Whistler gets its reputation from skiing, and that reputation is entirely deserved — the two mountains, Whistler and Blackcomb, together form the largest ski resort in North America by skiable terrain. But the village and the mountains surrounding it are genuinely spectacular for most of the year, and summer Whistler is a different kind of experience that a surprising number of people haven't considered.
Mountain Biking
The Whistler Mountain Bike Park is widely considered one of the best mountain biking destinations on the planet. The Whistler gondola runs in summer specifically to carry bikes and riders to the top, from which an extensive network of trails descends through the alpine, subalpine, and forest zones. The trails range from beginner-friendly gravel paths to technical black diamond runs with wooden features and large drops that require considerable skill and confidence. Bike rentals are available in the village if you don't want to bring your own, and the bike park staff can match you to the appropriate trail level.
Even if you're not an experienced mountain biker, riding the gondola and walking the peak trails — the Peak 2 Peak gondola connects Whistler and Blackcomb mountains 436 metres above the valley, the highest lift of its kind in the world — is worth the cost of the gondola ticket alone. On a clear day you can see the Coast Mountains stretching to the horizon in three directions.
Hiking
The trail network around Whistler is enormous and far better than most visitors realise. The High Note Trail on Whistler Mountain, accessible by gondola, follows the alpine ridgeline above 2,000 metres with consistent views of the Black Tusk, Cheakamus Lake, and the glaciers of the Coast Mountains. It's a 9-kilometre loop that requires 3-4 hours at a comfortable pace and is classed as moderate — the elevation is already gained by the gondola, so the actual walking is not strenuous.
The Cheakamus Lake trail from the base of Whistler Mountain is a 16-kilometre return walk through old-growth forest to one of the most beautiful mountain lakes in the province. The forest along the creek is classic Coast Mountain old-growth — enormous Sitka spruce and western hemlock draped in moss, the forest floor thick with fern and oxalis. The lake itself, at the far end, sits in a glacially carved cirque with peaks reflected in the clear blue-green water.
The Glacier
Blackcomb Glacier is accessible in summer via the Horstman Glacier — a remnant of the alpine ice that once covered the entire Whistler area. Snowshoe walks and guided glacier tours operate from the Horstman T-bar area. Walking on glacial ice in summer is a strange and memorable experience: the surface is rough and irregular, coloured in blues and greys, with meltwater running in channels carved by thousands of years of slow flow. The guides bring the experience to life with the geology of how ice moves and how long this particular ice took to form.
The Village
Whistler Village is a pedestrian-only square at the base of the mountains, designed from the ground up to be a walkable resort community. It has an excellent range of restaurants — from casual poutine-and-beer spots to genuinely ambitious dining — plus a busy market in the summer months and outdoor performance spaces that host live music most evenings from June through August. The village is active until late and the atmosphere on a summer evening, with the mountains glowing in the last light, is one of the better outdoor dining settings in the province.
"People who only know Whistler as a ski destination are missing half the place. The mountains don't stop being mountains just because the snow melts."
Summer accommodation in Whistler is cheaper than winter peak season and the village is less crowded. If the mountains intimidated you during ski season, July and August are the time to discover what they're like when you can walk on them in trail runners and a t-shirt.
Leave a Comment