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OCTOBER 16, 2026 ISSUE 33.42

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‘It should not exist’ d e l a e v e r y r e t s y m l a c i g o l o ins Ancient archae a t n u o M h t o o t r a e B high in Montana’s

SECOND ELECTION Provincial candidates clash in Pemberton

DRIVING CHANGE Whistler’s Smart Tourism Committee exploring new solutions

PERFECT HARMONY Eagle Peak Trio opens Chamber Music Society’s new season

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THIS WEEK IN PIQUE

‘It should not exist’ Ancient archaeological mystery revealed high in Montana’s Beartooth Mountains. - By Nick Mott // Mountain Journal

06 OPENING REMARKS Editor Braden Dupuis offers some helpful relaxation tips to

10 SECOND ELECTION Provincial candidates clashed over affordability, regional

get you (or maybe just himself) through the homestretch of two elections at once.

transit, wildfire preparedness and Indigenous rights at an all-candidates meeting in Pemberton.

08 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR This week’s letter writers weigh in on social media

12 DRIVING CHANGE Whistler’s Smart Tourism Committee is exploring carpool lanes,

and screen use and share gratitude for fire-mitigation efforts at Lillooet Lake.

a travel app and other proposals to ease congestion and make alternatives to driving more attractive.

26 RANGE ROVER Canada’s Marine Protected Areas safeguard extraordinary deep-sea

26 DIGGING DEEP Whistler’s Georgia Astle and her crew earned Red Bull Rampage’s

life while supporting coastal communities and Indigenous partnerships, writes Leslie Anthony.

Digger Award, while Robin Goomes made history with her third consecutive victory.

46 MAXED OUT G.D. Maxwell shares some final thoughts ahead of municipal election day 32 PERFECT HARMONY The Eagle Peak Trio brings violin, French horn and piano to Whistler on Oct. 25, opening the Whistler Chamber Music Society’s new concert season.

on Saturday, Oct. 17.

COVER The details are in the digging. - ByJon Parris // @jon.parris.art

Publisher SARAH STROTHER - sstrother@piquenewsmagazine.com Editor BRADEN DUPUIS - bdupuis@piquenewsmagazine.com Sales Manager KAIJA KNOX - kknox@lodestarmedia.ca

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OPENING REMARKS

In case of emergency, break bubble WHAT IS IT ABOUT election campaigns that brings out the worst in some people? As soon as the nominations are sealed and the writs dropped, some of us seem to lose all control of our emotions and adult human reasoning skills. Before you know it, you’re in the Facebook comments calling your neighbours horrible names and predicting the downfall of civilization due to (checks

BY BRADEN DUPUIS notes) local charities encouraging people who can’t vote to speak up. But it’s worth remembering we are all part of one community—one in which we all have to live together once the votes are all counted. With that in mind, here are some tips to help you relax instead of taking it out on your local newspaper editor. (And in case you’re wondering, yes, this advice is as much for me as it is for you.)

THAT FRESH MOUNTAIN AIR

A former local business figure used to sign off his voicemail greeting with this— something along the lines of taking a big, deep breath of that fresh mountain air while you wait for him to return your call. I remember rolling my eyes the first time I heard it. But in the midst of two overlapping election campaigns, it’s underrated advice. When was the last time you just left your phone inside, wandered into Whistler’s natural beauty, and focused on your breathing? Ditched the angry algorithms, the influencing and the ads and just drew your energy inward? In a town that doesn’t really seem to slow down anymore, we can lose sight of

why we’re here sometimes. The late local legend Chris Prior may have put it best, in this quote he gave to Mountain Life Magazine that has always stuck with me. “Breathe. This is the least expensive thing you can do in Whistler, but it’s one of the most important,” Prior included in his list of the top five things to do in Whistler. “As soon as you get here, even before you are totally settled in, take a moment, stop everything, and just breathe in that fresh, crisp mountain air for a few moments. These mountains are special; get them inside of you.”

BALM FOR BRUISING

Living in a world-class mountain resort of course comes with its pros and cons. One of the clear benefits is access to some pretty special relaxation amenities. It’s easy to forget that when you’re caught up in the push and pull of everyday life. But then you find yourself in the

TAKE A CUE FROM THE ANIMALS

When the humans of the world—the newshounds, the politicians, the PR hacks, the candidates, and who could forget the simpletons?—become too much for your frayed nervous system to bear, there is one faithful fallback you can always count on. Whistlerites know it well—the pups have the truth of it. They don’t talk back, don’t judge your work or point out your mistakes. They don’t project their political biases onto you, float conspiracy theories in the middle of the night, or sink down the rabbit hole of racist rhetoric. They are not swayed by obvious foreign propaganda and emotional bait like so many of us humans. Their tiny little peanut brains are so much more pure than that, and their love is unconditional. I don’t know about you, but when my inbox gets just a little too stupid, I know I can count on my innocent little pup to bring me back to reality.

nothing, that only you could have birthed into this big, crazy world. So pick up a paintbrush, or a sketchbook. Write silly poetry, even if you’ll never share it. There are more productive ways to express your beautiful brain than shitposting in the comment section.

ESCAPE!

When all else fails, there’s always the resort’s last resort: gtfo. Or rather, in case of emergency, break bubble. After 12 years in this job, and five as editor (dear god where is my life going?), there’s one valuable lesson I always fall back on when the world closes in. As beautiful and special as this place is, it can all be a bit suffocating if you stay too long. And so it’s important to burst the proverbial bubble at regular intervals, if only to remind yourself this is a very

pools at the Scandinave Spa, where they don’t allow phones and silence is golden. I’ll always remember my first visit, when I couldn’t understand why people were staring at me—then remembered I was covered nearly head to toe in violent bruising (a story not fit for these pages). But Whistlerites are no strangers to bumps and bruises, and what better place to take your battered body and frazzled mind than the spa? It sure beats venting on the internet.

