Whistlers Mountain, earlier known as Goat Mountain, was Jasper’s first ski hill. The Jasper Park Ski Club members began brushing and burning to create ski runs on the mountain in 1935 and a club tent was set up at the bottom of the mountain. In those days you would ski from town through the 1913 tunnel, across the Miette River to the base of the mountain and from there begin to climb up the slopes.

In 1962 two avid hikers, William McGregor and Norm Gustavson, had the idea for a tram and a little bit of money to invest. John Ogilvy was the original engineer and, using helicopters and manual labour, the tram took five months to construct. When it opened in 1964, it was the first cable car tramway in Canada.

By 1970 Marmot Basin had eclipsed Whistlers Mountain as Jasper’s ski hill and the old poma lift was shut down. The chalet eventually became the Whistlers Youth Hostel. Today you can hardly imagine where Jasper’s pioneers of skiing spend many days cutting out the runs on the steep slopes of Whistlers Mountain.