Epic. Deep. Blower. There are myriad ways to describe awesome powder skiing, and the Gertsch family business specializes in bringing those adjectives to life.
Rudi and Jeff Gertsch are the father-son tandem behind Purcell Heli-Skiing in Golden, British Columbia. Since emigrating from Switzerland in the 1970s, father Rudi has pioneered helicopter skiing in British Columbia. Now, his son Jeff continues the tradition. The Gertschs put skiers on some of the world’s best powder skiing, from wide-open alpine bowls to snow-choked fir glades.
They call themselves “powder junkies,” but that’s an understatement. Really, Rudi and Jeff Gertsch are powder PhDs. They pore over weather data, forecasting models, and snowfall spreadsheets — which, along with their intimate knowledge of the backcountry, gives them an uncanny understanding of where to find the best skiing and sickest lines on any given day.
There are few better. Watch the video below, and then plan your own epic ski adventure along BC’s Powder Highway: