A HISTORY OF SKIING IN
FERNIE
The early
years,
pioneers,
and passions
When the first ski tourers ventured
deep into the Cedar Valley below
the sawtooth peaks of the Lizard
Range, they could only have
imagined how Fernie would be
shaped by the sport that had
already captivated Europe and the
Eastern seaboard of the U.S. but
was mostly still the domain of elite
mountaineers in the Rockies. It
was the 1940s and those intrepid
explorers from the Fernie Ski
Club had found their way to
Liverwurst Bowl, now part of the
terrain at Island Lake Catskiing.
A major boost to organized skiing
came in April 1955 when the
Fernie Board of Trade supported
the club’s plan to build a ski hill
on Mt. Proctor. The hill would
feature a rope tow, chalet, and
1,000ft access road. The Chamber
of Comm erce backed a bid for
the 1968 Olympics during these
hopeful early years. To facilitate
the application, the infrastructure
on Mt Proctor was relocated to
Liverwurst Bowl, with plans for
further development. The Olympic
event was eventually awarded to
Lillehammer but the process set
the tone for ski developments in
Fernie.
“Much benefit should come from
the publicity received during the
Olympic campaign and in the near
future we may see a development on
our ski site that could mean a much
needed secondary industry in this
area.”
- Telfer Dicks, Chairman of the
committee and local garage owner
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