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ACC Gazette Section Stories: Jasper / Hinton

In 25 local sections across Canada, all year round, members of the ACC climb, ski, hike, go to the gym, clean up crags, build trails, and gather for social events. From St. John's to Vancouver Island to the Yukon, thousand of club outings are run by volunteers each year. Pulling from the 2024 ACC Gazette, these stories are from our club members, in their own words, about an aspect of their section that is special to them.

Photo: Peter Amann

Grand Tour At Fairy Meadow

Photos & story by Peter Amann

There have been many fine adventures with the Jasper/Hinton Section but thinking back to a favorite, I would have to say the 1998 ski trip to Fairy Meadow where our new group from Jasper really melded. 

Several members of my regular team (the “Charlie group”) signed up immediately, as well as a few new folks from Hinton, some of our section executive, a bunch of Jasper/Hinton locals, and a few others from all over North America. 

Andy Allenbach came on board as our cook for the week. Andy ran the finest restaurant in Jasper (Andy’s Bistro) and was a true Swiss who could cook great and ski hard. Andy could ski all day, walk in the door and in 30 minutes have a table set that would make everyone say “Wow!” My good friend Cyril Shokoples joined to help me with the guiding.  

Sentinel summit block

We were a real mix of skiers, some hard-core powder gangsters, some strong intermediate skiers, some quiet folks, and everything in between. The common bond was the desire to ski in the mountains, drink some good wine and beer, and have some fun with friends old and new…a lot of fun! All these objectives were overwhelmingly achieved. 

We flew in on March 7, 1998, and the energy was high (now-a-days it’s called stoke). Andy got his food organized, the boom box was unpacked, and the playlist engaged. 

We skied great lines. On the second day we headed up towards Friendship Col and scrambled to within 30 metres of Sentinel Peak. Another day involved a nice line down from near Quadrant Spire. 

Charlie James – for whom the Charlie Group is named – and Tom Kvanbeck would prepare well in advance of all our trips with unique gifts found over the year, often items from stores that you needed to be of legal age to get into, and where you looked over your shoulder before walking in. Charlie would package these up each afternoon and then stage Fed-Ex deliveries to specific people. By the end of the week, we all had new outfits, hats… and other authentic items. 

Heading to Friendship Col.

And we skied some more. A great tour up towards Austerity Peak gave us excellent turns – real mountain skiing. Another day we skied to Pioneer Peak where we had nineteen people on the summit at once. Maybe a record? Who cares…it was fun. We skied peaks and glaciers and tree runs below the hut. And we were never late for the sauna and happy hour.  

The one thing I remember most, after over 25 years, and one of the highlights of my entire career was a moment on the last night where we all formed a human train. We climbed over tables, chairs, stairs, each of us pounding on some kind of kitchen implement, in tune perfectly with the music, and then it stopped. We all knew something really great had just happened, and we laughed in awe realizing what we had all been a part of. 

The most important goal of any trip, more than the skiing and the adventure, is to get a group of people to come together and to form a single unit, contributing and helping each other and the group. On this alone, the trip was a huge success and as I sit here in the summer of 2024 writing this story, I am fondly remembering everyone from this trip and how they all contributed during the week. 

But it’s also hard because some I haven’t seen in several years, and all the Jasper folks are evacuees from town right now, many of whom have lost their homes and or businesses over the last few weeks due to the Jasper wildfire. We never know what the future holds. 

I’m hoping that everyone from this trip gets a chance to read this, though I am missing a couple names. I hope that you all get a chance to think back to more simple times sharing the comradeship, the mountains and great times – a grand tour and a fine life experience that was brought together through the ACC, the Jasper/Hinton Section, and by those who came out to play.  

Thanks to: Charlie James, Dick Kvanbeck, David Hanna, Mary Krupa, Garnet Clark, Deb Hammer, Roy Preshaw, Deb Speden, Dwayne Wacko, Chuck Samuels, Doug Savoie, Bruno Tassone, Rick Gould, Tom Kvanbeck, Dave Pors, Andy Allenbach, Cyril Shokoples, and the two others whose names I’ve missed.

ACC Jasper/Hinton Section

Cyril snacking

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