BC WINTER GAMES SCHEDULE and Public ACCESS

The BC winter games are starting on Thursday February 26th and will be ending on Saturday February 28th.

Black Jack is hosting both the Cross Country ski events at our Lower Trailhead and the Biathlon Events at our Biathlon Trailhead. Public Access to our trail system will be limited during the games. Each day once the final events are over (around 2pm) our whole trail system will be open to the public.

During the Cross Country events (February 26, 27 and 28) there will be limited access to our trail system to the public by using Gibbards and resevoir. The Race course will cross gibbards at points so please respect the Marshalls when crossing the race course. Once you are past Barry’s Field you are past all the race courses and can ski anywhere. See Map below

There will be no Biathlon trail access from 8am-2pm on February 26th, 27th and 28th. Due to the use of firearms during the Biathlon events we cannot have the public accessing the Biathlon trails. After 2pm on those dates you may access the trails and go skiing.

SCHEDULES FOR THE EVENTS ARE BELOW

CROSS COUNTRY SCHEDULE
BIATHLON SCHEDULE

We need your Help! Donate to help us finish the Day Lodge

We need your help! In order for us to finish our new Day Lodge we need more money. We are asking you, our generous members, to help us fundraise in order to reach our goal of having a brand new day lodge!

Click here to donate - https://www.canadahelps.org/.../black-jack-ski-club-wants...

The new lodge will be a game changer for us, with running water, real toilets and a warm indoor space to use for events.

We currently have an incentive from a generous donor. If we are able to raise $10,000 by the end of February, this donor will match that $10,000! But we need to raise this money first!

We appreciate any donation, whether large or small. With over 1000 members at Black Jack, if every one of our members donated $10, we would easily hit that $10,000 mark.

We are also on the hunt for corporate and business donations. For more information on that please reach out to Pat at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca

Annual Club Fundraiser Has Begun!

CLICK HERE TO DONATE Donation deadline is March 31.

Black Jack Ski Club is fundraising for the finishing touches on our new lodge. The final "Finishing Phase" includes non-slip flooring, a commercial kitchen, furnishings, paint for the basement and more.

 

Thanks to the Nordic Canada Annual Club Fundraiser, you can make a donation and receive a charitable receipt. Depending on your donation, you also receive sponsorship acknowledgement. If you have a corporation, please consider a corporate sponsorship. 

 

Gold Sponsorship (over $10,000) receives acknowledgement on the donor wall along side other major donors such as Columbia Basin Trust and the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary.

 

Silver Sponsorship ($5000-$9999) receives a plaque of recognition on an 8 foot table in the warming space.

 

Bronze Sponsorship ($2000-$4999) receives a plaque of recognition on a bench in the warming space.

 

Less than $2000 receives an invitation to the Grand Opening Celebration coming in the Spring.

 

The construction of the new day lodge has been four years of hard work and dedication from club volunteers and community members. We sincerely appreciate DJM Construction for their amazing leadership. Please contribute to help make our new day lodge into an amazing space for us all to enjoy. 

Tour De Soup! Monday February 16th

Its Official! The Tour De Soup is Back For another year.

It will be happening on Monday February 16th at noon. Once again trail fees are waived for that day but we are asking for Donations to our Skier Development Program in lieu of trail fees. There will be volunteers ready at both the main Trailhead and the Biathlon Trailhead that will be ready to collect donations.

Restaurants donating soup are still to be confirmed but there will be soup at all 4 cabins!

We are also going to have our electronic rifles set up at the Biathlon Range for all to try at noon.

Black Jack is Looking for a new Race Director!

We are currently without a Race Director on our Board right now. If we are unable to fill this position we will not be hosting any races next year or in the future until the position is filled. This includes our annual Al Fisher Loppet!

If you want to see Black Jack continue to host races then we will need to fill this position.

The Race Director is a volunteer position that is responsible for helping facilitate the race schedule here at Black Jack. You would help to organize and hold races in conjunction with our Awesome Race Organizing Committee. You would have lots of support from our current board that would help you transition into this role.

If you are interested or would like more information please reach out to Pat at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca

TRAIL PSA

would like to do a little PSA about the trails right now. We are very obviously not in optimal snow conditions right now. In fact I would hazard to guess that this might be the least amount of snow Black Jack has ever had in mid January at the lower trails. So please do not ski something like you might have in the past. Things are changing hourly out there with this weather. Creeks are opening up, snow is melting and there is dirt on trails.  So please don't go flying down a downhill if you are not able to emergency stop or if you haven't taken a close look at it already that day.  

