skiing, skating, tobogganing, luging, tubing, ice-climbing and snow ball fighting options and there is no less to do come summer, when adventurers can head to the coasts for water sports or make a stab at various and sun-dried peaks.

And the place could not be more accessible. Make a wrong turn in New Hampshire: Hello Canada. Turn right at Seattle: Welcome to Canada. Board an American or Alaska Airlines flight from New York or Chicago to Vancouver: Boom, Canada.

abundantc/Flickr

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Ski Whistler

Whistler Blackcomb is one of the best loved ski destinations in North America, and for good reason: It's huge. Not only do the mountains boast the longest vertical drop of any slope on the continent--5,280 feet--but more than 8,000 acres of terrain that varies widely from powdery bowls to pined glades. Skiers willing to wake up early will be rewarded with lonely runs and sweeping views even though, thanks to the 2008 Olympics, Whistler now sits squarely in the middle of Canada's beaten path.

Unfortunately, popularity leads to higher prices and a 15 day ski pass costs 899 Canadian Dollars, which are currently more valuable than U.S. Dollars though that relationship is prone to frequent changes. The cost is worth it however as nothing short of the Alps can really compete with these mountains.

Getting There: Whistler sits about 2 hours and 70 miles north of Vancouver and 5 hours or 210 miles north of Seattle so travelers willing to rent their own cars have an advantage in terms of choose flights. Alaska Airlines offers the most, and generally the cheapest, flights to Seattle from the midwest and New York. Air Canada offers roundtrip service from NYC to Vancouver for a little over $300.