CREATIVE COMFORTS

Though Whistler is home to some truly amazing artists, most of us couldn’t fingerpaint our way out of the Audain Art Museum. But that doesn’t mean we can’t, or shouldn’t, create our own art. And what even is art, anyway? Exactly. Checkmate. Even if your own grandmother wouldn’t hang the end product on her fridge, there is something therapeutic about the act of creating—making something where previously there was

big world we’re all living in together, and Whistler with all its localized problems is just one very tiny corner of it. So get out regularly. Explore the world. Make yourself feel small rather than overly inflated and hung up on nothing, convinced it is everything. Your soul will thank you. And on that note, it’s well past time for me to do exactly that myself. See you in a month or so. I’ll be happy to answer your emails then. n

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Who is calling the shots—you or your phone? We know social media isn’t great for us, yet it is so addictive that most of us keep using it anyway. As a family and emergency physician practicing in Pemberton, I spend much of my day with patients—children and adults alike—struggling with anxiety, low mood, poor sleep, and difficulty connecting with others. While smartphone use isn’t the sole cause of our mental-health crisis, youth need to understand how these platforms work, who benefits, and who suffers. Earlier this year, I read a newly released book called The Amazing Generation by Jonathan Haidt and Catherine Price, written primarily for youth. In an engaging graphic novel format, it explains how platforms are designed to capture attention and profit from our time, alongside the clear impacts heavy phone use has on mood, sleep, and friendships. It is a powerful starting point for helping kids take ownership of their relationship with technology. To spark these essential conversations, I have donated more than a hundred copies of this book to local schools, including Signal Hill Elementary, Xet’ólacw Community School, and Pemberton Secondary School. My hope is simple: that kids who understand how these platforms

their lives is a meaningful place to start, both as a parent and as a physician seeing these effects daily. I am incredibly grateful to the local teachers and school staff helping put these books into students’ hands. I hope they spark vital conversations at school and around the dinner table about attention, screens, and true connection. Dr. Kate Coles // Pemberton family and rural physician

‘Deeply grateful’ for fire mitigation efforts at Lillooet Lake

are built to be hard to put down are better equipped to make informed choices about their time. Media literacy is health literacy, and the earlier we start, the more it helps. As parents, there are concrete steps we can take. Delaying smartphone ownership and social media accounts is key. I also highly recommend the Screenagers films advertised by SD48 for families throughout the Sea to Sky region. I have seen three of them and the recently released fourth film is about AI, which I am curious to hear more

about. Another practical idea, if your child already has a phone, is to sit with your child once a week for five minutes to scroll through their feed together, asking how the content makes them feel without judging. We must also look at our own behaviour. Parents use phones heavily, and what we model matters. If our screen time is left unexplained, kids will fill in that narrative themselves. While the science connecting social media to mental health is still developing, giving kids the tools to think critically about the technology shaping

On behalf of the Lillooet Lake Estates community, we extend our heartfelt thanks to all the fire crews who worked tirelessly to protect our community during the Twin Two Creek Fire this summer. To the BC Wildfire Service, fire crews from Pemberton, Whistler, Gibsons, Halfmoon Bay and Comox, Líl’wat Forestry Ventures, and Lizzie Bay Logging: your courage, dedication, and unwavering commitment in challenging and often dangerous conditions helped keep our residents, homes, and surrounding lands safe. We are deeply grateful for the long hours, professionalism, and sacrifice demonstrated by every firefighter, emergency responder and support personnel involved in the response efforts. During a time of uncertainty, your presence

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR provided reassurance and hope to our community. The residents of Lillooet Lake Estates will not forget the care and determination you showed in protecting what matters most to us. Thank you for your service, your bravery, and your commitment to keeping our community safe. We are sincerely grateful for all that you do. With gratitude, Sassy Psenak // on behalf ofThe Lillooet Lake Estates Community

What does it mean to vote Green? Before the last federal election, I wrote a letter to Pique asking if it was OK to vote conservative. As in, can a compassionate, caring, responsible citizen vote conservative and still feel like a good person? As a self-admitted caring and compassionate person who has voted conservative for the last 20 years, I already knew the answer to my question, but thought it might be something others may be pondering. Today I’m looking at the provincial election, and from a slightly different perspective. What does it mean to vote Green in the upcoming B.C. election? Is this a more compassionate vote than a vote for the NDP or one of the conservative parties? Perhaps a vote that demonstrates a deeper compassion for the environment

or many other social problems such as marginalized unsheltered folks with substance disorders? Does a vote for the Green Party help solve these social problems regardless of B.C.’s current fiscal outlook and record deficits, or is it more of a “feel-good” exercise? If I vote Green in the election, does that mean I could drive my kids privately to Myrtle Philip school everyday instead of putting them on the community bus? Does it absolve me of any guilt I may or may not feel as I pass my neighbours and visiting tourists using the right-hand turn lane south of Creekside and squeeze myself in nicely at the front of the line on my rush to Function Junction? Is voting Green going to make me a better person and protect the environment, or is that something I need to work on each day personally? I think Kermit the Frog was probably right, scratch that, correct, when he sang “It ain’t easy being green.” Regardless of how we all vote this month, it’s not going to be politics and politicians that save us from ourselves in B.C. It’s up to all of us to dig deep and somehow find the humanity to seek common positive ground we can all stand on and then figure out how to move forward together as one people. United we stand, divided we fall. Charley Raine // Whistler n