And please check the Nordic Pulse Grooming Report or Check in with the kiosk for trail closures before skiing.  In the last few days we have had to close Ophir and Hemlock due to exposed creeks and rocks on the trail.

Thank you to everyone as lets hope we are back to normal winter conditions soon!

Hemlock is OPEN!!!!!!!!

We have some Big News! We have finally been able to open Hemlock and Biathlon Connector!

Getting Hemlock reopened has taken us over a year of work. There are so many people to thank for all their help in getting it Reopened. A huge thanks to George Edney and the team at BC Timber Sales for getting all the danger trees logged from last years tree falling episodes. A huge Thanks to our Brad, Leif, Gus and Devin for all their work in cutting trees and running the excavator to clear the trees from the years wind storm. And a huge thanks to our grooming team Brad, Steve and Keegan for all the work in grooming and getting it ready.

It is going to look much different than the last time it was open. Much of the trail was logged this summer to make it safer and wider. On the north end of the trail there are some big slash piles that will be removed next summer. Please use caution as there still isn't that much snow on the trail and there is still lots of open creeks that depending on how much water flows today may be open and require a crossing.

Biathlon connector is also open! Keegan put in a huge effort last night and built a snow bridge over Hanna Creek, So now you can start your ski at the main trailhead and head up to biathlon! Please use caution on the connector as well as the creeks may open up. That also means that Keegan got the Snowcat up to Biathlon and was able to groom all the trails up there with it.

We still need more snow to open up Rawhide, Tramway, Jeldness and Mugwump and lots of trees need to be removed before we can open viewpoint. But please know we are working on it and will do everything we can to get them open.

Hope to see you out on the trails!

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EVENT NOTICE JAN 3&4 at Biathlon

This weekend on Saturday January 3 and 4 we’ll be hosting the BC winter games zone trials. These are practice and qualifying race for the BC winter games taking place at the end of February.

Both days events will be happening at Biathlon. While we are not closing the trails at Biathlon to the public we highly encourage you to ski at the lower trails during the events.

On Saturday January 3rd the Biathlon Skate race will begin at 1 pm. The range will be in use during the race. The race will be completed by 2. Set up for the race will begin around 10am.

On Sunday January 4th the classic cross country race will begin at 11 am. The race will be wrapped up 1pm.

On Sunday

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December 26- Nordic pulse not working

Happy Boxing day! Unfortunately we are having some issues with our Nordic pulse grooming app. I am sorry about that. It won’t seem to update on multiple different devices.

Everything at biathlon got groomed this morning expect for extra round and viewpoint. It turned out great! Cold temps and a bit of fresh snow really helped out and the trails turned out really well! So come on out and burn off some turkey!

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Dec 21 - kiosk is back open

The kiosk is back open tomorrow! We have power again. Come and get your rentals and passes before heading up to biathlon. It’s open from 8am- 4pm. The skiing at biathlon is amazing right now.

We are also working hard on clearing the lower trails of all the trees that fell during the wind storm - check out the second picture of aqueduct! Brad and Keegan made tons of progress today cutting and moving the trees off the trail with the excavator. If anyone is looking for an adventure ski we would definitely appreciate it if you were to go for a ski up aqueduct or Gibbards and help remove the branches on the trail. But be warned- there isn’t much snow so don’t bring your best skis. We need another 10 cm of snow to start grooming the lower trails. A huge thanks also to Steve, Peter and Ben for grooming and clearing more trees at Biathlon this morning.

And a reminder - Sunday morning is jackrabbit programming between 9:30-11am. The parking lot will be very busy with kids then so either time your ski before or after this times.

See you out on the Trails!

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December 19 Tail Update

Biathlon trails have been cleared of all the fallen trees and are currently in the midst of being groomed (check out the 2nd pic!). A big thanks to Bob, Peter, Keegan and Brad this morning for all the help cutting and clearing the trees. We cut over 30 trees! We haven’t cleared tall Timbers or extra round yet but will get to those trails in the coming days.

Please be careful out there still as there are some danger trees on the trails. We will need to get a faller in to clear them.

There is some bad news too from the storm. The lower trails got hit really hard. There are so many trees down and the power line for the night loop also got hit. So we are without night skiing til we can fix that. Please be patient. This storm is going to take some time to clean up from. We are going to close the lower trails until we can safely clear all the trees

Kiosk will be back open again as soon as there is power at Black Jack. Come and buy some 5 punch passes for Christmas gifts for people looking to ski at black jack over the holidays

We're Hiring: Kiosk Attendant

Black Jack Ski Club is seeking a PART-TIME kiosk attendant for the 2026 season.

