Marmot Basin: Skiing Above the Ashes in Jasper National Park

Marmot Basin. Above the ashes. 

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As I ski the pristine slopes of Marmot Basin I’m looking down at the aftermath of Armageddon. As far as the eye can see is a burnt landscape of blackened and toppled tree stumps, while the grey skies and the contrasting white dusting of snow settled on the scorched earth makes it look like I’m in a black and white photo.

In July 2024 the town of Jasper and the surrounding area was ravaged by the largest wildfire in a century. The fire destroyed a third of the buildings in town and 20,000 Jasperites had to be evacuated. 

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But up here on Marmot Basin the mountain was untouched. The ski area was saved when the air tankers lifted water from the snow-making dam to halt the flames. Even before the fires, skiing Marmot Basin was like skiing in the middle of the wild frontier. And that’s because you are. Jasper is seriously remote. Canada's northernmost ski resort is hidden in the nooks and crannies of Jasper National Park. A park that is the size of the Netherlands.

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Marmot Basin may not have the popular appeal of its more famous Banff and Whistler distant neighbours, but you get natural beauty in abundance, a lack of commercial trappings and 91 marked runs that are sure to entertain and challenge novice and experienced skiers and boarders. A Sharp Dressed Man will love the expert terrain; the long and wide-open steeps of Tres Hombres is named after a ZZ Top album.

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There's no accommodation at Marmot Basin, just day-lodges with a choice of restaurants, cafés and bars, plus a rental shop, ski school and childcare centre. You stay in Jasper, which is 25-minute shuttle bus ride away. Not long after the fire, the town of Jasper was soon now welcoming travellers back as nature healed the surrounding mountainsides. 

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I’m skiing here on a weekday, where you really feel like you’ve escaped the crowds. As in no crowds at all. My guide George said, when I commented on the empty runs, “There’s more employees than skiers today.”

How to get to Jasper:
The nearest airports are Edmonton (4 hours) and Calgary (5 hours). 

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Lifts Passes:
A one day Adult Pass is around $CA150 ($AU167).
Marmot Basin is part of the Mountain Collective Pass, which also includes Mt. Buller, Coronet Peak, The Remarkables and 24 other resorts in seven countries.