Zosia and I were among the first skiers to get on the Huckleberry chairlift right at the resort's opening, and less than fifteen minutes later, we were already climbing up the steep cat track on Haig Ridge.  Zosia broke trail practically all the way up through five to ten centimetres of fresh powder covering the cat track, and although I had a tough time keeping up with her, I was already salivating at the prospect of skiing back down all the untracked snow.  The cat track more or less follows the crest of the ridge before ending on a plateau with the high point only a few hundred metres beyond.  As promised, the weather was absolutely perfect on this day with clear blue skies, warm sunshine, and hardly a breath of wind, and we had no trouble skiing right up to the base of the final short rise before the high point.  This last section was too rocky to ski, and we simply ditched our skis and hiked up the last few metres.  The elevation gain from the top of the Huckleberry chairlift to the high point of Haig Ridge is 480 metres, and the climb took us an hour and thirty-six minutes.  We spent an additional half an hour on the high point before commencing our descent.

After retrieving our skis below the high point, Zosia and I shuffled back across the plateau before stopping to remove our climbing skins.  While the surrounding scenery on Haig Ridge was undoubtedly stunning, the real highlight of the day was the subsequent ski descent.  We initially skied down the cat track which was, in itself, already quite amazing, but then we had the brilliant idea to drop down into the area normally reserved for cat-skiers.  No one else had bothered to come up here on this day, and we had a whole big bowl of virgin powder all to ourselves.  I normally hate using hyperbole to describe ski conditions, but the skiing here was f**king fantastic!  The great weather, excellent snow, and wide open terrain all contributed to one of the best ski descents of the season for me, and I can understand why cat-skiers pay big money to ski in this area.  Unfortunately, all good things come to an end, and as we entered the trees at the bottom of the bowl, we encountered more choppy snow due to less fresh snow covering previous ski tracks.  The descent here was still fun for me, and we eventually intersected the ski-out which led us back to the resort's base area without hassle (round-trip time of three hours and forty-three minutes).

	Mount Haig (centre) and Gravenstafel Ridge (right) steal the spotlight in this view from the highway while Haig Ridge is the unremarkable flat feature at left. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Haig Ridge and Mount Haig are visible just above the trees from this vantage point near Castle Mountain Resort's base area.
	Zosia prepares to board the Huckleberry chairlift which saves about 350 metres of elevation gain.
	Zosia begins climbing the steep cat track above the Huckleberry chairlift.  The high point of Haig Ridge is another 480 metres higher.
	The top of the Huckleberry chairlift and a snow cat can be seen behind Sonny. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia tirelessly breaks trail through the fresh snow on the cat track.
	The cat track is less steep further up but continues to rise relentlessly.

Mount Haig dominates the background as Zosia skis past the end of the cat track on a plateau.

 

	Haig Ridge becomes more discernible as Sonny closes in on the high point. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia boot-packs the remaining short distance to the top of Haig Ridge.
	Sonny and Zosia hold up little chocolate Easter eggs on the high point of Haig Ridge (2236 metres).
	Here is an unobstructed view of Mount Haig.
	To the north, Gravenstafel Ridge also offers some enticing skiing opportunities.
	Zosia skis down alongside the cat track with Barnaby Ridge in the background.
	Sonny is enjoying the excellent snow and weather conditions. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia matches Sonny's turns coming down the cat track.
	Zosia leaves the cat track and traverses into the area normally reserved for cat-skiers.
	The snow in the cat-skiing area is exquisite on this day.
	Sonny rips through the powder with verve. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia is clearly having lots of fun.
	Zosia is carving turns like a pro!
	Sonny follows old ski tracks into the forest. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	In the lower forested sections of the cat-skiing area, the snow is not quite as good as in the upper bowl.
	Zosia returns to the base area along the easy ski-out.