Ski Resort Official Confident Jasper, Canada Will be Ready for Tourists This Winter

Last week, Jasper, Canada was the victim of multiple fires that merged together to create the Jasper Wildlife Complex . Readers have likely encountered stories about the blaze with words such as "major destruction", "devastation", and "significant damage".

What these stories do not address, however, is how to move forward. Is it best to stay home and allow these communities to rebuild in peace? Does the area welcome or promote tourism following the incident?

We spoke to Brian Rode, Vice President of Marmot Basin, to hear his take on the incident and how Marmot Basin plans to move forward following the fire.

The infrastructure at Marmot Basin was not harmed at all, Rode explains. "Our biggest change right now is the power has been knocked out. We're limited in our ability to do some business right now. But, that's really the only impact to us is having to work to restore power over the next weeks or maybe couple of months."

Rode says it has been difficult to get an accurate word out to the public, and wants to ensure tourists that the area will be ready to welcome visitors this winter. "We're very much looking forward to that," Rode said. "It's going to be a great product here. Jasper National park is still remarkably beautiful. It's changed with the fire, but it's still all there."

He explained that while the incident was devastating for so many residents and those who lost their homes, 70% of Jasper is still intact. "The majority of those losses are residential. That's absolutely horrible. But the National Park, the town of Jasper, remains largely intact."

"The remaining hotel properties are there and they'll be ready to welcome visitors and guests, as are many of our restaurants and other amenities, facilities, that kind of thing. People may have seen that all of our critical infrastructure is still intact, as well. That's our school, our activity center, our wastewater treatment plant."

Social media has spread rumors about Marmot Basin like wildfire, with some saying it burned to the ground. "We are trying to just get that message out there that the ski area was unaffected by the fire. Everything is still intact. All the lifts, all the buildings were ready to go. Last year we installed the new Knob Chair which went up an extra 330 vertical feet."

"We're looking forward to a really good year, we're going to have a great product on the mountain and the town is really looking forward to welcoming people back and that's what we need."

"People have asked, 'how can we support you?' Our answer has been just send people our way. Support us by telling people that Jasper is still here and we're ready to go this winter."

Marmot Basin has been supporting their staff by keeping them informed on the situation. "Our highest priority is on our staff, who are situated in various locations throughout western Canada, primarily British Columbia and Alberta," says Rode. "Most of our staff continue to get paid, but they are eager to get back to work."

"We're getting a lot of support from the community. When they hear about Marmot Basin and the condition we're in, they say, 'oh, we're so relieved. We want to get back to Jasper. It's our favorite area.' We have a lot of loyal skiers and snowboarders."

Related: Marmot Basin Updates Skiers Following Devastating Jasper, Canada Fires

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