Baldy Mountain Resort is on the border of the South Okanagan and the West Kootenay, 45 minutes from Oliver. Its day lodge sits at 1,726 metres (5,665 feet), and the resort says that’s the sixth highest ski area base in Canada and the third highest in BC. The lifts reach 2,123 metres (6,965 feet), and the summit is 2,310 metres (7,580 feet).
Baldy has 35 alpine runs on 360 acres, plus 240 acres of glades, and every trail returns to the day lodge. Two chairlifts, the Eagle double and the Sugarlump quad, serve the terrain, along with the McKinney T-bar and a magic carpet. The resort gets about 25 to 35 feet of natural snow a year, with snow on the ground from around November to April. There are also 13 kilometres of snowshoe trails.
Baldy has two live cams, named for its two chairlifts. Eagle Chair goes with the higher lift, which tops out at 2,123 metres, and the resort’s weather station is under the Eagle Chair. Sugarlump Quad goes with the lower lift, which reaches 1,942 metres. The resort doesn’t say exactly where on each lift the cams point. Neither cam is a snow stake, so check the daily snow report on the same page for new snow.
From Oliver, take McKinney Road for about 30 minutes to a T junction, turn left, and continue onto Mount Baldy Road. The drive takes about 45 minutes. From Osoyoos, follow Highway 3 east for about 38 kilometres, turn onto Canyon Road, then Mount Baldy Road, about an hour in all. Penticton is about 1 hour 15 minutes away by Highway 97 and McKinney Road. Private transfers run from Kelowna International Airport (YLW).
The access road is partly paved and partly dirt, and the resort highly recommends winter tires on it. BC requires winter tires or chains on Highway 3 east of Osoyoos from October 1 to April 30 and on Highway 97 from October 1 to March 31. DriveBC shows road conditions.
Baldy Mountain isn’t on the Epic or Ikon Pass. It’s on the Indy Pass, which gives two days with no blackout dates here.