The position is for 2 days a week on weekdays. Pay is $19/HR + you will receive a complimentary Black Jack Season’s Pass

The position is seasonal and runs from the beginning of January – March 31st snow conditions dependent.

Experience with the sport of cross-country skiing is a benefit but not essential. The position involves pass sales, ski rentals, snow shoveling and other trailhead tasks. Experience with customer service, a cheerful disposition, and ability for self- direction will be advantageous.

Please email a short letter of introduction telling me why you would be great for the job to Patrick at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca before December 24th, 2025

December 6th - Ski for Free and Kiosk is Open!

Tomorrow is a big day At Black Jack!

To celebrate Rekindle and the start of the holiday season we will be offering Free Skiing at Black Jack tomorrow!

All day pass fees are waived for the day for all visitors so there's no better time to come and check out the trails. We are also going to open the Kiosk at the main trailhead tomorrow. Rentals and advice will be available from 8am-4pm as well as the opportunity to pick up your season's pass.

Keep an eye here and on Nordic Pulse about what trails are going to be groomed. The grooming team is out there working hard trying to get as many trails open for the weekend.

Also this weekend we have our Teck Regional On Snow Camp. Starting tonight at biathlon trailhead at 5pm we will have upwards of 80 people who will be here to ski at Black Jack through to Sunday. There will be kids from all over the Kootenays visiting so be sure to say hi to them when you see them!

AGM Remote Access Login Information 

AGM Remote Access Login Information 

 

The AGM can be accessed via the Zoom link below.

Topic: Black Jack's Zoom Meeting
Time: Dec 3, 2025 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83975055532?pwd=XHao9TkWOqV3xFXDlfKJ6D6nqDFTHG.1

Meeting ID: 839 7505 5532
Passcode: 992992

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One tap mobile
+12532158782,,83975055532#,,,,*992992# US (Tacoma)
+13017158592,,83975055532#,,,,*992992# US (Washington DC)

Join instructions
https://us02web.zoom.us/meetings/83975055532/invitations?signature=EwARCYQwZusihK3qFFfRWSLaohjhtLHv1px3bfIqENw

Input from all members is welcome and encouraged.

Early Season Skate Ski Clinics

EARLY SEASON SKATE SKIING CLINICS

Click here to Register

These clinics are run by Instructor Lesley Beatson

Beginners:

Get a good start with proper technique instruction

Sunday December 14 and 21, 2025 9:30 - 10:30 am

Experienced skiers

Increase efficiency on all terrain

Saturday December 13 and 20, 2025 9:30 - 11:00 am

Cost

$85 for Black Jack ski club members

$110 for non-Black Jack ski club members

 

MINIMUM REGISTRATION

Minimum registration is 8 registrants per clinic.

If minimum registration is not met, the clinic may be cancelled.

Kiosk Opening Delayed until Dec 6th

We have made the decision to delay the opening of the Kiosk until Saturday, December 6th at the earliest. Due to the low snowfall and the fact we are only open at Biathlon Trailhead we will wait til next weekend to open the kiosk for rentals and pass sales. Next Saturday Dec 6th is rekindle in rossland and we will have free skiing for all who would like to participate!

If you do need rentals this week please email Pat at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca to arrange rentals on a special basis.

Thanks!

WE ARE OPEN!

Ok time for the update you are all waiting for -

We Are Open!

but, and I cannot stress this enough, it is VERY early season conditions. The skiing is marginal at best. while we did get a decent amount of snowfall last night once it got packed and rolled it only amounted to a 5 cm base. That means there is some sporty skiing out there. I would not use your brand new skis , it is for sure rock skiing out there. But some skiing is better than no skiing. Your poles will punch through to ground but the rolled trail set up quite nicely and on my tester ski this morning it skied decently well and my skis did not hit ground. 
so, Yes we are open, but please use caution out there. The conditions are marginal at best and you will have to be quite sure on your skis when you are out there. 
Brad and Keegan rolled and packed iron sights , biathlon loop and George's trail. The biathlon loop got track set but iron sights and George's did not. 
a big thank you to both of them for putting in big hours this morning to get something open and groomed. 

I would recommended classic skiing over skating. I didn't skate this morning out there but I would think there's a chance you may touch ground when pushing off with your skis. 

biathlon parking lot is NOT PLOWED, 4x4 recommended 

I will be out there tomorrow morning starting around 830am to hand out memberships and sell day passes. Remember you must be a member or have a day pass to ski at black jack. 

thanks everyone for you patience and hope to see you out on the trails!