HELLO,
LOVER
FALLING FOR WHISTLER
by Gina Daggett
Like Carrie Bradshaw in Sex in the City,
my first impression of Whistler was like walking through
Barney’s shoe department. Instantly, a heart-pounding
love affair had begun. That wintry afternoon, as I pulled
up to Whistler Village, I found Carrie’s words, “Hello
Lover,” pushing their way to my tongue—whispered
instead to a town, not a pair of Manolo Blahniks. It was
the alpine glow reflecting off the mountains, the billowing
steam from the hot tubs sunken in snow drifts, the groups
of skiers (still in full garb) enjoying warm toddies mountainside.
It was the vibe, the culture, the people, the magic of
Whistler that captured me. “Everyone has a love affair
with Whistler,” says Patty McKenny, a local lesbian
who splits her time between Whistler and Vancouver (only
two hours south via the spectacular Sea-to-Sky highway).
“Every time I come off the mountain, it’s like
walking into a fairytale.”
I’d made the trek from Portland,
Oregon to enjoy WinterPRIDE, Whistler’s
Gay Ski week, so for me it truly was an enchanted candyland
of buildings covered in icing—a queer utopia, as
gay folks seemed to outnumber our straight brethren
that week. At the gateway into Whistler rainbow flags
greeted me and continued flapping in the wind all over
town.
Even in the dead of winter, Whistler
was vibrant and booming. As I opened the blinds in my
hotel room, the sun broke through the clouds, spraying
vitamin D on my face and on the skiers warming their
toes and their bellies après. (Après translated:
thawing out with friends, after a long day of skiing,
with warm food and strong cocktails.)
Whistler is flanked by two monstrous
mountains, Blackcomb and Whistler—known collectively
as Whistler Blackcomb. With over 8,000 acres
of skiable terrain and the longest ski season in Canada,
Whistler attracts more than two million visitors each
year. The longest run is a whopping 6.8 miles (can you
say burning thighs?) and there are 200 named runs. The
droves come not only for stellar skiing, they also come
to snowboard, snowshoe, cross-country ski, and much
more in the winter. Beginning in December 2008, a record-breaking
peak-to-peak gondola will forever revolutionize the
summer and winter experience in Whistler. It will have
the longest unsupported span of its kind in the world
(1.88 miles) and carry riders an astonishing 1,427 feet
above the valley floor.
Named after the cry of the Hoary Marmot
(it whistles), Whistler has been lauded the #1 ski destination
in North America by Skiing magazine for 11 years and
running. “My favorite place to ski,” McKenny
says, “is 7th Heaven on Blackcomb. It literally
feels like heaven because you can see to Whistler and
beyond.”
As if the #1 ski resort distinction
wasn’t enough, Whistler will also host the 2010
Winter Olympic Games.
“As a well established and successful
tourism resort, Whistler has great experience in welcoming
and hosting the world,” says Maureen Douglas, the
Director of Community Relations for the 2010 Vancouver
Olympic Committee, who’s also an out-lesbian living
in the area.
After getting settled at my hotel, the
Delta Whistler Village Suites (a gay-friendly
hotel and spa), McKenny and I walked through the Village.
The snow gently fell, flakes so feather-light I didn’t
realize they were landing in my eyelashes or filling
the rim of my winter cap. The lights in the trees, twinkling
all winter long, sang subliminal Christmas carols, and
the air, crisp and full of burning wood, chilled my
lungs with each breath I took. I was ready for that
first Baileys and hot chocolate.
As we moved along the heated cobblestone
path, I was immediately struck by the magnitude of restaurants,
cafés, and shopping throughout the pedestrian
village, which was built in 1978 to resemble an authentic
Swiss Alpine Village. The heartbeat of town, the Village
Stroll (a .6 mile path connecting Whistler boroughs),
is closed to traffic and dotted with over 90 restaurants
and 200 shops that will gladly take your money. We passed
many of them that night on our way to the Bearfoot
Bistro, a five-star restaurant near the Whistler
Golf Course. To kick off the evening, we sat at their
champagne bar for a glass of bubbles and some snacks.
BC’s Sumac Ridge Brut was buttery and sweet, perfectly
paired with Kushi oysters on the half shell—both
ideal aphrodisiacs.
Our next stop was Araxi for dinner.
As we walked arm-in-arm toward the trendy eatery, we
hardly got a second glance. That’s not unusual;
they’re used to gay people in Whistler. “It’s
inclusive, welcoming, friendly and fun,” says Douglas.
“You don’t have to find a special spot in
town in order to hold hands with your partner.”
While there aren’t any exclusive gay bars in Whistler,
according to Tourism Whistler’s website,
it is considered the largest gay-friendly mountain resort
in North America…not a surprise, as they elected
an openly gay mayor in 1996.
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Since the 2003 change to Canadian common
law to include same-sex couples, lots and lots of gay
couples have been married in Whistler. “Gay couples
are treated exactly the same as straight couples who get
married. There is no difference here,” says Vanessa
Murphy with the Tourism Whistler office. It’s hard
to estimate how many gay couples have tied the knot in
the posh mountain escape, but she estimates it rivals
heterosexual nuptials. “A popular place to get hitched
in the summer for gay couples is Rainbow Park on Alta
Lake.” Alta is just one of the numerous freshwater
lakes around town (there are five), frozen in the winter
for idyllic ice skating and gem-like in the summer, the
perfect backdrop for a lesbian wedding.
“Whistler is home to people who
love life and really like their neighbors. There is
not an expectation here that you should be like everyone
else. Uniqueness and differences are celebrated and
recognized as the things that keep Whistler interesting,
growing, and developing,” says Douglas.
This open-minded attitude is what makes
the annual WinterPRIDE such a successful event
each February. “Whistler celebrates the value of
being authentic,” says Dean Nelson, WinterPRIDE’s
Director (he’s also behind Gaywhistler.com).
“Being authentic means being you and having permission
to be yourself.”
While in Whisler for WinterPRIDE, I
met women from Australia, New York, Denver, Calgary,
Toronto, Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. For
both men and women, there is programming all week, including
live music, stand-up comedy, après and, of course,
what gay week would be complete without dance parties?
“The whole town of Whistler enjoys
the fun of [WinterPRIDE] and it keeps the community
so informed,” says local spa owner Dr. Amy Rein,
“Everyone is behind it.”
It’s not just WinterPRIDE that
attracts gay people to Whistler—they come all year.
This last fall, the first annual Mr. Gay Canada
was held in Whistler, crowning a gay male ambassador
to represent Canada in the Mr. Gay International competition.
“The theme for 2009 is ‘Around the World in
Eight Days’, and WinterPRIDE will be playing host
to the International Mr. Gay Competition,” says
Nelson. “We will be welcoming 20 delegates from
around the world to experience WinterPRIDE in our beautiful
and welcoming mountain destination.”
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