Tag: Alta Lake

Lake Fun in WhistlerLake Fun in Whistler

July 2, 2024 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Whistler’s lakes offer a variety of water-based activities and are a great place to cool off during the summer heat. From sailing regattas and floating art galleries to swim races and a quadrathlon, Whistler’s lakes have seen it all!

The Alta Lake Sailing Club’s annual season end “Regretta” included sailing races as well as land-bound activities for participants of all ages. The first ever “Regretta” was hosted in the summer of 1965 and was named after the regret the community feels as the summer comes to an end. Today, the Whistler Sailing Association offers sailing programs, rentals, and races throughout the summer. Alta Lake and Green Lake permit motorized boats; however, on Alta Lake they must be kept under 10 horsepower. Non-motorized boats such as pedal boats, kayaks, canoes, and standup paddle-boards are welcome on all of Whistler’s lakes.

Participants in the Great Snow Earth Water Race rush out of the water. Whistler Question Collection, 1980

On Victoria Day, 1975, the Great Snow Earth Water Race first started. The first leg of Whistler’s version of the relay race included skiing from the top of Whistler Mountain, then running the remaining distance to today’s Creekside where the first baton pass-off took place. The next leg was a bike ride around Alta Lake where the baton was passed to the group’s canoe team. The canoeists then paddled through the River of Golden Dreams to the first weir and passed the baton to a runner who completed the race by running all the way back to Creekside. The 2014 revision of the race included an extra three components: ski or snowboard touring, downhill mountain biking, and cross-country biking. Unfortunately, the last Great Snow Earth Water Race took place during the 1990s.

Windsurfers on Alta Lake in August 1981. George Benjamin Collection

Through the 1970s and early 1980s, windsurfing at Alta Lake became very popular. Whistler was home to multiple windsurfing regattas as well as a weekly race night. Participation eventually declined due to lack of availability of the equipment and legal issues. Windsurfers on Alta Lake were a concern for those participating in the Fun Fitness Swim Race in the 1980s. After a swimmer and windsurfer collided (both were ok!) the swim race was moved to Lost Lake. The Fun Fitness Swim Race was roughly a mile and a half long and was offered as a community fitness event rather than a competitive race. The swim race took place from 1979 until the early 1990s.

Today’s water-bound activities include paddling across Alta Lake and through the River of Golden Dreams. This route takes visitors past old growth trees, through lush scenery, and offers breathtaking mountain views. A round trip takes roughly 3 hours and can be completed in a kayak, canoe, or on a paddle-board. Tours can be booked or self-guided depending on skill and comfort level. Alta Lake is also home to Art on the Lake, which includes local artists, live music, and a floating art gallery. One of Arts Whistler’s more recent annual undertakings, the first Art on the Lake event was organized four years ago as a way to host an arts event during the pandemic. This event takes place in August and is accessible by boat, kayak, canoe or paddle-board.

A group (who appears to have forgotten their lifejackets!) paddle down the River of Golden Dreams. Whistler Resort Association Collection

Keep an eye out more more information on local lake activities to participate in this summer. Remember your sunscreen and towel for every lake day adventure!

Ella Healey is the Summer Program Coordinator at the Whistler Museum through the Young Canada Works Program.

READ MOREREAD MORE

Whistler’s First TriathlonWhistler’s First Triathlon

August 29, 2023 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

If you’re a regular reader of Museum Musings or our Whistorical blog, you’ll remember that last week we looked at the first Fun Fitness Swim in Whistler, which was sponsored by Molson’s in 1979. For decades, many competitions and events in Whistler were sponsored by companies like Molson’s and Labatts, from fun swimming events to World Cup Downhill races. In 1983, Molson’s also sponsored the first triathlon held in Whistler, the Molson Light Whistler Triathlon.

Triathlons, a race consisting of swimming, cycling and running, became increasingly popular in North America and Europe from the mid-1970s and into the 1980s. One of the first triathlons held in Canada took place in Vancouver in 1981 and a couple of years later the British Columbia Triathlon Federation was founded in 1983, followed by Triathlon Canada in 1984. Involved in all three of these events was Les McDonald, one of the founding members of the Alta Lake Sports Club (ALSC) in 1975.

Cyclists head up from the lake during the inaugural Whistler Triathlon. Whistler Question Collection, 1983.

