Category: Museum Musings

These articles have also appeared in the Whistler Question or Pique Newsmagazine in the Whistler Museum’s weekly column.

Boarder Bob: Whistler-based 1990’s Comic Strip

Boarder Bob: Whistler-based 1990’s Comic StripBoarder Bob: Whistler-based 1990’s Comic Strip

February 24, 2026 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Featured image: Boarder Bob comic illustrated by Olivier Roy, published in Snowboard Canada Magazine (starting somewhere in the mid-nineties!)

Olivier (Oli) Roy is “an artist snowboarder” who first came to Whistler “right after high school in 1990” to attend a Craig Kelly Camp. He moved here, three years later, after art college. 

Now, with a career of more than thirty years of ongoing coaching and creating under his belt, he holds a Lifetime Whistler Blackcomb Pass in one hand, a paintbrush in the other and continues to ride the endless canvas offered up by the mountain: artistically and athletically.

The early/mid-nineties has been referred to as the ‘golden age of snowboarding.’ It was fresh, edgy and still relegated to counter-culture status. In Whistler, it was synonymous with a lifestyle and a community. 

During this era, the Ontario-based Snowboard Canada Magazine was born. Broadening their output, they enlisted Roy, as he describes,  a “cool artist.” 

Thus, Boarder Bob – the character and comic strip – were born. Border Bob “moves to Whistler to pursue [his] dream of being a pro snowboarder, but he’s very delusional … ​​he thinks he’s a big shot…” But, he’s not. After a season or two,  “he gets a sidekick, Jed Shred.”  

Jed is a devoted fan: “he’s all like, ‘Oh, Boarder Bob, you’re so epic’. But, as is proven – through Bob’s trials, tribulations and failed attempts at ease and epicness – he is anything and everything, but. 

Roy collaborated with local Glenn Rogers – known for his comic panels in The Whistler Question (a former, local publication started in 1976) – to produce the strip. The two worked together for eight years (“if I remember correctly”, states Roy), producing the 8 panel, 2 row, half-page ‘Boarder Bob’ strip. Published four times a year, “we had a lot of fun” poking fun at the “life of snowboarding in Whistler and on the West Coast.” 

The stresses of balancing the desire to shred while staying fed, being able to board while needing to find literal board-ing to trying to be the bawler at the bar were all fodder for the two creative duos: Roy and Rogers, Bob and Jed. Moral quandaries were occasionally tackled through the ink of these stories: “should we risk everything to be in the shot?!” Arguably, Boarder Bob was 90% total fun, 10% tackling that ‘the stakes are real’.

Boarder Bob Comic. Illustrated by Olivier Roy, written by Glenn Rogers: featured in Snowboard Canada Magazine. The comic strip ran between 1995-2002 approximately.

The comic ran from about 1995 to 2002, or thereabouts. The pinpointing of specifics is about as precise as Bob’s technique, working more with the “ish” verb. However, when it comes to the technical hows of developing the strip, the collaborative process between Roy and Rogers was fine tuned. 

Rogers would usually come up with the story. Admittedly, Roy states “I was never good at writing the stories, I was more the artist and inker.” He would receive the script and then sketch it, all by hand, on an 11 x 17 piece of cardboard:

“I would pencil it and then use China ink [for] the black and white and use markers, like alcohol markers and a bit of watercolor.” It was all hand-lettered.  “And then I would send it by FedEx back to Snowboard Canada magazine. And I, I remember a few times where the FedEx guy would ring the bell and I would still be finishing … after an all nighter.” Each strip took between 10-20 hours. “It was a labour of love,” Roy reminisces. “I loved it.”

Boarder Bob eventually got abducted by aliens (I mean, why not?) – or this is insinuated, but never confirmed for the reader. “There’s a UFO and he disappears.”

Boarder Bob carved out a seminal space in the culture and history of snowboarding art, taking its place in the local legacy of slope-inspired comic strips. The Peak Bros ran from 1979-2002 (in The Whistler Answer and Whistler Review), poking fun at 80s ski culture, whereas Boarder Bob tackled the snowboarding shenanigans of the nineties. 

