On Tuesday, March 30, Whistler Blackcomb, the North America’s largest ski resort, closed for the season eight weeks ahead of schedule. The decision was made after the British Columbia government ordered the resort to close by April 19 to contain the spread of COVID-19. Whistler Mountain was originally scheduled to close on April 18, and Blackcomb Peak was scheduled to stay open until May 24. None of them will be reopened this season.
At a news conference on March 29, the provincial health minister, Dr. Bonnie Henry, cited an increase in cases in the Whistler community and the need to curb travel-related dissemination. The new cases of COVID-19 in the Howe Sound area, where Whistler is located, went from a total of 32 in the first week of March to 247 in the last week of the month. The worrying Brazil P.1 variant, first discovered in January, is also on the rise across British Columbia. O Globe and Mail reported that it is the largest known spread of the variant outside Brazil.
P.1 is more contagious, it can cause more serious symptoms and, according to the BC Center for Disease Control, it may be able to reinfect people who have already had the virus. It may also not respond to current treatments and vaccines like the milder strains of coronavirus. New cases of the variant identified in other regions of Canada have been associated with travelers who have spent time in the Whistler area. Since then, the increase has led to other restrictions, including a three-week ban on indoor meals and drinks, group fitness classes and religious services indoors.
Whistler Blackcomb was the only ski resort with a closing order, but his decision to end the season immediately caused a domino effect. The next day, Revelstoke Mountain Resort posted on Instagram that it was shutting down for the rest of the season due to COVID-19. Big White Ski Resort also announced that its season would end earlier, on April 5, instead of April 11. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the province reported 1,013 new cases of the virus, the highest total ever in a single day.
The scenario is a repeat of last March, when ski resort cities like Sun Valley, Idaho, became the first hot spots of COVID-19. On March 10, 2020, after the World Health Organization officially declared the pandemic, ski areas everywhere started to close earlier. Whistler Blackcomb’s parent company, Vail Resorts, closed all of its North American properties prematurely last season, on March 15.
The 2020–21 season should be different, with strict policies in place for social distance and sanitation, and restrictions on the number of people who could attend group ski lessons. Whistler Blackcomb was one of many large resorts (including Aspen Snowmass and Breckenridge in Colorado and Park City in Utah) to implement a reservation system to manage mountain capacity. Skiers at Whistler Blackcomb were required to purchase cable car tickets in advance online. Even season pass holders had to book ski days in advance. Masks were mandatory, regardless of the person’s vaccination status or the rules in their home state.
The changes seemed to be working. In some cases, ski resorts have even been praised for not contributing to an increase in COVID-19. In January, for example, public health officials in eight tourism-dependent communities in Colorado’s mountainous regions confirmed that they had not linked any outbreaks to ski areas.
“Although the Provincial Health Order has taken us by surprise, we fully support the government’s direction and are doing our part to fulfill it,” said Geoff Buchheister, vice president and chief operating officer for Whistler Blackcomb, in a statement released after business hours on Tuesday. “At the moment, we believe that the best thing we can do to support the order is to start slowing down winter operations. Our full attention will now turn to preparing our resort for a safe opening in the summer. ”Summer operations include downhill mountain biking, hiking and skiing on the Horstman glacier.
Technically, Canadians should not travel outside their communities, let alone provinces, to ski this year. But it is a government recommendation, not a mandate, and it is not enforced. “It’s a little confusing from a provincial public health standpoint,” says Robin Richardson, Whistler Blackcomb’s season pass holder who drives 50 minutes from his home in Squamish to ski. “There are no non-essential trips, but an important tourist center is open.”
And there is no doubt that tourists are there. “It’s busier than most people expected,” says Mike Douglas, a skier and professional filmmaker who has lived in Whistler for more than 30 years. “It looks like there have been people from everywhere here, but especially from eastern Canada.”
Still, the residents were taken by surprise by the order of the province. Whistler Mayor Jack Crompton told Canada Global News that the community was in shock. “Nobody expected this, because of how well Whistler Blackcomb managed the mountain,” says Whistler resident and skier Hélène Castonguay, a retired nurse who skied at Whistler Blackcomb on her last day of operation. “There will always be someone without a mask, but it was 99 percent safe.”
Whistler already peaked in the COVID-19 cases in January. The authorities attributed the numbers of the time to holiday trips and celebrations. So, in spring break in March, the province tried to be proactive, putting Whistler on a list of vaccination priorities. “They did a three-day vaccination blitz in the city and vaccinated a ton of people in the community,” says Douglas. “Everyone was really excited for the spring.” But the measures were not enough.
Some residents turned to the internet to express frustration, but most online responses were supportive, thanking the resort for the four months they were able to operate.
Others are suing the situation with ironic humor, like the Instagram account @Whistler_Memes. The resort’s closing request was delivered on a perfect blue bird day, and the report posted an image of actor Michael Cera smiling brightly, with the words: “It’s a great day …” Below, another photo of Cera looking at off camera, suddenly discouraged, continued the phrase: “be sad.”
Lead photo: stockstudioX / Getty