Les McDonald was an early investor in Garibaldi Lifts Ltd., active mountaineer and climber, and electrician. As a founding member of the ALSC, he was also involved in cross country skiing in the Whistler area and helped with the building of the trail network at Lost Lake (Les’ Leap in named for him). He began participating in triathlons in the 1980s while cross-training for marathons and quickly became heavily involved in the sport. After helping to found provincial and national organizations in Canada, Les got involved on an international level and traveled to help set up national triathlon governing bodies in other countries. Then, in 1989, Les became the founding president of the International Triathlon Union, serving until 2008. When triathlon was included in the Olympic Games for the first time in Sydney in 2000, Les was given a large portion of the credit. During his involvement with the sport, Les worked towards equal prize money, equal representation, and concurrent medal ceremonies for female and male athletes.

Keeping hydrated is an important part of completing a triathlon! Whistler Question Collection, 1983.

Not surprisingly, triathlon was also taken up by other members of the ALSC and members of the club participated in a triathlon in Vancouver just one month before hosting Whistler’s first triathlon on August 14, 1983. The race consisted of a 2 km swim in Alta Lake, a 40 km cycle along “valley highways,” and a 15 km run around Lost Lake, finishing in the Village. Entry to the race cost $10 and those who registered early got a free t-shirt. According to Race Director Les, the triathlon was not meant to be “an iron man endurance test” but an opportunity to introduce all-round athletes and specialists to the “exciting and growing sport.” To this end, the ALSC also organized an event for those under 19 the day before.

The inaugural Molson Light Whistler Triathlon was won by Glen Carsen of Vancouver with a time of 2:45:51 (Carsen also won the second annual Molson Light Whistler Triathlon in 1984) and the fastest woman was Loreen Barrett with a time of 3:11:56. Les finished tenth overall with a time of 2:59:00.

A competitor nears the finish line in the Whistler Village during the 1984 triathlon. Whistler Question Collection, 1984.

Though the ALSC is now defunct, the club continued to host triathlons through the 1980s. Whistler even hosted Ironman races from 2010 to 2019. Today, the Whistler Triathlon Club trains for races and XTERRA Whistler, an off-road triathlon, takes place in September.

READ MOREREAD MORE

The First Fun Fitness SwimThe First Fun Fitness Swim

August 22, 2023 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 4 Comments

After arriving in Whistler in August 1974 on a year’s leave from teaching that became multiple seasons, BJ Godson filled various roles in the growing community, from bartender at establishments such as the Highland Lodge to the creator of the Ski Friends program on Whistler Mountain. During her time in Whistler, she also founded Whistler’s annual Fun Fitness Swim.

According to BJ’s mother, she began to swim at the age of one, even before she started walking. She continued to swim and, in 1979, her boyfriend at the time suggested that she organize a swim in the area because she was “such a good swimmer” and “loved to organize things.” This led to the first Fun Fitness Swim, a fun distance race of about a mile and a half (about 2.4 km) in Alta Lake on August 19, 1979.

A smiling BJ Godson presents a swimming prize to Sheila Peters while Denver Snider looks on. Whistler Question, 1979.

BJ’s time working at the Highland Lodge had introduced her to Roy Adams, a representative of Molson’s, and he agreed to have the company sponsor the event. Thanks to this sponsorship, every participant in the race was guaranteed a t-shirt and drinks, and bananas and chocolate were available to those who needed it during the swim. Local resident Chico made trophies for the first place winners and local businesses donated prizes for a draw.

Rather than focusing on the competition of a race, this event was described by the Whistler Question as “a community event to encourage fitness” and was open to everyone over the age of 19. Thirty-seven swimmers left Wayside Park in one minute intervals, led by BJ and heading for the docks at Adventures West. Volunteers in rowboats and canoes were recruited to help any struggling swimmers and spectators were encouraged to come cheer. The race was followed by an afterparty at the Christiana Inn with refreshments provided by Molson’s and members of the Alta Lake Community Club. The first two winners were Rick McFadden at 41:25 and Meg Fellowes at 44:00, both of whom were reportedly so cold after the race that they didn’t make it to the afterparty.

Participants for one of the early Fun Fitness Swims. Photo courtesy of BJ Godson.

The first Fun Fitness Swim was such a success that the second year went ahead with almost full registration even though the weather was wet, cold and windy. The course changed a few times over the first years until the Fun Fitness Swim moved to Lost Lake in the mid-1980s. According to BJ, one of the main reasons for moving to Lost Lake was the danger of windsurfers on Alta Lake.