Roy continued, and continues, to flourish on and off the slopes: the line between his art and sport overlapping. 

He has illustrated for Snowboarder Magazine (the prominent US publication), been Whistler Blackcomb’s online illustrator, designed top sheets for such companies as Prior, Luxury and Option Snowboards; been sent to Ottawa as a Whistler Art Ambassador in 2010 for Canada Day and continues to regularly produce art that showcases the mountains and its vibrant culture. 

The born-in-Montréal skateboarding kid who first came out to join Craig Kelly’s summer camps on the glacier, to then gain accolades as a competitive snowboarder in “half pipe contests, some slope styles, some boarder cross” to now working for Whistler Blackcomb’s Alpine Program and holding the title of being Whistler Valley Snowboard Club’s longest-running coach, working with the program since its inception almost 30 years ago – has literally drawn together the lines of on and off-mountain creativity. 


Boarder Bob Comic. Illustrated by Olivier Roy, written by Glenn Rogers: featured in Snowboard Canada Magazine. The comic strip highlighted and poked fun at the Whistler snowboarding scene of the nienties.
READ MOREREAD MORE
Outtakes from the ‘Olden’ Days

Outtakes from the ‘Olden’ DaysOuttakes from the ‘Olden’ Days

February 3, 2026 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Featured Photo: John Millar outside of his cabin 1911. Philip Collection.

The trials of this town’s early trailblazers were not without their moments of hilarity, precarious predicaments and comic quandaries. Here, I highlight four such stories: standouts in the history of how a place comes to be… 

John Millar ran a roadhouse at Mile 34 ½ (Function Junction) in the early 1900s. A former cow wrangler, rumour had it he was on the run from the Texas Rangers with a couple ‘notches in his gun.’ He housed and fed weary travellers who were making the arduous journey along the original Pemberton Trail. He was known to serve stewed raccoon, muskrat stew and haunch of bear; recognizable by his broken nose, his buckskin coat, beat-up stetson and neck-wrapped red polka dot handkerchief.

John was a character. He was also a trapper and tended a line up the Cheakamus Lake valley: catching marten, rabbit, mink, muskrat…and wolverine. On one mission, John put the limp body of what he thought was a dead animal – a large, muscular and aggressive member of the weasel family – into his pack and set off… only to have the angry beast ‘come to’ and bite him in the buttocks. The tangle on the trail made it so that John could not sit comfortably for some long time after!

*

The Burnt Stew Hike. Petersen Collection

Fast forward to the summer of 1958 and a backpacking trip around London (now, Whistler) Mountain. Local notables Florence Peterson, Kelly Fairhurst and Don Gow were out with overnighting packs and picnic gear and a billy can they rigged over a fire to make dinner. The pot was neglected, as campfire comradery took over, only to be remembered when the pungent smell of scorched food filled the air. The stench permeated the area to such an extent that the basin and the ski run earned its name ‘Burnt Stew’.

*

Back now to butt-bitten John. Periodically he would venture with his packhorses down to Squamish and then take the steamer to Vancouver. One fall, he was returning with his entire winter’s supply of liquor, when one of his horses fell hard into Rubble Creek. Every bottle of John’s seasonal spirits were broken, shattered in the stream. The only glass that didn’t break was a bottle of vinegar. “I was so cussin’ gol’ danged mad that I pulled the cork out of the vinegar and a good swig of it.” Rueing the woes of the rubble, John made his way home with a much lighter, more sobering load.

*

Then there was explosive Charlie Chandler. Charlie came to the valley in the early 1900s. He, too, was a trapper. A floatplane pilot gifted Charlie with a small amount of high-grade aircraft fuel, which he then used to clean his filthy overalls. After laundering the garment in gas, he felt it best to dispose of the dirty fuel down the pit of his outhouse. He didn’t think twice about it. The next time he visited the bivvy, he sat himself down, lit his pipe as was his custom, and survived (albeit, stunned and singed!) to tell the tale of an explosion that was heard from miles around!