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NEWS WHISTLER

Provincial hopefuls spar over promises, progress in Pemberton THE OCT. 8 MEETING EXPOSED SHARP DIFFERENCES OVER INDIGENOUS RIGHTS AND THE PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT’S RECORD

BY LUKE FAULKS AFFORDABILITY, transportation, wildfire

preparedness and Indigenous rights took centre stage at a provincial all-candidates meeting at the Pemberton & District Community Centre on Thursday, Oct. 8. The forum, hosted by the Pemberton & District Chamber of Commerce, featured incumbent BC Green MLA Jeremy Valeriote, BC Conservative Ayla Dumais, BC NDP candidate Michelle Livaja and CentreBC’s Dan Wood—all vying to represent West Vancouver-Sea to Sky after the Oct. 24 provincial election. The ruling NDP government’s record and Valeriote’s accomplishments as MLA faced repeated scrutiny, with Livaja defending her party’s work. She pointed to the elimination of MSP premiums, reduced ICBC insurance costs, lower childcare fees and expanded access to family doctors. She also highlighted $130 billion in proposed major projects planned across B.C., health-care infrastructure investments and progress

IN THE RUNNING (L to R): Ayla Dumais, Michelle Livaja, Jeremy Valeriote and Dan Wood at the Oct. 8 all-candidates meeting in Pemberton. PHOTO BY LUKE FAULKS

10 OCTOBER 16, 2026

toward protecting 30 per cent of the province’s land and waters by 2030. “These things do take time, but things are moving forward, and we can’t stop now,” she said. Valeriote also defended his record, pointing to progress on regional transit, provincial support for the Pemberton Children’s Centre, improvements to Highway 99 and planned upgrades to the Pemberton Health Centre.

Regional Transit Committee and the province as a significant accomplishment. “I’ve worked on it relentlessly. I’ve questioned the Minister of Transportation in one case four days in a row, asking why this, which we clearly need and everybody knows is overdue, hasn’t happened yet,” he said. “As far as I’m concerned, it makes it perfectly realistic to expect that buses will be on the road within a year or two.” Livaja welcomed the agreement but

“I would like to understand what Pemberton needs from this rail line.” - AYLA DUMAIS

acceptable,” he said. “What’s missing is action and a decision from your elected representatives to make it happen.” On passenger rail, Valeriote said restoring service would require both freight and passenger operations. Livaja supported studying its feasibility alongside regional transit and highway improvements. Dumais called for checking in with communities throughout the corridor. “I would like to understand what Pemberton needs from this rail line. I would like to understand what Whistler needs for this rail line, what West Vancouver and what Squamish would need as well, because it’s not just about one; it’s about all of us,” she said.

AFFORDABILITY AND HOUSING

REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION

The long-awaited prospect of regional transit—along with the potential to restore passenger rail service between North Vancouver and Lillooet—produced some of the evening’s most detailed discussion. Valeriote, who has made regional transit a priority during his first term, pointed to a Sept. 22 memorandum of understanding between the Sea to Sky

acknowledged funding and governance still need to be settled. Wood challenged whether the agreement represented sufficient progress after more than a decade of planning. “This committee has been meeting since 2019, and the service has been studied since 2015, and the people in Pemberton are still waiting, and that inaction, in my opinion, is not

Dumais, who grew up in Squamish, pointed to friends leaving B.C. because of the cost of living. “I’m watching friends and people I grew up with leave because they simply cannot afford to stay. They’re moving to Alberta, to other parts of Canada, and even out of country because they cannot see a future for themselves. And I’m feeling those same pressures,” she said. “Whether it’s gas, groceries, rent, or trying to save for a home, life has become so expensive that our young are

NEWS WHISTLER struggling just to get started.” Her party’s proposals include income tax relief, no new taxes and “unlocking” natural resource development to strengthen B.C.’s economy. Livaja emphasized the NDP’s housing regulations and proposed measures to lower gasoline and grocery prices, including a pledge to reduce fuel prices by up to 30 cents per litre. She also acknowledged a difficult tradeoff between making homes affordable for young buyers and protecting the retirement savings of existing homeowners. “Lots of folks my age and my parents’, our retirements are locked up in our homes, and to bring prices down to make things affordable for younger folks risks what, in many cases, [is] the sole nest egg for people for funding their retirements,”

money coming from if you’re not raising the taxes on people?” she said. “You’re going to be making cuts, drastic cuts.” Wood advocated for predictable funding for wildfire prevention and flood protection instead of relying on emergency grants following major events. “The fix for the valley is really just steady money, FireSmart programs and dike work funded every year, instead of on one-off grants after a bad season,” he said.

INDIGENOUS RIGHTS AND PRIVATE PROPERTY

Candidates also clashed over B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) and property rights, following an August 2025 court ruling recognizing Cowichan Aboriginal title over 732 acres in Richmond, including privately owned land.

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she said. Valeriote advocated non-market housing, transit and childcare, blaming the affordability crisis partly on “30 years of underinvestment in housing.” Wood focused on development costs and approval delays, while warning of increased policing expenses as Pemberton approaches 5,000 residents.

