Whistler Heli Biking Returns for Summer 2022 with Brand New Alpine Trail
Blackcomb Helicopters comes in for a ridge top landing in Whistler, British Columbia - Trevor Lyden Photo
Press Release: AlpX Expeditions // Whistler Heli Biking
After several years of dreaming, planning and building, Blackcomb Helicopters will be opening a newly built heli-biking trail between Whistler and Pemberton, BC. With the opening of this new trail, they will be operating under a new division specific to adventure tourism, AlpX Expeditions (AlpX).
AlpX is the unification and expansion of Blackcomb’s year-around offerings of heli-hiking, weddings, picnics and ski touring activities. This also includes the recent acquisition of Tyax Adventures, a backcountry operation offering a network of float plane accessible cabins and trails in the mountain biking and hiking mecca of the South Chilcotin Mountains & Big Creek Provincial Parks.
You may remember Heli-biking in Whistler from just a few years ago. When unsanctioned trails became increasingly popular, Blackcomb Helicopters was asked by the BC Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations to discontinue access until a more sustainable long term option was in place. Following a lengthy tenure application process, Blackcomb Helicopters aka AlpX is excited to be offering this option to riders again through a sustainably developed and operated program.
Descending above the treeline- Daniel Ronnback Photo
This new heli biking trail from AlpX has been the culmination of 5 years of consultation with the Province of British Columbia, Lil’wat Nation’ Land Referrals Committee, Squamish Nation, resource organizations and local user groups. The trail work is being completed by Howler Contracting, a Whistler-based trail building crew lead by Zander Strathearn. A temporary alpine camp was created for the build team, where they spent their days building trail and their evenings by the wood stove. The resulting trail will be 13km of freshly built singletrack over 1600m (5,250ft) of descent, including a 3km Black Diamond peak descent, a 1.2km climb trail, and an Intermediate Blue trail of 9km that follows an alpine ridgeline down through old growth forest to open terrain with a mix of singletrack and bike park style flow sections.
Blackcomb Helicopters worked with AeroDesign (now DART) to develop the first ever production bike rack approved by Transport Canada and the FAA for commercial use in 2016. This provides a system that is both safe for passengers and bikes. We have come a long way from the days of long-lining a cluster of bikes together where you were lucky to start your ride without one of your brake levers snapping off!
Director of Marketing, Tourism & Sustainability at Blackcomb Helicopters, Jordy Norris added:
 | “We wanted to build a trail that offered a world class experience to riders of many levels. We believe we have done just that. This has been years in the making, and we couldn’t be more excited to be up and running this summer” |
Since 2018, Blackcomb Helicopters has offset 100% of carbon emissions created by tourism flights. In 2019, our commitment moved to offset 100% of business operations as the first full service helicopter operation in the world to do so. Additionally, AlpX has retained qualified biologists and professionals to undertake the appropriate studies and make recommendations to ensure the least impact to environmental resources throughout this project. Environmental values are managed according to the Wildlife Guidelines for Backcountry Tourism/Commercial Recreation in British Columbia and will be a foundation of Blackcomb Helicopters’ operations.
Prices start from $349CAD per rider when you book a private heli for your group of 5.
Website: https://alpx.ca/
Instagram: @alpx.expeditions
Facebook: AlpX Expeditions
About Blackcomb Helicopters (blackcombhelicopters.com / mcleangroup.com )
Founded in Whistler, British Columbia and operating for over 30 years, Blackcomb Helicopters is the leading helicopter touring and heli-services company in the pacific northwest. 100% carbon offset, Blackcomb provides heli-tourism, utility and civil services and operates from bases at Vancouver International Airport, Whistler, Pemberton, Squamish, Sechelt, Lillooet, Terrace and Springbank, AB. Blackcomb is a member of the McLean Group of Companies, a diversified portfolio of privately held businesses. Learn more here.
See ya this summer! - Daniel Ronnback Photo
Author Info:
Member since Aug 24, 2016
Must Read This Week
It's not a perfect solution, but it's better than the majority out there who choose to continue to do nothing to make up for their impact.
We understand that we have a negative impact associated with the fuel burn of our helicopters but we make efforts where we can in other areas of the operation. All this aside, we appreciate the conversation taking place and learning from it.
Most importantly though, we hope to be able to share positive time spent in the backcountry with our guests this summer.
Yes, it was hyperbole I’m not an aeronautical brain surgeon engineer with a bmx background.
Heli skiing/snowboarding, heli mtb access - all epic experiences, I'm sure. I'll continue to snowshoe and pedal my (analog) bike. When the alternative is recreating at 0L/minute, it is hard for many to justify the environmental cost.
An AS350 Helicopter as pictured burns 3 Litres per minute at max power output.