Charlie would later leave the world with a bang, again sitting down. In 1946, friends found him dead, in his chair, outside his cabin. He appeared to have had a heart attack. He was also frozen stiff.  Charlie was transported – still in his chair – by  ‘speeder’ along the rail line to Rainbow Lodge to catch the train south. The train, however, was not to arrive until the next day. Now this is where the story gets a little blurry, but somehow, as local lore would have it, in the meantime, Charlie was offered a final drink – (surely to warm up!) – and hoisted, still seated, bolt upright, into a boxcar for his final, if not somewhat flamboyant, voyage!

READ MOREREAD MORE
The ‘Skin’ny on Whistler’s Ski Touring History

The ‘Skin’ny on Whistler’s Ski Touring HistoryThe ‘Skin’ny on Whistler’s Ski Touring History

December 30, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Top Image: Pip Brock and Don Munday walking down Whistler’s tracks, packing skis.
Photo taken by Phyllis Munday and from the BC Archives.

Ski touring and split-boarding continue to grow in popularity as people strive to extend their range into the backcountry of the local Coast Mountains. However, it is nothing new.

In 1933, the first documented ski ascent and descent from the top of London Mountain – now known as Whistler Mountain – was made by Pip Brock. With “terrible” skis purchased from a Vancouver department store, the feat of the intrepid 19-year-old was at first disbelieved by locals. His claim was, however, confirmed by binoculars which showed his tracks: the first top-to-bottom run of Whistler, sited and sighted, 92 years ago.

Pip recalls “Most mountaineers thought that skiing was impure and indecent. But a few of us being frivolous, realized the fin and value of ski for winter touring.” Pip was later joined by celebrated, nationally-treasured mountain adventurers Don and Phyllis Munday, skiing up Wedge Creek as means to summit Wedge Mountain.

Initially, local ski touring converts were few and far between. Pioneering prospector Harry Horstman (whom the glacier on Blackcomb and hut are named after) indignantly heckled the young Pip Brock, chastising him with: “What the hell you got them planks fur? I can get around twice as fast on my snowshoes as you can on them slitherin’ boards!”

But it was “slitherin’ boards” that George Bury, along with three others, chose to use for their 1939 expedition: the first to assess the potential for ski development in the area. The four men began their explorations from Cheakamus Lake and over the period of 10 days, skinned and skied their way around. The tour ended by way of skiing down ‘The Barrier’ to the railroad tracks and flagging down the southbound train headed for Squamish. The development idea was sidetracked with the start of World War II. The group never revisited the idea post-war.

Members of the Bury expedition in 1939.
Bury collection.

In the 1960s, Stefan Ples became actively involved with Garibaldi Lifts Ltd. in their development of Whistler as a ski area. Stefan was incredibly familiar with the mountain, having been touring up and down it for years.

There is a story of when Stefan first met Franz Wilhelmsen (‘The Father of Whistler’), President of Garibaldi Lifts, fittingly on top of the mountain. Franz had arrived by helicopter, Stefan by skis. Franz is reputed to have said “What are you doing on my mountain?” to which Stefan replied “What are you doing on mine?” It is ironic that Stefan became so involved with the ski resort’s development given that it is said he truly could not conceive why people would choose to take a lift up the mountain, just to ski just a short distance down. Though eventually awarded a lifetime pass, Stefan’s preferred method of access was by skinning. It took Stefan approximately 3 hours to reach the peak.

Members of the Bury Expedition in 1939 at Black Tusk.
Bury collection.

The Spearhead Traverse is now the area’s most popular ski touring mission, linking Blackcomb and Whistler by way of an approximately 34 km horseshoe-shaped route across the peaks of the Fitzsimmons and Spearhead ranges. The traverse crosses 13 glaciers, and depending on routing 9-11 mountain passes. In 1964, the first successful tour of the circuit was completed by four UBC Varsity Outdoor Club members. It took the group nine days, starting from the base of Blackcomb.

Today, the Spearhead Traverse is regarded as beginning at the backcountry gates atop of Blackcomb and ending in Whistler Village. The Spearhead Huts Society built a state-of-the-art 38-bunk backcountry accommodation in 2019, with two more huts planned along the route. A strenuous endeavour, most take 2-4 days to complete the trek, however the fastest known times currently hover around the 2 hour mark for both men and women.