PREPARING FOR THE NEXT WILDFIRE

After July’s Signal Hill wildfire, the audience had plenty of questions about prevention and dedicated firefighting resources. Valeriote described underfunding he said he witnessed during a visit to the Pemberton wildfire base before the fire. “What I heard, what I saw, was a facility that is underinvested in, people who are heroically fighting wildfires, completely under-resourced, living in buildings that are infested with rats and need investment,” he said. “Even if we were to stop climate change in its tracks now, we still will have wildfires. We need to invest in people. We need to invest in the equipment for sure.” He also advocated reducing emissions and opposing further fossil fuel expansion. Dumais supported removing forest fuels around communities and acquiring additional water bombers, arguing prevention must happen before emergencies unfold. Livaja questioned how the Conservatives would pay for additional firefighting resources while promising not to introduce new taxes. “It’s fine to say that, yes, you’re going to pay for doing more water bombers and the like, but there’s no plan ... where’s the

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The case predates DRIPA and the ruling, under appeal, did not invalidate private property titles. In a March statement, the province and Cowichan Nation said neither was seeking to invalidate private titles through negotiations or appeals. Dumais, a member of Prophet River First Nation, nevertheless argued DRIPA should be repealed to restore investor confidence. “I’ve seen, like, the amount that there is now a separation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous British Columbians right now is insane,” she said. “We need to be bringing unity to this province. We need to bring an economy. I believe [in] making our province investable again.” Valeriote argued negotiation with First Nations would provide greater certainty than repealing. “DRIPA gives certainty. It is the right tool to allow us to negotiate our way to agreement with First Nations,” he said. “We’re all here to stay. Sitting down at the table and negotiating is the way that we will find a resolution and peace in this province.” Livaja similarly defended the legislation, arguing its repeal would not reverse existing court decisions. Wood advocated for negotiated treaties and a consistent provincial framework with clear timelines, arguing repeal would create further uncertainty. The all-candidates’ meeting recording is available in full on the Pemberton Chamber of Commerce’s Facebook page. The provincial election will be held on Oct. 24. The overlapping municipal elections, with a separate slate of candidates, will be held on Oct. 17. n

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Whistler’s Smart Tourism Committee sets sights on traffic congestion FIVE PROPOSALS AIM TO MAKE TRANSIT AND CARPOOLING MORE ATTRACTIVE FOR RESIDENTS, WORKERS AND VISITORS

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12 OCTOBER 16, 2026

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travel-planning app are among a handful of proposals that Whistler’s Smart Tourism Committee hopes could ease traffic congestion in and around the resort. In a Sept. 22 presentation to mayor and council, the group identified traffic as one of the most pressing challenges facing residents, workers and visitors, and outlined potential solutions that could make alternatives to driving more attractive. Economic development officer Richard Kemble said congestion emerged as a priority because of its effects on everything from commuting and skiing to the resort’s reputation. “The reason that congestion stands out to us is really it’s where tourism pressure becomes visible,” he explained. “No one likes congestion, and everyone experiences it in a different way.” After identifying 21 problems contributing to congestion, committee members narrowed their focus to four: a lack of convenient alternatives to driving, the relative affordability and reliability of cars, limited transit options for regional commuters and the rush of skiers leaving the resort at 4 p.m. Kemble said any solutions to those issues must work together to change how people travel. “We want to make sure that we’re improving the or strengthening the reason to choose something over driving alone, and making sure that it is a collective approach,” he said. The committee’s mandate is to ensure tourism benefits the community, culture, environment and economy— instead of just bringing more visitors to town. Its long-term vision, extending to 2050, emphasizes “creating lasting value from tourism” for locals. One proposal to curb congestion is a pass that would combine ski access, transit and secure equipment storage into a single pass, reducing the inconvenience of carrying skis and other gear on public transportation. Councillor Cathy Jewett welcomed the idea. “Mayor [Jack} Crompton has often told me what a difference [a] locker made in his life. I have one too, and because some of my colleagues work at the mountain, in fact, four out of seven of us have lockers at the base of the hill, and it does make a difference,” she said. Another proposal would explore dedicated or reversible transit and highoccupancy vehicle lanes, particularly through highway bottlenecks between Cheakamus and Creekside. Queue-jumping lanes and intersection improvements are also under consideration.

Jewett suggested the approaching provincial election could provide an opportunity to advocate for highway improvements. The proposed travel app, meanwhile, would combine real-time traffic conditions, transportation options, road updates and information about activities that could encourage visitors to delay their departure. “So if you finish your skiing, it’s 4 p.m. You look on your app, you understand what the traffic situation is, but you also understand what the après options are, or you understand where else you might go, how you might spend your time,” Kemble said. “We want to make sure that this is a sort of universal app that gives all sorts of different good pieces of information.” Parking changes could include timebased pricing, paid parking at Creekside and overnight fees, with potential revenue directed toward transit improvements. Lastly, the committee wants to explore ridesharing along the corridor— including areas around Alice Lake and One Mile Lake—with potential pickup locations, carpool incentives and technology to connect travellers. None of the proposals have been approved for implementation. Coun. Arthur De Jong questioned whether the committee had considered Whistler’s carrying capacity, including the limits of its infrastructure and natural environment. “How much has the Smart Tourism Committee team wrestled with growth limits to [avoid] becoming a Dubrovnik or Venice?” he asked. Kemble said the committee has examined growth projections, but is concentrating on changing travel behaviour rather than determining a firm limit on visitation. “So if you think about our commuters, which are at the sort of 1.2 people per vehicle, if that increases to three, then the landscape shifts and the friction is reduced,” he said. The update marks a shift for the committee, established as part of council’s strategic priorities in 2022, from developing a broad tourism vision toward identifying practical projects. Coun. Ralph Forsyth, who chairs the committee, acknowledged the process has been difficult but welcomed the more concrete direction. “I’m super excited that we finally got to something that resonates, I think, with everyone and what the vision is—it’s tourism that works for Whistler,” he said. Next, the committee and those partners will examine feasibility, responsibilities, funding and technical requirements for the five proposals. Any future municipal spending would be considered through Whistler’s budgetary planning process. n

