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Historical Heliski News Index from Elemental Adventure Heliskiing

Powder tree heli skiing with EA Heliskiing

AUTUMN 2006 NEWS INDEX

Seasonal Offer No.1 - FREE SET OF SKIS

Anyone confirming a reservation to heli ski at Last Frontier or TLH Heliskiing for five or more people before the 31st July will receive a brand new pair of next year’s K2 skis.

Turkey Heliski

After two incredibly successful seasons Turkey is now firmly on the map as a world class heli ski destination. In early February I was lucky enough to travel to the Kaçkar Mountains and discover a real heliskiing gem that for those of us in Europe, is right on the doorstep – no jet lag or flying half way round the world to get here.

The heli skiing in the Kaçkar range is exceptional, with good quality powder being the norm and terrain that is varied enough to keep anyone happy. However, what distinguishes Turkey Heliski its true professionalism, its slickness, and the attention to detail, which is evident from the moment you arrive. On this level, there is no better operation around.

There is a vast amount of experience here that has been drawn from almost every corner of the heliski world and I am not alone in saying that it is real privilege to ski with guides of such high quality.

The only down side for those wishing to heliski in Turkey, is that with room for just 16-20 people per week, there is more demand than there are seats in the helicopter.

We have an exclusive deal for UK clients booking before the end of August - you will receive 3,000 extra vertical metres and 1 free massage!

Please contact us as soon as possible if you are tempted by heliskiing in Turkey next season. Packages start at Euros 5,300 excluding flights. More information is available at: Turkey Heliski

Abkhazia - a new heli skiing destination in the Caucasus Range

Potentially one of the most exciting developments for next year is the opening of a new base in Abkhazia in the Caucasus. Located only 50 kilometres from our base in Krasnaya Poliana, the heli skiing promises to be every bit as good as Krasnaya Poliana but with a fraction of the people and the opportunity to make plenty of first descents. This is a totally unique product in Russia as we will be using an French operated A-Star B3 helicopter brought in from France. Groups will consist of only 5 skiers/riders and packages start at €4900 Euros. For more details click here.

2007 Availability:

Bookings for 2007 are coming in thick and fast with many weeks already sold out. If you are thinking of heli skiing in Canada, the Himalayas or Turkey in particular, you should contact us without delay. Remember, if you book five people or more to Last Frontier or TLH Heliskiing before the end of June, you will receive a brand new pair of next year’s K2 skis.

Referals / Elemental Ski Miles :

Don’t forget that every booking and referral you make earns you Elemental Ski Miles. If you are unsure of how many you have earned please give us a call or send us an email. Click here for details of the scheme.

Argentina & Chile

This August we will be travelling to South America to look at expanding our operations into this exciting part of the world. If you are a strong skier / rider and interested in joining one of these exploratory trips, please contact us as soon as possible

AUTUMN 2005 NEWS INDEX

Turkey:

In February 2006 I will be taking a small group to the Kaçkar range in north east Turkey, close to the Black Sea. Geographically, this is very close to our operation in Krasnaya Poliana in Russia and offers many of the same benefits. It is easy and quick to reach from Europe, there is no jet lag and the snow pack is deep and generally very stable. There are only four spaces available for this trip so please contact us as soon as possible if you are interested.

Russia – more convenient, less expensive, better value:

This season sees some major new developments in our Russian operation in Krasnaya Poliana, and the aim of all these is to make heli skiing in The Caucasus better value and more accessible. The quality of heli skiing / boarding here is exceptional, and for Europeans, it is only a quick flight away with no jet lag to contend with. Prices for six days and seven nights, including twenty runs, start at £2,050 (€2,990) per person. Click here for more details.

We have lowered the price of all our packages in Krasnaya Poliana and Dombai and based them on the number of runs you actually do and not the amount of vertical metres you ski/ride. At twenty per week, the number of runs is fairly low but so is the price. If you want to ski more then you simply pay per run. Overall this is a fairer system than the typical 30,500 vertical metres included with most heli skiing packages.

Weekends – three day / four night packages:

Finally a weekend heli skiing trip that is practical for those of us who live in Europe. With a change in flight schedules it is now easily possible to reach Krasnaya Poliana in one day thus making a quick weekend heli ski trip both practical and affordable. This season we will be offering three days / four nights with twelve runs from only £1,200 (€1,790) per person.

Smaller Groups:

Although we sometimes split into two groups of five at the top of a run, the group size in Russia has always been ten. However, for 2006 we will be offering private groups for up to six people from €6,500 (£4,350) per person.

