This is just a quick update to inform the greater community that the Spearhead Hut Committee is working diligently on a more detailed project proposal for BC Parks, which should be complete by then end of May. Stay tuned for the update. Thanks for your patience and interest.

UPDATE MAY 18: ***SURVEY NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED****

The Spearhead Huts Committee is a coalition of five groups: the Alpine Club of Canada – Whistler and Vancouver Sections, the BC Mountaineering Club, the Kees and Claire Memorial Group and the Brett Carlson Memorial Group. The Committee is currently preparing an application to BC Parks for approval to design and install three alpine huts along the route of the Spearhead Traverse, near Whistler, BC. When complete, the huts will be operated on a not-for-profit basis by the Alpine Club of Canada – Whistler Section and will be bookable by club members and the public for an overnight fee. The huts will be practical and comfortable accommodation for hikers and mountaineers in summer, plus skiers in winter. The proposed hut locations are:

• Mt. Pattison South Ridge
• Mt. Macbeth West Ridge
• Russet South Bench (replacing the existing Himmelsbach Hut at Russet Lake)

The following survey has been designed to find out more about potential hut users, their opinions and preferences, so that the huts can be designed to best suit everyone. The Spearhead Huts Committee will carefully consider all the gathered information when decisions are made regarding the design and operation of the huts.

Survey Deadline: April 30, 2012 (Survey responses received in April will assist us with our current submission to BC Parks).
Final Survey Deadline: May 15, 2012 (**Final deadline revised to better match the BC Parks proposal submission date).

For more information about the Project, please see www.spearheadhuts.org

To contact the Spearhead Huts Committee, email info@spearheadhuts.org

Please note: The Spearhead Huts Project is a proposal only. No permissions have yet been granted. The project will only proceed with the support of the backcountry community and the granting of official park-use-permits from BC Parks. A lot of technical information and public opinion needs to be gathered in order to test the feasibility of the project, complete the application process with BC Parks, design the hut facilities and put them into operation. Your input is very valuable.

Thank you for participating in the survey!

**TO COMPLETE THE SURVEY, CLICK HERE >>

Enjoy an amazing mix of high energy multi-media presentations at the Mountain Culture Variety Show at the Whistler Conference Centre, 8pm on Sunday April 15. Tickets are $20.

This event is being held in conjunction with the Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival and is a fundraiser for the Spearhead Huts Project.

For more info and tickets, see: http://www.wssf.com/event/mountain-culture-variety-show

BC Parks is currently seeking public comment on a proposed amendment to the 1990 Garibaldi Park Management Plan, specifically with respect to public access and management of the Spearhead and Fitzsimmons Ranges.

Comments can be submitted online or by mail until March 15, 2012.
See http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/planning/mgmtplns/garibaldi/garibaldi_mp.html

Without a doubt, the Spearhead Soiree was a complete success! Everyone had a wonderful time… with about 200 people attending, including special guests from BC Parks, Whistler-Blackcomb, members of the media, numerous clubs and outdoor companies. The Performance Works venue worked wonderfully… dressed up in elegant black with the sparkle of candle lanterns and magical light patterns thrown across the floor from three climbing rope sculptures. People mixed and mingled as jazz music set the tone and volunteers brought trays of tasty appetizers round. There were plenty of things to see…. an extensive display on the huts project and Chad Manley’s amazing model of the Spearhead Range, plus the silent auction, filled with paintings, photography, outdoor gear, books, guided trips and more.

With people settled in their seats, Master of Ceremonies, Michael Down, introduced the presenters: Jayson Faulkner gave a very engaging presentation on the vision of the Spearhead Huts Project. Liz Scremin honoured ACC’ers, Fips Broda and Ron Royston, on the occasion of the 50th birthday of the Tantalus Hut at Lake Lovely Water. Greg Hill regaled everyone with tales of his formative years skiing in the Spearhead Range and his feat of skiing 2 million vertical feet in 2010. Lastly BC Parks was honoured with a birthday cake in celebration of its 100th birthday.

What a wonderful start to Vancouver fundraising for the Spearhead Huts Project! The Spearhead Soiree will be an annual event until the huts are realized, so please consider attending next year!

______________________

Many members of the Spearhead Huts Committee and their special guests were in attendance and gave support:

• Alena Dzujkova (President) and David Hughes from the British Columbia Mountaineering Club
• Karen Newby, Jamie Bond, Andre Charland plus Mark and Susan Dixon from the Kees and Claire Memorial Hut Society
• Damian Cromwell from the Brett Carlson Memorial Group
• David Toole (Past-President) from the Alpine Club of Canada
• Mitch Sulkers (Chair), Jayson Faulkner, Brigitte Mah and Steven Boorne from the Alpine Club of Canada – Whistler Section
• Rob Brusse (Chair), Colin Boyd and Liz Scremin from the Alpine Club of Canada – Vancouver Section
• Chris Lawrence from the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides

The Spearhead Huts Committee sends special thanks to the following generous individuals and companies:

Our Soiree Sponsors:
Arc’teryx, Arva, Whistler-Blackcomb

Our Beverage and Silent Auction Donors:
Alpine Club of Canada, Altus Mountain Guides, Arc’teryx, Arva, John Baldwin, BC Mountaineering Club, Black Diamond, Glen Boles, Jack Christie, James Elton, Escape Route, Explore Magazine, Indigo Natural Products, Greg Hill, Kathryn Hluchy, Icebreaker, Liberty Wine Merchants, Mountain Equipment Co-op, Petzl, Red Truck, Scarpa, Starbucks, Tamiko Suzuki, Jilly Watson, Rich Wheater, John Yardley-Jones, Ziptrek

Our Supporters:
Baumann Engineering, Bennett Land Surveying, Howe Sound Inn & Brewing Company, Keltie Computing, Mountain Life Magazine, Oldrich Ungr P.Eng.

Our Volunteers who made the Soiree happen:
Rob Brusse (Fundraising Committee Chair), Colin Boyd, Michael Down, Jayson Faulkner, Fleurie Hunter, Steve Legault, Chad Manley, Barbara McGeough, Liz Scremin, plus dozens of others on the night

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Silent Auction. The winning bidders were:
Erik Davis, Sarah Frood, Paul Geddes, Gus Greer, Jenny Harding, Susan Hollenberg, Moira Lemon, Anna Milino, Gunnar Olovsson, Lorelei Russell, Irene Schmid, David Toole

If you haven’t seen it yet in print, there’s a great article in Whistler’s Pique News Magazine about backcountry hut history and usage, including some information about our project. Granted the Spearhead Huts Project is still in very early stages so some of the information in the article is hypothetical, but it’s a good read.

Read the article…

The Spearhead Huts Committee is pleased to announce the Spearhead Soiree, a fund-raising event for the Spearhead Huts Project, to be held on November 25th, 2011 at Performance Works on Granville Island in Vancouver. This will be our first major fund-raising event in support of our three proposed huts for the Spearhead Traverse. We expect the Soiree will attract over 250 people who love backcountry skiing and are eager to support our project. The event will include live music, appetizers, a no-host bar, informative displays, a raffle and silent auction, and special presentations by our committee chair Jayson Faulkner and well-known BC ski mountaineer Greg Hill.

Please come out! And please share this invitation with all your outdoor friends! This event will be a lot of fun. We hope to raise $6-10,000 to help pay for the environmental impact assessments of the three potential hut sites and the conceptual designs of the huts, as required for our Stage 2 application to BC Parks. The project is progressing slowly but it is very exciting.

TICKETS AND MORE INFORMATION

http://www.accvancouver.ca/spearhead.htm

The Kees and Claire Memorial Society held another amazingly successful fundraiser event at the Howe Sound Inn & Brew Pub in Squamish on Nov 5, benefiting the Spearhead Hut Committee. Teton Gravity Research was kind enough to donate their latest ski film, One for the Road, and the silent auction, live music and good times rounded out the evening. The place was absolutely sold out, the energy was high, and the feedback and excitement about the project was positive.

In all the KCMHS raised abotu $4000 towards the project!

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, as well as the event sponsors: Surefoot Whistler, Extremely Canadian, Derek Kyle Physiotherapy & Kintec (Elaho Clinic), Whistler Alpine Guides Bureau, G3 Genuine Guide Gear, Whistler Blackcomb, Escape Route and Mountain Hardwear.

The Spearhead Huts Project has been approved to proceed to a Stage 2 review by BC Parks. Stage 2 – the Detailed Screen review – will require significant site location work, which includes environmental, social, cultural and economic components. The Spearhead Hut Committee (SHC) must identify impacts, determine significance and recommend mitigation measures. Once this stage is completed, the SHC will submit the results to BC Parks for approval to move to Stage 3. The Spearhead Huts Committee is very pleased to have identified and surveyed the three prospective hut sites. They are: Mount Pattison Ridge, Mount Macbeth West Ridge and Russet South Bench. The prospective sizes of the huts have not been finalized nor have hut designs been undertaken yet. Summer access trails and connecting trail networks have been identified. Current traffic studies are expected to be undertaken over the coming winter to identify current backcountry visitor usage in the range. 

The SHC is seeking funding from donors to assist with the significant costs that will be incurred for the next phase of review. Over the coming months, studies and continuing data collection will be done along with conceptual designs for all three huts with a goal to complete the Stage 2 review. 

We are pleased to announce the return of the Kees & Claire Memorial Hut Society’s annual fundraiser event, this year dubbed the Spearhead Huts Winter Kick-Off Party. The party includes a premiere of TGR’s newest HD Ski Film ‘One for the Road’, a silent auction, and live band. All proceeds go to the Kees & Claire Memorial Hut Society, in turn benefiting the Spearhead Hut Project. All that for only a $10 entry fee.

Details: Saturday November 5, 8pm, Howe Sound Brew Pub, Squamish

For full event details, visit the event page on Doglotion.com, or respond to the Facebook event invite.

We look forward to seeing everyone there.