FROM LANCE BRIGHT, CANDIDATE FOR MAYOR OF WHISTLER

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE NEXT PREMIER OF B.C. Great leaders act on good information. A wildfire in Whistler could cripple the B.C. economy. Whistler is not Jasper, far bigger, but in July 2024, a wildfire took one-third of Jasper’s townsite. Insured damage came to just under $1.3 billion, the second-costliest fire in Canadian history. Visits fell by more than half. Whistler is 25% of B.C.’s tourism export revenue, sending more than $600 million a year in taxes to Victoria, Ottawa. In Whistler, that same fire would cost about $7.8 billion, counting the buildings and the lost visitors. A Fort McMurray-sized fire, about $13 billion. If visits fell by half and stayed down for four years, Whistler would lose about $3.7 billion in visitor spending, and governments would lose about $1.3 billion in taxes. The problem sits on provincial land. The clearcuts that logged this valley were replanted but never thinned. Those plantations are now dense young forests, packed with fuel and at the stage when they burn fastest and hottest. And now! The western spruce budworm is around Whistler, killing the smaller, weaker trees and adding more fuel. Whistler cannot cut what it does not own. Most of the fuel around us sits on provincial Crown land. The forest beyond our boundary is yours. For the sake of all British Columbians, I ask you to pledge five things. First, $120 million over four years for fuel treatment, mitigation and safety in and around Whistler. Second, wildfire detection cameras along the full length of the valley, building on Whistler’s own camera program. Third, two heavy-lift helicopters based in Whistler through fire season, with a direct line from Whistler Fire Rescue Service so no time is lost. Fourth, BC Wildfire Service crews here before and after fire season, thinning the forest. Around Lake Tahoe, fire agencies have worked together to treat nearly 100,000 acres this way. When the Caldor Fire reached the basin in 2021, that work slowed it and helped firefighters protect about 600 homes. Fifth, a fix for Highway 99 bottlenecks such as Britannia Beach. Not just an everyday nuisance, but an evacuation nightmare. Is this special treatment? No. It is arithmetic. $120 million is less than 2 percent of what one fire would cost. For the people of Whistler, no spreadsheet accounts for their loss, their hopes, dreams, small businesses, the equity in their homes, or their future; please act for them where other Premiers have not. Sincerely,

LANCE BRIGHT Candidate for Mayor of Whistler | Whistler Since 1967

VOTE SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17 lancebright.com

Sources: Insurance Bureau of Canada (CatIQ), July 2025; Parks Canada; Whistler Chamber of Commerce, 2018, adjusted for inflation; USDA Forest Service; Pique, May 2026. Whistler fire costs are campaign estimates; method at lancebright.com. Authorized by Lance Bright, financial agent. 604-388-4545 | lance@lancebright.com

NEWS WHISTLER

Tina Pashumati James wants to protect Whistler’s bears in council bid WHISTLERITES HEAD TO THE POLLS OCT. 17

BY LUKE FAULKS FOR TINA Pashumati James, living with

bears is not an abstract policy question. It means picking up garbage before a bear finds it. It means standing near schools and trails trying to keep people and wildlife apart. And it means pushing governments to rethink what happens when those efforts fail. The longtime Whistler resident and director of BearKind is running for council with coexistence at the centre of a broader platform focused on transparency and rebuilding community space. “I love the place,” she said. “I love the community, and I really wanted to be more proactive.” James has lived in Whistler for 28 years. Her two sons and grandchildren live in the community, and she spent a decade volunteering with ski patrol. She has also worked for decades in injury rehabilitation and mental health, and is a longtime yoga instructor and business owner. James previously made an unsuccessful bid for council in 2022. James said she’ll press the province for a “non-lethal first” approach to bear

conflicts whenever there is no immediate danger to people. Her platform calls for examining the cost of a local bearresponse team and requiring a public explanation following bear deaths. “I don’t think the answer is the gun,” she said. “I would like to see the province bring that law in—non-lethal as the first rule of Whistler, unless it is something so serious there’s no other option.” James also wants stronger garbage enforcement, more bear-proof bins and a program helping residents replace berryproducing vegetation that attracts bears into developed areas. “I think it’s too soft,” she said of bearrelated fines. “Those fines should be at least $500, and that should be enforced. It shouldn’t be something that’s spoken about—it should be enforced.” She would also like seasonal wildlife staff patrolling high-use areas to help educate locals and visitors alike. “That needs proper people—not just [volunteers] going there,” she said. “It needs a sort of Whistler wildlife ranger that would be paid to do that job.” Her environmental focus also shapes how she thinks Whistler should grow. James supports more housing for local workers, but wants development concentrated on already-disturbed land

IN THE RUNNING Tina Pashumati James. PHOTO COURTESY OF TINA PASHUMATI JAMES

where possible. “I definitely think we can’t use up more green space,” she said. Transparency is another of James’ central campaign issues. Her website proposes putting municipal spending and contract awards online—including who won contracts and for how much—allowing residents to question council about any municipal issue whether its on a meeting docket or not, and releasing decisions made in closed meetings once confidentiality is

no longer required. James also promises to publish her own votes and reasons after each meeting. “You can’t do anything if you don’t see the transparency of something,” she said. She wants the same principle applied to housing and development, including publishing permit wait times and clearer information about what proposed programs would cost. Her housing platform also calls for studying incentives to persuade owners to rent empty homes to local workers, faster permitting and a designated safe parking area for workers living in vehicles. James has also pledged not to vote for property-tax increases, arguing council should identify savings and outside partnerships before increasing taxes. “You’ve got to know where you’re getting that money from,” James said. “Otherwise, it’s a promise that’s going to be broken.” James’ third signature proposal is reviving Whistler’s cinema and expanding what she sees as its potential beyond commercial movie screenings. Learn more about James on her website, tinajames.ca, and find the full story online at piquenewsmagazine.com. Whistlerites will elect a mayor and six councillors on Oct. 17. n