Though the windsurfing club and local windsurfers were asked to stay out of the swim course for a couple of hours during the race, there was little they or organizers could do about visiting windsurfers or those who didn’t get the notice. One swimmer in the 1982 event even recalled colliding with a windsurfer. The Question reported his comments, saying “I hit one. He was a beginner. He fell and couldn’t get out of the way. I didn’t see him and – bang – I ran into him.”

Swimmer Shelley Warne heads from Wayside Park to the Alta Lake Inn and back under the watchful eye of Marilyn Moore, who dusted off her bathtub derby craft for the occasion. Whistler Question Collection, 1984.

Though the event continued to focus on encouraging participation rather than competition, swimmers still swam to the best of their abilities and BJ remembered one participant in particular demonstrating their athletic ability. According to BJ, she was swimming around Lost Lake when “all of a sudden, there’s somebody passing me a high clip, swimming so fast they made a little wake.” She soon realized that she had been passed by Dawn Titus, which was particularly annoying as Dawn had had a cast on her leg until just a couple of weeks before the swim.

The Fun Fitness Swim continued to take place at Lost Lake without windsurfers and under BJ’s leadership, with help from other organizations, until 1989, when her friend Cindy took over the organization. Molson’s continued to sponsor the event until the last Fun Fitness Swim was held in the early 1990s.

READ MOREREAD MORE

Fishing Alta LakeFishing Alta Lake

July 18, 2023 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 3 Comments

Before Whistler became known as a ski resort, Alta Lake was known as a summer and fishing destination, drawing visitors and summer residents each year to join the relatively small population of residents who stayed in the area throughout the year. Summers were busy and groups such as the Alta Lake Community Club (ALCC) and Alta Lake Sailing Club regularly hosted events during the season, including dances, regattas, and a Fish Derby.

Fishing was a popular activity for both residents and visitors to Alta Lake and getting to eat what they caught could turn into a social occasion. For David Fairhurst, whose parents owned Cypress Lodge and who was a child at Alta Lake in the 1960s and 1970s, fishing was also something to do at a time when there were relatively few children in the area and very few organized activities. As David remembered in an interview earlier this year, “You could go and do your own thing… Myself, I used to spend a lot of time fishing, tromping around the creeks and the lakes and stuff.”

David Fairhurst shows off Pine mushrooms, rather than fish. Whistler Question Collection, 1979.

According to Carol Fairhurst, her brother grew up fishing from “the day that he could see a fish” and he and their father would be out in a boat fishing all the time. Both David and Carol remember there being lots of fish. As David recalled, “Every body of water was teeming with fish” and he would catch Rainbow trout, Dolly Varden, Bull trout, and Kokanee. Most of the fish that David remembered catching were average size trout, though he did remember a few Rainbow trout that were sixteen to eighteen inches long, which were considered “really big fish.”

Some of the fish would be eaten fresh, some frozen, and others smoked. This abundance of fish meant that the freezers at Cypress Lodge and the Fairhurst family home would sometimes fill up. Florence Petersen, who was a close friend and neighbour of the Fairhurst family, wrote in 2006 that “Knowing that Andy [Petersen] liked to BBQ fish on the hibachi, David would come over every so often to ask if it was ‘time for a fish fry?’ We knew that this was the sign that he needed another freezer to store his catch!”

Cypress Lodge, September 1962. Fairhurst Collection.

Fish fries were a good reason for a get-together, whether it was an informal gathering of friends or an official event organized by the ALCC. Carol recalled taking either a dock with a motor or a boat out on Alta Lake and motoring around while people caught fish and they barbecued them on the spot.

John Burge, whose family first stayed at Cypress Lodge in 1956 and then built their own cabin to visit each summer, remembered the ALCC Fish Derby and the big community fish fries that would happen at the end of the summer. Though John didn’t enjoy fishing, his parents did. According to him, “If they got a big fish, they would… take it to Dick [Fairhurst] at Cypress Lodge and it would be frozen. Whoever got the biggest fish would win a prize at the end of the summer.” Although he didn’t recall the specific prize, the 1959 ALCC newsletter announced that the Fish Derby prize would be $10 for the largest Rainbow trout caught in Alta Lake “by any legal method.” All of the fish that had been saved from July through September would be thawed and cooked and eaten on the grass at the Cypress Lodge point.

Other competitions also took place during events at Cypress Lodge, such as pie eating contests. Fairhurst Collection.

As skiing and winters became more popular, fishing and summers became less prominent. Today there are not as many fish in the lakes and creeks and all fishing in Whistler is now catch and release. Fishing is no longer the main draw for visitors but other activities like mountain biking have once again made summer a busy season for the area.

READ MOREREAD MORE