Narao Glades

This is the long time classic backcountry skiing area and is often referred to as Narao Trees, but when comparing it to other tree runs I think it’s safe to call it glades. The very short access leading to fairly long glade runs is the main draw here, but there are some opportunities for cliff sessions and the area provides access to steep couloirs and glaciers in the alpine area around the shoulder. Although this area has plenty of trees it should not be considered a completely safe zone for when the avalanche danger rating spikes, plenty of parties have had close calls here over the years. I originally broke this area down into smaller chunks but soon realized that it didn’t make a lot of sense. The larger area can be looked at as two basic areas, with the main area being found around the 2km mark along the Lake O’Hara road. It is possible to ski before the 2km mark and that area has the most cliffs and steeper sections (also sections of thicker trees). If you haven’t skied here before it will probably take you a couple of days to map out the sweet spots.

Vertical: 550-600m for access to treeline, 300-400m runs.

Distance: 3-3.5km for access to treeline, 1km runs.

Directions: Follow the directions for the Lake O’Hara parking lot found on page 66. Head up the road for 1-2km where you can start skinning up the trees to your left (east). Most people seem to leave the road at the short open, steeper slope just after the 1km mark and you will likely find a well set skin track here to use. After skinning all the way to treeline you simply ski back down and use your track for lapping. As I stated above I have decided against breaking this area down but in general there is steeper terrain (and cliffs) the further skier’s right you go and more open glades to the skier’s left.