ROBIN BROWN COMMUNITY FIRST

CANDIDATE FOR WHISTLER COUNCIL MEET ROBIN

I have been a full-time Whistler resident for 25 years and a taxpayer for 39 years. I am a professional engineer and have led my own firm for 33 years, primarily in forensic engineering - analyzing physical evidence to identify problems and find practical solutions. My wife and I built our Whistler home in 2001 because this is the community and lifestyle we chose. I have seen many positive changes, but also a sharp rise in the cost of living and growing pressure on residents, infrastructure, and the environment. I am running to bring careful analysis, clear priorities, and responsive decision-making to council.

PRIORITIES FOR WHISTLER • RESPONSIBLE SPENDING Bring municipal spending under control, improve productivity, and put essential community needs ahead of costly proposed developments. • HOUSING THAT WORKS Ensure seniors and employee housing is genuinely attainable, and press major employers to provide more housing for their seasonal workforce. • GROWTH WITHIN OUR LIMITS Match development with water, sewer, transportation, highway capacity, and protection of Whistler's wildlife and natural environment. • PROTECT COMMUNITY AMENITIES Use the Northlands community contribution to deliver an all-weather tennis and pickleball facility before the existing facility is removed. • ACCESSIBLE LOCAL GOVERNMENT Build a council that listens, responds, and makes it easier for residents and taxpayers to engage with their municipality.

I will commit my time on council to keeping our community first. Authorized by Robin Brown, Financial Agent • M: 604-209-8201 email: robin@robinbrown.ca ROBIN BROWN | CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHY AND PRIORITIES

14 OCTOBER 16, 2026

Vote Jack Crompton for Mayor

JACKCROMPTON.CA • Nancy Wilhelm-Morden • PJ O’Heany • Jen Ford • Joey Gibbons • Harriet Crompton • Matt Woods • Dan Wilson • Sue Adams • Mike Douglas • Donna Savage • Real Wild Kittens • Truth Smith • Chair Wilson Williams • Saad Hasan • Duane Jackson & John Grills • Kelly Hand • Sonya Hwang • Dr Brennan McKnight • Matt Barth • Big Kev • Martini Bart • Haylee Bullard • Mike Groot • JF Pelchat • Chad & Anastasia Chomlack • Ben Thomas • Sam Waddington • Jeremy Postal • Mark Freeman • Scott Bullard • Jenn Black • Warren Williams • Tony Horn • Crosland Doak • Jeff Schmuck • Annabelle Gunner • Bill Janyk • Jessie Morden • Jesse Correia • Beau Jarvis • Ralph Forsyth • Schmobb • Mike Varrin • Wendi & James Gabelhouse • Hannyliz Villafuerte • Andrew Weir • Carolyn Crompton • Ken Stanick • Don Crompton • Mel Levenberg • Janyk Family • Dean Fyfe • Harvey Lim • Sean & Liz Tiedeman • Journey Smith • Jeff Murl • Chief Dean Nelson • Jayson Faulkner • Anne Townley • Paula Jeffers • Roger Soane • Cathy Jewett • Ben & Julie Smith • Liane Bedard • Ryan Proctor • Drew Meredith • Maggie Crompton • Steve Bayly • Maria Brander Campos • Robbie Dixon & Carleigh Hofman • Mark Gershon • Harvey Lim & Sonya Hwang • Ron Dennesen • Joe Polito • Kitt Redhead • Hugh Smythe

Find full platform details at JackCrompton.ca Authorized by Carolyn Crompton, financial agent, 604-932~2866.

NEWS WHISTLER

Twenty-one candidates, 21 voices from Whistler’s Oct. 1 all-candidates meeting HOUSING, AFFORDABILITY AND COMMUNITY EMERGED AS RECURRING THEMES DURING THE TWO-HOUR FORUM

BY LUKE FAULKS WITH 21 candidates and roughly two

hours, Whistler’s Oct. 1 all-candidates meeting covered a lot of ground. Hosted by the Whistler Multicultural Society, AWARE Whistler and Whistler Community Services Society, the forum paired queries from the host organizations with audience questions on housing, homelessness, wildlife, climate, youth, immigration, tourism and taxes. Here is one moment from each candidate.

HOUSING, AFFORDABILITY AND BELONGING

Asked about homelessness and vehicle living, council candidate Michael Burnett gave a blunt answer. “We need to face the fact that we have a homeless population,” he said. “We have people living in vehicles who work and keep this community going, and we have people with unstable and precarious housing. It’s shameful. It actually is.” Nicole Baudisch said emergency shelter needs to be paired with longerterm support.

“Nobody in Whistler should be left without safe shelter, especially during extreme weather events,” she said. “A strong community is one that takes care of its most vulnerable residents while continuing to build more stable housing options for everyone.” Speaking about how Whistler could remain accessible to youth, Raul Bautista said the resort needs more places where residents can gather without paying. “Whistler obviously is the resort municipality. It’s becoming a town with people, with families—less of a resort, more of a community,” he said. “We need to work on spaces [where] you don’t need to spend money to have a nice day when the weather’s miserable.” Ivan Otto, asked how youth could be more directly involved in municipal decisions, pointed to his proposal for public street-workout facilities. “One of my priorities is making Whistler [a] street-workout place where people can do exercise, and in this decision I would definitely involve the youth,” he said. “The young people should help us decide how it should look.” Asked about foreign workers on closed work permits who are excluded from WHA eligibility, mayoral candidate Marco Zunino emphasized Whistler’s

reliance on immigrant labour. “The engine of Whistler runs off the back of many immigrants in this town, and we wouldn’t be as successful as we were if it wasn’t for those people, for the immigrants that come here to work,” he said. Council candidate John Blok reached a similar conclusion. “We take [people] out of other countries, out of their own land, and we give them jobs,” he said. “But we should also give them homes.”

