Guide Spotlight: Jason Remple from Stellar Heliskiing knows his terrain intimately
We've skied with him and he knows the lines like the back of his hand
Jason Remple is now the owner and lead guide at Stellar Heliskiing but when we first met him he had just worked his way up to lead guide at Selkirk Wilderness Skiing. Jason is born and raised in the Kootenay's. His life has been shaped by the peaks and valleys of the Purcell Mountains.
Jason started washing dishes, shoveling, and doing whatever he could until he became a guide. Working his way up the ranks at Selkirk Jason was taken under the wing of Allan Drury - the man responsible to the evolution of catskiing as we know it! Allan made Jason learn the terrain he was working in. He had to jump off every drop, ski every line, find every chute so that he knew the terrain better than anyone.
I recall skiing with Jason once and he gave me specific instructions on how to ski a particular line. Right down to every detail and where to turn and what to expect. I couldn't even see half of what he was talking about. Sure enough, I did what he said and had one amazing run that I reflect back on often.
In recent years Jason took his well-honed skill set and established his very own boutique heliskiing operation - Stellar Heliskiing. Stellar is based out of Kaslo BC and has direct access to some of the most stunning terrain in the province. The Purcell Range feels like it is nestled into it's own little corner of the region with very little traffic. It truly feels like a wild place. But not to Jason. He gets out as soon as their is snow and taunts us with is early season ski reports (follow him on Instagram if you dare!). Yes, he is having fun, but he is also continuing that tradition set in him by Allan to learn every aspect of the terrain.
We caught up with Jason at Stellar Heli and got to spend the day exploring. And explore we did! We lost count at 15 runs and thing we did somewhere around 17. In a helicopter that is a lot of vertical. With every lift we went deeper into the terrain. Some spots were new to Jason. Spots he had wanted to ski for years. His eyes widened with excitement but his demeanour was always calm and cool. He is just happy to be out there sharing the experience of skiing in the mountains with like-minded people.
As we got back on more familiar terrain it was back to the regular program of Jason knowing just where to go. You get the most out of every run when you are at Stellar Heliskiing. And you get shown around by a guy who is so stoked to be doing what he is doing that it is infectious! Thanks for all the good turns Jason. We hope to ski with you again soon!