Flexible Private Packages – removing the risk of bad weather from heliskiing…

Buy as many days heli skiing as you wish during the course of the season and only use them when favourable weather and snow conditions are forecast by flying direct from any European city to Sochi. This offers the ultimate in flexibility, makes the best use of your time and almost entirely eliminates the risk of not flying due to bad weather. Please call us (+44 (0) 870 738 7838) or email James for a quote.

Absinthe Mega Yacht Heli skiing:

Despite a long set back in the renovation of this incredible super yacht, she is now finished and ready to open up some exciting new heli ski terrain along the British Columbia’s Coast Mountains. Absinthe is an extremely luxurious 70-metre/230-foot expedition mega yacht with its own A-Star helicopter parked on the aft deck. Next season you can be amongst the first to explore some of the truly exciting and untouched terrain of British Columbia’s Coast Mountains with all the comforts of one of the most luxurious mega yachts in the world. This March I will be taking one of the first trips on board Absinthe. If you are interested in joining, please contact James Morland as soon as possible - +44 (0)870 738 7838. For further details of the trip click here.

Private Screening of Latest Warren Miller Film:

In November we will be hosting a private viewing of the latest Warren Miller ski and snowboard movie at the VUE cinema in Leicester Square. We have 100 complimentary tickets available for the film and afterwards there will be complimentary drinks at the bar…We will be sending details out in September but if you would like to pre-order tickets to guarantee space, please drop us an email now…I hope to see you there.

Autumn Presentations:

In October we will be organising a number of presentations in conjunction with TLH Heliskiing and Last Frontier Heliskiing. If you want to find out more about these or other destinations this will be an excellent opportunity to do so. Invitations will be sent out in September.

Client North Face Order:

If you have booked a heli skiing trip with us in the past you are entitled to a discount of at least 20% on selected North Face products. I hope that as many of you as possible will take advantage of this offer. Orders should reach us ASAP. Please follow this link to view the products.

Summary of 2005 season:

Overall it was an excellent season with almost all of our clients experiencing some fantastic conditions. The notable exception was anyone booked to British Columbia towards the end of January when the province was struck by a tropical heat wave, which made conditions extremely tough at many operations.

Himachal Pradesh in India suffered from some of its the worst weather in years with an above average number of down days (but lots of snow). The end of March saw some fantastic conditions but during the first week of April the temperature shot up and turned most of the powder pretty mouldy – even at higher elevations.

Krasnaya Poliana in Russia had what could only be described as a dream season – very few down days and lots of deep dry, stable snow. In mid February I was lucky enough to experience five out of six days of near perfect conditions with Tom Robins from the Observer – look out for his feature article this November. The only thing that has not improved here is the introduction of “passport checking” by the local authorities each morning before you board the helicopter. A more useless, time wasting activity it would be hard to imagine… but hey that’s Russia!

Valdez Alaska also had one of its best seasons on record – very few down days and excellent snow. During April many were enjoying seven out of seven blue bird days…not something that happens often during an Alaskan winter on the coast.

Rotor Blade Strike in Manali:

Many of you will have heard that there was an incident with one of the Lama helicopters in Manali this season (2005). Soon after the incident I had several phone calls from people saying they heard there had been a crash.

In case there are still inaccurate rumours floating around, this is what really happened:
On landing the machine put one skid down on firm snow and the other one pushed through into very loose snow making it tilt forward and to one side. Depth hoar next to big rocks seemed to be the cause of the loose snow. The blade struck a rise in the snow at the blade tips. The blades were damaged as was the rotor head, the transmission and the mechanical platform. No one was hurt in the incident. It was not a crash or even a hard landing but a rotor strike. These incidents occur every year in the industry and in no way undermine the safety standards at Himachal who, in our opinion, are one of the safest operations in existence.

Last Frontier at Ripley Creek:

For seven weeks this season a small number of guests were lucky enough to be amongst the first to explore Last Frontier’s southern-most terrain from the new base in the frontier town of Stewart, British Columbia. Each week guests were making first descents in these big coastal mountains… and there are still countless runs to be explored and named.

With a maximum of only two groups of five each week this is practically a private heli ski week with a very reasonable price tag. The runs here are longer than at most Canadian operations (up to 1,500 vertical metres), and a generally stable snow pack allows for some steeper, more challenging skiing.

Ripley Creek is an excellent choice for those wanting more adventurous heli skiing and whose priority is paying for the quality of skiing - not fancy extras.

Heliskiing in Canada, Russia, India, Turkey, Europe, Greenland, South America and Alaska