But hey, don't let the truth get in the way of your pathetic hyperbowl
(I respect the actions this adventure company does to offset their footprint, would still be interesting to get a number on it)
@lordjord carbon offsetting isn't snake oil. You cut a tree down, you plant a new one. It's that easy. Unfortunate fact of life is we all consume to survive, some more than others no doubt, but very few actually give back.
And to all you trolls out there why don't you go protest oil with petroleum based plastic signs from your plastic kayaks. And don't forget to throw your trash everywhere when marching for the climate.
Signed a country dude who puts boots on the ground working hard, doing things most folks wouldn't, in order to reduce the impact of critical infrastructure that we all depend on.
Peace all!
Look I'd love to be able to plug my hair into a Pterodactyl like they do I'm Avatar to get around, but that's not reality. People have cognizant of the reality and focus on ways to make it better here.
Not really trying to toot my horn because I value modesty, but just for this I'd like to share I that I am well versed in environmental science, engineering, and thermodynamics. I've worked in just about every type of industrial facility there is helping clients significantly reduce their footprint on the water and energy front. If people want to get rid of fossil fuels for good, then I truly believe nuclear is the way to go, but that scares people due to how it's been manipulated for evil. If a nuclear physicists figures out successful fusion, that would be a game changer for us all. Until then I challenge folks to look for solutions instead of pulling the shame card. If they are so smart, then by all means, please share the answer to it all.
I love our Mother Earth more than you could imagine. She provides for us but we have to give back. All I'm trying to say is that if people spent as much time working hard to make a difference in the world as they did complaining then the things we could accomplish would be tremendous.
Fusion would be incredible. We'd probably somehow use it to kill off ourselves, but the ensuing nuclear winter will do away with the global warming side of climate change.
A mixture of energy storage, wind, solar, hydro and some form of liquid or gas combustible seem like the way to go long term. If we could effectively turn switch grass into biodiesel (and not the same biodiesel that you get from veg oil), then the Dakota's would have enough product to be a member of OPEC.
The mantra of drill baby drill (or if you live in Vernal Utah, I Heart Drilling) won't fix anything long term. We've been needing to innovate for a while and consume less. We've not being doing such a great job with that.....
I'm a big fan of educated debate keeping emotions in check to come up with these best solutions. People are so far left or right these days with extreme views it's ridiculous, and watching them bicker is sad to see because we all are supposed to do better for our future generations. Like a bunch of school children yelling they are right just because they don't have the maturity to admit their wrong, so their mindsets get even more extreme and twisted.
I agree that helis aren't the most environmentally friendly way to get up to a top of the mtn. But the service they provide is a drop in the ocean compared to all the other waste going on. I do applaud them for at least making the effort to give back. Most others can't say the same for themselves.
I'm genuinely curious at how many of these keyboard activists take the simple steps to reduce their own impact, but I think I already know the answer.
Certainly a different crowd in the mtb world these days than I grew up with. People in sprinters, hauling motor bikes, working remote jobs that are probably mainly some marketing ploy, screaming that everyone else is killing the planet and not them. Maybe a bit harsh but someone's gotta call em out from time to time. A lot more litter on the trails these days, and most ride by it without giving it a second thought. As long as I can fit it on my carry, I'll pack it out for them.
Seriously though, how does flying a bunch of people around the world to march for the climate, throwing their litter everywhere change anything? Greta is tripping. Instead of just calling the problems out constantly, go to the source of the problem and work hard to apply innovative thinking to help solve or at least reduce the impact.
Anyways I digress because the pinkbike comment section isn't the right place to solve anything. If I offended anyone, my bad, but not really sorry. I do hope my views at least shifted one or two people believing in fantasies to seriously reflect on their reality.
See y'all on the trails!
Conservationist > environmentalist
yelling and always expect others to fix your problems, or will you take action yourself to improve the world around you?
Also, if you don't have an answer to at least back yourself up, don't pull out the shame card towards others. It's getting real old, and you're just wasting energy. Don't embrace hypocrisy.
And suddenly eBikes do not sound as stupid anymore....
$2.29 yesterday tho! That’s $6.77 USD/ gal accommodated!
We're talking orders of magnitude here.
By the way, it's not *my so-called* Tragedy of the Commons. Read a book and expand your mind because it's a widely discussed phenomenon whose Wikipedia article alone has 189 references.
My whole point--which you refuse to allow into your closed mind--is that some people fly on planes WAY MORE than average. Some people eat WAY MORE meat than average. You're making the perfect the enemy of the good. Just because we can't achieve all our goals doesn't mean there's no point in achieving some of them. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Once again you're seeing black and white rather than shades of grey.