WHO GETS A VOICE?

Incumbent mayor Jack Crompton recalled a student climate march that helped push the municipality toward free transit for students. “When we connect young people to real decisions rather than conceptual opportunity, [it] means change. It means change in policy,” he said. Crompton said he would like to hold a real council meeting at Whistler Secondary School. Jen Ford, asked about housing for people on closed work permits, said WHA policy has evolved, but argued the municipality cannot solve the problem alone. “We changed the waitlist criteria for ownership so that people who are working towards permanent residence or citizenship can be on a waitlist,” she

For every journey From new horizons to your next big adventure, we’re here for every moment on your journey. Because your financial partner should be by your side every step of the way. Talk to us about your next step.

16 OCTOBER 16, 2026

said. “We have not kept up with shortterm housing, and that has not been the mandate of the WHA, and so there are other participants that need to build that kind of housing.” Asked whether permanent residents should vote municipally, mayoral candidate Brandon Smith said representation should reflect those living and working in Whistler. “If you are working, living and contributing, I believe you should have a say at the table,” he said. “I believe we need a natural turnover of community, a natural turnover of new ideas and fresh perspectives.” Council candidate Mandy Rousseau similarly argued for fresh perspectives in her opening remarks. “Some of the best ideas are presented by new blood, and it gives the old guard something exciting to rally around,” she said, adding she hopes to bring “that same level of creativity and inclusivity” to council.

WHAT WILL WHISTLER PROTECT?

For mayoral candidate Lance Bright, wildfire is the issue that could undo decades of Whistler’s progress.

SEE PAGE 18 >>

Community Consultation Collaboration Cathy will continue to use her passion, energy and extensive community knowledge as a member of the RMOW Council to ensure Whistler continues to be a great place to live, work and do business. Chair - Whistler Valley Housing Society, Whistler’s first social housing Chair - RMOW HR Committee Member - RMOW Governance Committee, RMOW Smart Tourism Committee, Audain Art Museum Board 2016 Whistler’s Citizen of the Year - in recognition of many years of volunteer service in Whistler

Re-elect Cathy Jewett

For Council in the RMOW Municipal Election Advance Voting: October 7 & 10 at Whistler Public Library

Voting Day: October 17 at Myrtle Philip Community School Polls open 8:00 am - 8:00 pm Authorized by Cathy Jewett, Financial Agent - cojewett@gmail.com

Jeremy Valeriote

West Vancouver - Sea to Sky Jeremy’s Priorities: A Life You Can Afford We’ll pass rent control between tenancies and fund affordable workforce housing so the people who keep our communities running can thrive.

Care You Can Count On We’ll open more Community Health Centres, build the new Squamish Hospital, expand long term care, invest in mental health, restart $10/day childcare, and provide supports to age in place in Whistler and Pemberton.

A Corridor That Works For You We will secure public transit along Highway 99 corridor. I’ll continue to speak loudly for road safety, more enforcement for reckless driving, better communication for highway closures and end fuel price gouging.

Our Home, Not Their Pipeline This is our home, not a shortcut for pipelines. We will stand up against Woodfibre LNG expansion, the proposed crude oil pipeline route through the corridor, and protect jobs that depend on a healthy environment.

Promises Made... Promises Kept! Deliver Employee Housing 386 new units built and 533 under development or approval

Community Engagement Created quarterly “Outside Voice” events Added public Q&A to Council Meetings

Smart Tourism

/jervaleriote @jervaleriote @jervaler.bsky.social info@bcgreens.ca (1-888-473-3686)

bcgreens.ca Learn more!

Leveraging tax class eight revenues and on-line accommodation RMI funds to invest in employee housing Investments to improve transit and reduce congestion

Re-elect Ralph Forsyth to RMOW Council

www.ralphforsyth.com Authorized by Ralph Forsyth, Financial Agent, 604.905.8997

Authorized by Farrukh Chishtie, financial agent, 1-888-473-3686

OCTOBER 16, 2026

NEWS WHISTLER << FROM PAGE 16 “The one thing that could come and take us back 30 years is a wildfire,” he said. “FireSmart will save your home, but it will not save your dreams, your retirements…” Council candidate Tina Pashumati James focused on bear coexistence. “There is no credible scientific, ethical or moral justification for cruelty,” she said. “I’m talking about orphaned bear cubs left to die, bears being shot in front of families and communities. [I] want Whistler to become a worldwide model for coexistence with bears.” In his opening remarks, Robin Brown tied growth and affordability to municipal spending and employerprovided housing. “We need to bring the municipal spending under control. The past tax increases [are] not sustainable,” he said. “We need to continue to provide housing to employees and seniors that is genuinely attainable, and we need major employers to provide more housing for their workforce.” Councillor Arthur De Jong described community and environment as inseparable parts of Whistler. “After the Olympics, I was asked to go to a number of different countries [and] explain Whistler was rated No.1, and it was because of its natural assets, its built environment and its people—its soul, its culture,” he said. “It’s something that we really need to nurture as much as we can.”

GUESS WHO Whistler’s 21 candidates for mayor and council at the Oct. 1 all-candidates meeting. PHOTO BY LUKE FAULKS

For Eduardo Vazquez-Vela, growth needs to remain within those limits. “We cannot sacrifice protected lands, ignore wildfire risks or overlook our aging infrastructure,” he said. “Growth without resilience and long-term vision is growth we simply cannot afford.”

