Gail Gifford

Review of Kimberley Alpine Resort

DO NOT come to this resort on a long weekend or if...

DO NOT come to this resort on a long weekend or if there is a race on. The resort customarily closes off large swaths of the mountain for long periods before a race.
There is only one access to the base across an approximately 40 foot wide bridge. The bridge ices up early in the day and as it is the only route to the bottom, the traffic across it is very heavy especially on weekends. Other than a couple of gates to slow traffic just above the bridge there is absolutely no control over speeding skiers and boarders. This makes a very dangerous situation for beginning skiers and small children making their way down. It is also a poor situation for more advanced skiers. The resort also likes to hold events at the base and routinely closes off large sections of the access making it even more hazardous. As the resort owners decided to build condos instead of another access to the base as originally planned, it is on them to make the one access safer by policing reckless skiers/boarders.
Also, worthy of comment is the grooming or lack of it. The resort claims they have had trouble with their equipment. As in any other business with equipment that has broken down, they need to fix it or replace it in a timely manner. Of the 75 runs advertised as open, they routinely only groom under 20 runs. When conditions are marginal which occurs frequently in the later season, it pushes all levels of skiers onto fewer runs making the mountain more crowded and dangerous. In their daily reports of groomed runs they also routinely include connector trails such as Vimy Ridge.
We have spent our winters skiing here for many years and have watched it go from a very nice family resort to an area that I would not recommend to anyone.