World's greatest liftie

Castle Mountain, Alberta, is full of surprises - not least how a barely known ski hill can have such amazing terrain and great snow, and pretty good uplift, without losing its soul.
One of the reasons comes in the shape of Marie Cameron, unquestionably the world's greatest liftie, who hugs every skier and boarder who loads the chairlift she's operating. Marie, who learnt to ski at Castle, as did her kids, started working on the lifts two years ago. Hugging friends as they lined up seemed the natural thing to do, but of course others wanted a hug too. Now everyone gets a hug and Marie "feels awesome"; she is better known, and knows more people, than anyone else on the hill. In fact, in the province, probably.

Steep enough for ya?

What is it with resort names? Rarely do they describe what's really going on. Take Kicking Horse, British Columbia: it kicks, for sure, but Kicking Mountain Goat might be nearer the mark. Steep does not adequately describe what's going on here, and the resort is pretty straightforward about what they've got: if you're a beginner or anything less than a very adventurous intermediate, it's nothing personal, but they don't want you here - there are plenty of more suitable places. Michael Dalzell, the resort's sales & marketing director took a reluctant break from his office to explain it all to me today in the Eagle's Eye restaurant on the peak, shortly before demonstrating what he was talking about on the way down - that's him on the left.
So if you think steep skiing is for you, bring it on. There are places with comparable challenge - Jackson Hole, Big Sky, Chamonix, Alagna, Engelberg, Verbier - but only La Grave shares Kicking Horse's ultra-simple layout. Basically, one gondola rises from 3900ft (1190m) to 7700ft (2450m) without stopping, passing go, or collecting $200. For a few years that was it - head on down via any number of ungroomed bowls, ridgelines and thick forest, perhaps leaving your plan for the day with someone who cared enough to raise the alarm if you were more than a few hours late. There's even a grizzly named Boo fast asleep in the middle of a thicket halfway down the mountain, for Pete's sake, who tends to wake up ravenous when spring arrives a little early.
Things have changed, a bit, with one groomed run 'guaranteed' from the top, a couple of quad chairs for variety, and some really nice ski-in ski-out accommodation, but they can't really kid anyone. Nor should anyone kid themselves or a local guide that they're up to the mark. It's not just the pitch but the length of the drop, and all of this without having to hike more than ten minutes, though there's even more to north and south beyond bounds where the snow (a strong point, generally) is even better. So if you ever thought you really knew how to ride, or you're Scandinavian, get out here, now.

Reach for the sky

At times like these - that is to say when I'm in Europe and it's nearly 15 degrees centigrade warmer than normal, while in North America it's bucketing down with snow - my thoughts naturally turn to things like ski-lifts. Ski-lifts that go very high, mostly.

Some of these will remain just twinkles in Doppelmayr's eye - like the alleged concession to build a lift to the peak of the Matterhorn (4478m will do nicely, thankyou, though they'd need a fair bit of orange netting down the first 1500m of descent), while something like the Monterosa's Salati-Indren lift will be with us in a couple of seasons... maybe.

But uplift isn’t just about speed, efficiency and high-technology. It can be a charming, sometimes thrilling part of your mountain experience. Scary tin-cans on cables are the obvious contenders. Then there are the nostalgic sideways-chairs (you take your skis off, for this type, if you know what's good for your lower-limbs); sometimes they throw a rug over your knees, which can be quite scary in itself depending on who you're sharing with.

So here are some favourites - please add your own in the comments section.
Epic: Courmayeur's Cresta d’Arp and, on the Mont Blanc side, the entire Helbronner series of lifts
Quirky: Heiligenblut’s gondolas - through a tunnel in the mountain
Vintage: Punta Indren, Alagna and the classic bucket lift below; Kandersteg’s sideways double chairs, with awning, oilskin weather protection and sideways clunk-click-every-trip safety bars

Safety bars: an unexpected aspect to riding lifts in the US is that no-one likes to use the safety bars. Sometimes they don't even have them. Very strange in a land renowned for ambulance chasing lawyers, and disconcerting for anyone with a touch of vertigo. And if you think there's nothing to worry about, google 'chairlift, accident' for a bit of a fright.
Whatever you do, bar or no bar, just don't forget to get off...