Cross country skiing reference material

BC Coast Campfire Ban (details)

The Wildlife Management Branch of the BC Ministry of Forests and Range have declared a campfire ban across all areas covered by the Coastal Fire Centre. The only exception is areas in the West Vancouver Island Fog Zone. For more information see: Campfire Ban Announcement and details.

Cross country skiing reference material

Trail information

Reference material

Avalanche First Responder online course.
Canadian Avalanche Association
Repairing broken bindings in the field.
Some unusual things to carry in your repair kit.
The mild nature of the west coast climate is of concern to those people who use waxable skiis. Here are some hints on waxing for typical west coast conditions. These hints have been gathered from contributions to the cross country skiing newsgroup (rec.skiing.nordic).

Equipment

The only retail shops selling cross-country ski gear in Victoria (MEC and Sports Traders) carry only beginner and low end intermediate gear. Stock at both stores is very limited. If you want to check out other retail outlets then one of the best shops I know of on the Island is the Ski Tak Hut in Courtenay. If you are in Vancouver you might check out:

Cypress Mountain Sports
Mountain Equipment Coop (backcountry and touring gear)
Sigge's Sport Villa