Whitefish from Within

To get to the true essence of a western town, you must get into the minds of its locals. That can make a world of difference, as they will hopefully let you in on what only they know.

Montana, specifically Whitefish, has its own distinct cast of characters as well as a very unique wilderness experience. Its culture and its mountains breathe through the personality of its locals.

One of those locals is Darwon. Darwon is a thirty-year Heli-Guide and co-owner of Glacier Raft Company/Glacier Outdoor Center. I meet him my first night in Whitefish over a Bison Burger at a local restaurant with a menu predominantly filled with meat. During my four day stay in the area, I ate meat at every meal. And, it was good. Bison burgers, delectable bacon strips, cabin smoked turkey—the list goes on. But I digress.

If you want to earn Darwon’s respect, you might have to wrestle him for it. That or shoot a gun. He lives up to his namesake, and it is survival of the fittest in his world. Date his daughter and you’d better know how to do a banana split, half-nelson, or some other power driven mat-move to make a good impression on dear ole dad. No exceptions. No joke.

I meet Darwon through Hilary. Hilary, a super mom of two young girls, Outdoor Public Relations guru/co-owner of Outside Media Group, and a petit gal of supermodel good looks, enjoys sitting on her front porch from 5 to 7 am during hunting season. Wrapped in a blanket on a rocking chair, she holds a rifle and hopes to nail an elk before the kids eat breakfast and go to school. Hilary is also a super-fly genius on Twitter with witty remarks and saucy responses that would suggest the presence of an urban city-slicker unexpectedly thrust into the wilds of Montana. You can’t make this stuff up.

But, to judge Whitefish on these types of stories would be to only skim the surface.
After my introduction to Darwon, the next morning I was not sure what to expect when I met up with my ski tour guide from Glacier Outdoor Center- Carsten Karlson. That is really his name. He turned out to be normal.

Carston and I headed out on a spectacular cross-county journey through Glacier National Park, passing beautiful water features, over bridges and across rivers, through the woods, and under the flanks of the rugged peaks that define the majesty of the park. We were by ourselves the entire time. This type of cross-country ski experience lets one see a National Park at its most pristine, in isolation in winter.

After a serene day of gliding across snow in the silence of winter in the wilds, I met up with pro-skier and Salomon teammate Cody Townsend at Whitefish Mountain Resort. At the local “Bierstube”, Cody introduced his latest ski film by Matchstick Productions, “The Way I See it .” Turns out there are die-hard skiers everywhere and Whitefish Mountain Resort has hundreds of them. They made up a large, energy-filled audience, inspired by the skiing of some of the big-mountain icons, as well as Cody’s presence that evening.

After another meal of meat in the charming and brightly decorated downtown of Whitefish, our large group of media and athletes settled into an evening of classic rock at a local bar to discuss the following evening’s Whitefish Mountain Films event and to reflect on skiing, meat, and ski films.

I was completely impressed with Whitefish Mountain Resort. The next morning, with the guidance of our soul-skier tour guides Jess & Dave Downing and photographer Brian Schott, we were introduced to the secrets of Whitefish Mountain aka “the Big”. The Ski Area offers a wide variety of terrain with long, gladed tree shots and steep, open pitches that hold fresh snow long after the last storm. Cody and I explored much of the mountain and bounced happily through the powder, all while enjoying beautiful views from everywhere on-piste. Because of the sleeper secret status of Whitefish, lift-lines were quick and locals were extra friendly, which created a charming atmosphere for our ski experience.

To cap off a heavenly ski day, that evening the annual Whitefish Mountain Films was attended by a heavy local following with presentations by Chris Davenport, Cody, myself and local ski personalities and photographers. Created by the local guide company BlueBird Guides in collaboration with Hilary’s peppy team at Outside Media, Whitefish Mountain Films is in its infancy and will be an annual event not to be missed. Watch out for this burgeoning Festival as the Outside Media group assists BlueBird in bringing in more ski culture and high quality films and slideshows from across the country and around the globe for a yearly celebration of mountain living.

To top off our evening of film and slideshow entertainment, our crew headed over to the local “Bulldog” bar and restaurant, recounting stories and memories from the past few days. I had another burger and immersed myself in the local flavors and characters of the evening.

Whitefish lives up to its reputation—wild, scenic, rustic, friendly, charming, and beautiful—with loads of character. It is a destination town and resort with much to offer any type or level of outdoor enthusiast. And keep in mind, to know places as spectacular as Whitefish, you really need to see it from within, and Whitefish’s locals are happy to help.

A short video of highlights skiing at Whitefish:

For more information on visiting Whitefish:

• Whitefish Visitor Bureau
• Whitefish Mountain Resort
• Glacier Outdoor Center

And, for a couple of excellent Lodging options:

• http://www.haymoonresort.com/LODGING/downtownflat.html
• http://www.lodgeatwhitefishlake.com

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