The Professional Skier's Guide To Whitefish, Montana

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When Parkin Costain was young, he had a ski routine he called “dishwashers.”

He’d find a dense clump of trees, which weren’t uncommon at his home resort of Whitefish Mountain Resort, Montana, and ski straight through them. Did he ever get taken out by the trees? Nope. “I was pretty good with my line choice,” he said. 

Costain maintained that skill into adulthood. Now a globetrotting professional skier, he’s appeared in Teton Gravity Research movies and ridden some of the gnarliest slopes in the world—expertly dodging immovable objects is one of the key points on his resume. That journey started, in part, with humble “dishwashers” at Whitefish.

He’s not the mountain’s only professional skiing export. The seven-time X Games medalist and Olympian Maggie Voisin—a childhood friend of Costain’s—was raised there, too. When we spoke, she recalled early weekend mornings at Whitefish, followed by evenings spent skiing late under the lights. Those memories helped shape her enduring love for skiing.

“It’s just got this charm and this really special place in my heart,” Voisin, who moved back to Whitefish a few years ago, said. “It’s unlike any place I’ve ever been.”

What, exactly, makes Whitefish stand out, though? I leaned on Voisin and Costain, who have plenty of expertise in the matter, for help. These are some of their favorites, from trails to après hangouts.

Terrain Guide

Perched in the northwest corner of Montana, Whitefish is a town and ski resort. The slopes, for the most part, aren’t punishing or wet-your-snow-pants scary. They are expansive, though, sprawling across about 3,000 acres. Whitefish has clung to its small ski town feeling longer than many other places, and the resort remains independently owned. Plus, at $115, the lift ticket prices won’t make your eyes pop out of your head. Whitefish, then, hovers somewhere between destination resort and hidden gem. 

Asked about his go-to run on the mountain, Costain had a quick answer: Inspiration. The intermediate trail winds from the summit to the base area. While your average groomer hound would be at home here, it’s also become popular among the local freeride kids who have a nickname for it: “Jibspiration.” Some sections of the run have a halfpipe-like shape, which, Costain said, means you can “carve back and forth” and gain a little air on the side hits. Voisin suggested Toni Matt, another top-to-bottom run that she loves to lap when the grooming is especially good. “I could do that nonstop,” she said.

Whitefish has more than runs for cruising, though. That includes fun, attainable freeride terrain. One pitstop on the advanced or expert circuit is East Rim. The ski resort moved Chair 5 there from Ptarmigan Bowl ahead of the 2017-18 season, making it easier to lap a collection of Double Blacks. Plus, the ride up might be even more exciting than the skiing. “They put [the lift] literally over the biggest cliff on the mountain, so you’re like 150 feet off the ground for a second,” said Costain.

Hellroaring Basin delivers more steeps. The zone is on the back side of Whitefish, beneath the Summit House. For a cliffy, technical run, hit the Basin’s Picture Chutes, although Voisin suggested waiting for the snow to build up before skiing there. “It can be pretty rocky,” she said. Almost all of this terrain is accessible from Whitefish’s summit. The mountain, like only a few others, has a 360-degree layout. “Rather than having one side, you can go anywhere,” and still find yourself at a chairlift, said Costain.

Whitefish has another claim-to-fame: frequent fog. That’s a good reason to get familiar with the resort’s ample glades for visibility, like those found at Flower Point and elsewhere. It’s also part of why you might spot a snow ghost—trees caked beautifully in thick rime ice—at the ski resort. Voisin noted that the supernatural-looking formations seem Norwegian or Swedish. “But no,” she said. “We have them in Whitefish.” And when the skies do clear, the ski resort delivers views alongside the ghosts. On those bluebird days, Costain recommended visiting the top of the mountain and peering towards Glacier National Park, calling the panorama “insanely beautiful.”

Around Town and Beyond

In 2020, Costain cemented himself as a rising star at the Kings and Queens of Corbet’s in Jackson, Wyoming. How? Nothing too crazy—he only stomped a colossal double backflip off the titular couloir and won the competition. That earned him an oversized check, which ended up in the rafters of the Bierstube, the watering hole at Whitefish’s base area. “There are all these old iconic things from town up there,” Costain said. Voisin likes to drop by the Bierstube, which serves as a ski community focal point, after days on the mountain with her dad. “I love going and bullshitting with him and all the old guys,” she said, chuckling. “That’s a must.”

The town of Whitefish is just down the road from the resort. It has plenty more places to eat, drink, and chat. The Last Chair Kitchen & Bar serves “tot-chos”—tater tot nachos—alongside other meals skiers tend to crave after stacking vert, like hamburgers and chicken sandwiches. If Voisin’s looking for sushi, instead, there’s Indah, the fusion restaurant with nigiri and bao buns. Costain pointed to two local spots for brews and conversation: the Great Northern and Blackstar.

Some of Costain and Voisin’s Whitefish touchstones are personal and don’t always fit into a travel checklist, though. Instead, they reveal more about the place and the kind of people who are raised there. Costain, for instance, likes to visit the lilac bushes growing near his old house when he returns to Whitefish. “It brings back all these memories from when I was a little kid,” he said, admitting that he’s a “nostalgia kind of guy.” Costain also fondly recalled waking up at the crack of dawn this time of year to help install Christmas decorations in downtown Whitefish, working alongside other locals.

Voisin described her ongoing trips with her dad to the backcountry outside the resort. These aren’t intense strike missions. They ski around and score some untouched snow that may or may not be deep. Voisin’s dad shows her his spots, which she’s grateful for. “He’s not just telling everyone where to go, right?” she said.

That hush-hush approach seemed to extend to our conversation, as Voisin offered no GPS coordinates (let’s be honest: I didn’t bother asking for specifics—some secrets are better kept offline). For Voisin, though, it’s not all about where she and her dad go skiing.

The point is spending time together in the mountains, a pastime Whitefish, above all, makes easy.

Related: The Ultimate Skier’s Guide to Whitefish, Montana