The Spearhead Traverse is undertaken by approximately 4000 people per year, skinning their way into the storied tracks of this place.Ski touring and split-boarding continue to grow in popularity as people strive to extend their range into the backcountry of the local Coast Mountains. However, it is nothing new.

***

(*Please note that the version of this article that was published in The Pique Newsmagazine on December 26, 2025 had the wrong photo credit with the Brock/Munday photo. Credit is correct here.)

READ MOREREAD MORE

Time for Tea (treats, tales … and a tow rope!)Time for Tea (treats, tales … and a tow rope!)

December 2, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 2 Comments

Enjoying a cup of tea is a sanctified ritual for many… and Whistler’s past is steeped in its own lore and tradition with two pioneering tea houses (both with a twist!).

Before the advent of Whistler Mountain being developed as a ski destination (officially opened in January 1966), many early residents of the area predominantly lived on the opposite shores of Alta Lake. The Pacific Great Eastern railway line began running lakeside in 1914 and Rainbow Lodge, the first vacation destination, opened in 1915 as a fishing resort. 

Harrop’s Tea Room on Alta Lake, circa 1930.

In the 1920s, Bert Harrop purchased the point of land in the middle of the west side of Alta Lake. He had originally come to the area as a guest of Rainbow Lodge, whereupon his asthma improved greatly during his short stay. Enamored with the place, he and his wife Agnes first moved into a rented cabin and then into their own home – which Bert framed on the shores of Rainbow Lodge (with the help of the proprietor’s father) and floated it on a raft of cedar logs down to his new piece of land. It was secured to the shore and became a floating cottage. 

On the water’s edge, Bert built a building with a large porch which was supported by log piles in the lake. Harrop’s Tearoom was born and Agnes went into business.

Every summer, Betty Jane and Claudia visited the Harrop’s tearoom where they had a floating cottage right on Alta Lake.

Guests, made up of visitors and locals alike, would, arguably, come more for the gossip than the tea… and the fortune telling. Agnes had a designated indoor tea-leaf reading room (the accuracy or aftermath of her predictions remain undocumented!), infusing the experience and take-away of customers. Outside, people would gather on the floating verandah, enjoying afternoon tea amidst expansive views.

The Harrops Tearoom came to an end in 1948, when the couple sold the venture and moved on.

Six years later, in 1955, a new tearoom opened in Cypress Lodge (the site of the current Point Artist-Run-Centre). The lodge was built by Richard (Dick) Fairhurst, in the late forties/early fifties as a fishing camp. The buildings boasted electricity supplied by a generator and then later were powered by waterwheel, a novelty at the time. 

Dick’s mother, Elizabeth Alice, came up from Vancouver to run the tearoom. Noted as being a ‘colourful character’, Ma Fairhurst was equally famous for her beloved butter tarts. Besides baking, Elizabeth Alice cleaned the cabins, did the laundry and took care of the cooking for guests, while Dick was either tending his traplines in the Spearhead Range or logging with one of the nearby operations. 

A trademark of the tearoom was its ‘Hot Dog Friday Night’ which gathered many. Friday was synonymous with the once-weekly delivery of fresh food and meat by refrigerated train car to the community, and the occasion was worthy of celebration. 

Cypress Lodge also boasted the first tow-rope in the area. Built in 1960, a Ford V8 motor was used to pull 259 metres worth of rope through four pulleys affixed to four towers. The first downhill-only ski course in Whistler had been created on the slope directly behind the camp of cabins. Guests could come in from skiing for something sweet or grab tea and then go for a tow!

The Cypress Lodge tearoom closed 7 years after its inception, in 1962 to make room for more buildings, much to the dismay of the community.

Cypress Lodge as seen from the lake. Fairhurst Collection.

In the still-standing, main building of the original Cypress Lodge, the tradition of meeting over tea and treats, is being continued by the Point Artist-Run-Centre with its weekend Creative Café (www.thepointartists.com) … where, undoubtedly, here too, a few gems of local gossip get shared in fine, long-standing community fashion!

READ MOREREAD MORE