Apex Ski Resort
Apex Mountain Ski Resort is located in the Okanagan region of BC Canada yet compared to the other Okanagan ski resorts such as Big White and Silver Star, Apex flies completely under the radar. Subsequently the crowds at Apex Ski Resort are negligible, which combines perfectly with some tasty steeps and dry Okanagan powder. Sometimes described as a ‘quant little drinking village with a skiing problem’, Apex is likely to set any good powder hound’s tail to wag!
Apex Ski Resort BC is the place to get off the grid and enjoy an old school ski area. It’s theoretically a destination resort as it has its own resort village at the lift base, but for experienced skiers and snowboarders it’s probably only ideal for a 2-day visit as part of a road trip. If it is snowing, then extending the stay may make sense in order to reap ongoing powder rewards.
Pros and Cons of Apex Mountain Resort
Pros
- Apex BC has a large proportion of challenging runs for advanced and expert riders, including some fantastic fall line steeps & trees.
- Apex ski resort has the perfect ingredients for a powder hound on a powder day: steep terrain; a complete lack of crowds; affordable prices and light powder snow.
- Skiing, eating and staying at Apex Mountain Resort is reasonably affordable.
- Main restaurant & bar, Gunbarrel Saloon, is a quintessential Canadian après ski location, with great vibes, tunes and décor, plus the attached restaurant is top notch.
Con
- Overall ski terrain is small relative to most other BC ski resorts.
- Limited number of ski lifts.
Pro or Con Depending On Your Perspective
- The village is petite, so if you’re looking for a pumping ski town with lots of bars and shops, then perhaps go to Whistler.
- Apex is famous for having some good bumps runs, so if you’ve still got youthful knees, enjoy!
Apex Ski & Snowboard Terrain & Lifts
Apex Ski Resort is a small to medium sized BC ski resort with a tasty 605 metres (2,000ft) of vertical (1,575 - 2,180m), 73 trails (about 68km in total length) on a compact 450 hectares (1,112 acres) (about half of the size of the average western Canadian ski resort). Whilst compared to the high-profile ski resorts in the region (e.g. Sun Peaks, Silver Star and Big White) it’s smaller overall size is offset by a distinct lack of people, particularly during the week.
Check out the Apex Ski Trail Map below.
For ski lifts, Apex has just two chairs; a high-speed detachable quad that serves most of the mountain; plus a painfully slow triple chair that allows beginners and low-end intermediates to have plenty of time to rest between runs. A T-bar serves a few intermediate runs and the terrain park, and there’s also a magic carpet for novices and tubing.
The Apex ski area is predominantly below the treeline, and even though it’s well renowned for the steep terrain, it has a reasonable spread of terrain for different ability levels. The official terrain stats are beginners 12%, intermediates 34%, and advanced/expert 54%. The grooming is great quality, and beginners to low-end intermediates have wide runs with negligible camber that are easy for learning & progressing. Some of the black runs are groomed intermittently, such as Chute and runs on the Wildside (the backside), which are speedy fun for upper intermediate to advanced riders. Note if venturing to the backside, snowboarders will need to traverse to get there and have plenty of speed on the exit.
Apex Ski Resort has loads of challenging terrain, and for many lines the differential between single and double black diamond is somewhat blurred. Terrain options include wide-open bumps such as those under the quad chair, glades, and tight trees. Tooth is a great run with a double black entry, then you can relax as it tapers, and enjoy being spat out via steep tight trees!
For backcountry, Apex Mountain proper is an easy hike away, where one will find some super steep and avalanche prone chutes.
Apex Snow
Some unkind locals that ski across the other side of the valley call the Apex ski area “Scrapex” because the top is very weather exposed and the snow can get blown off, and Apex doesn’t receive an abundance of snowfall. However, the average season snowfall of 6 metres is quite respectable, but it’s 2 metres short of the average for most BC ski resorts. Thankfully the quality of the powder that falls is generally very good due to consistent below freezing temperatures. Many of the runs have a north-easterly aspect, which also aids in snow quality maintenance.
Where is Apex Canada?
Located on Beaconsfield Mountain in Hedley, the Apex Mountain Ski Resort is in British Columbia, 36km southwest of the town of Penticton and 96km southwest of Kelowna. Nearby ski resorts include:
To get there, regional flights from major Canadian airports including Vancouver (YVR) go into Penticton (YYF) and Kelowna (YFW). From there you’ll want to get a rental car and possibly consider a road trip that incorporates the nearby ski resorts or the Powder Highway. On the off chance that you choose to stay in Penticton and don’t want to drive, there are daily Apex shuttle buses from Penticton on weekends and holidays.
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Apex Accommodation
The village at Apex is reasonably small, but it provides a good mix of lodging, much of which is ski-in ski-out or close to the slopes. Apex Mountain Inn is fully ski-in ski-out, offering accommodation ranging from studio rooms to suites for up to 6 guests. Apex Lodge offers hotel guest rooms and suites. Otherwise there are condos, cabins and vacation rentals to choose from. Penticton is an obvious alternative for day-trippers.
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Ski Resort Facilities, Bars & Restaurants
The Apex ski resort facilities are very adequate considering the number of visitors. The base facilities include kids’ day care, tubing park, a games arcade, an equipment rental shop (including snowshoe rentals), and a good retail shop that sells quality ski and snowboard equipment in addition to apparel and accessories. And under the saloon, there’s a little grocery shop that’s also a full-service liquor store.
In addition to a brown baggers area in the day lodge, Apex Resort has a few options for dining and drinking. The Edge Bistro has good coffee, home baked goods, breakfast bagels, and lunch options such as soups and wraps. The Longshot Cafeteria serves up fast food for breakfast and lunch, whilst the highlight is the Gunbarrel Saloon and Restaurant that serves up lovely meals for lunch and dinner and has a lively après ski scene, particularly on weekends. A quintessential must-do is a Gunbarrel Coffee from Wendell; a flaming Grand Marnier poured down a double barrel shotgun into fine liqueur and coffee.