SPENDING, PROMISES AND WHAT COMES NEXT

When an audience member challenged candidates to reconcile housing promises with calls for lower taxes, Claire Ruddy pushed back on tax cuts. “Notably, I haven’t been talking about cutting taxes,” she said. “I think that if we start talking about cutting taxes, we are putting costs down the road … The cost of our infrastructure is just going to

Election 2026

RE-ELECT RE-ELECT

Jeff MurlFor Council Send me back, I'm excited to get to work on the upcoming 2027 budget

keep increasing because we are an aging, mature community.” Councillor Jeff Murl framed his approach around taking a longer view of municipal decisions. “When they make a decision, it’s not just for them and their children; it’s for seven generations,” he said, referring to a lesson he said he learned from Whistler’s neighbouring First Nations. “I think that is such an ambitious goal when you’re making decisions, to think of seven generations.” Councillor Ralph Forsyth said Whistler’s approach to tourism should ensure more of its benefits flow back to residents. “Smart tourism is about the benefits of tourism accruing to the people, and

so some of the things that we’ve done to achieve that is change the Class 8 tax class, so that we’re able to relieve budget constraints on local taxpayers by having tourism pay for that,” he said. Asked about Vail Resorts employee housing, Dawn Titus pointed to plans she saw during the previous election campaign. “Four years ago … Vail had their signs up talking about building their next employee housing units, and four years later, I don’t even know if the sign is still there,” she said. “Four years ago the sign was up, and there’s nothing built.” Councillor Cathy Jewett said a seniors’ centre could form part of a broader multigenerational community space. “I’m all for a seniors centre. I’m all for a multi-generational centre,” she said. “1993 was when the Meadow Park Sports Centre was built. My son was born that year; he’s 33, and so he’s about to start a family. So, what’s going to be next?” And Councillor Jessie Morden summed up her case for another term in her opening remarks. “I’m not running because I think everything’s perfect,” she said. “I’m running because I believe in Whistler. I believe in this community and believe there’s still more important work to do.” Check out Pique’s 2026 Municipal Election Guide in the Oct. 9 issue for more from the candidates. Whistler will elect a mayor and six councillors on Oct. 17. n

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This ad is authorized by Jeff Murl, Financial Agent - jeffmurl@hotmail.com

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Open House SAT & SUN 2 - 5 PM

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General Voting Day

Saturday, October 17, 2026 An election by voting will be held to elect two Directors of the SquamishLillooet Regional District (“SLRD”). The candidates for each office and voting places are:

Electoral Area A - One (1) to be elected Candidates

Voting Places

COURCHESNE, John Gold Bridge, BC

Gold Bridge Community Club

for Office

GETAZ, Simon Pemberton, BC

8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

699 Gun Lake Rd., Gold Bridge, BC

District of Lillooet REC Centre 930 Main St., Lillooet, BC

Electoral Area D - One (1) to be elected Candidates

Voting Places

BELL, Cameron Furry Creek, BC

Britannia Beach Fire Hall

for Office

DE JONG, Paula Upper Squamish, BC

8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Elector Eligibility, Registration & ID Requirements There is no pre-registration process. Qualified electors must register at the time of voting by completing an application form available at the voting place and making a declaration that you meet all voter eligibility requirements.

Resident Electors must produce two (2) pieces of identification (at least one with a signature). The identification must prove both residency and identity. Non-Resident Property Electors must produce two (2) pieces of identification (at least one with a signature) to prove identity, proof they are entitled to register in relation to the property, and, if there is more than one owner of the property, written consent from the majority of the property owners. For additional information, visit:

360 Copper Dr., Britannia Beach, BC

Myrtle Philip Community School 6195 Lorimer Rd., Whistler, BC

Brennan Park 1009 Centennial Way, Squamish, BC

For election information, contact: Angela Belsham, Chief Election Officer Phone: 604-894-6371 | Toll-free: 1-800-298-7753 Email: election@SLRD.bc.ca

SLRD.bc.ca/2026electionsSLRD.bc.ca/2026elections SLRD.bc.ca/2026elections

SLRD.bc.ca/2026elections OCTOBER 16, 2026

NEWS WHISTLER

Whistler ROCKS acquires new kitchen space in Function Junction ONCE ESTABLISHED, THE KITCHEN WILL HELP ROCKS PREPARE MORE FREQUENT COMMUNITY DINNERS IN VARIOUS WAYS

BY DAVID SONG THOUGH THE organization’s leaders don’t envision it as a permanent home, Whistler Recreate Our Community Kitchen Society (ROCKS) has a brand-new location. It is found at 1005 Alpha Lake Road in Function Junction: a former bike repair shop that’s currently just a bare space with electricity and plumbing. ROCKS has signed a three-year lease and aims to establish a kitchen by year’s end using donated or secondhand equipment. Once that is taken care of, the non-profit will look to acquire folding tables and chairs, patio lights and artwork from local creatives. Meanwhile, ROCKS will continue its existing arrangement with the Whistler Mountain Ski Club (WMSC) as a dining venue. ROCKS board member Celeste Banning described the place as having “great feng shui,” but also looks forward to what the Function Junction unit can bring to the table. “The beauty of our Function kitchen is that it will enable us to host community dinners more frequently,” she explained. “Because the ski club’s kitchen isn’t a licensed commercial kitchen, we need to

ROOM TO GROW Whistler ROCKS’ new kitchen space in Function Junction, acquired in fall 2026. PHOTO COURTESY OF CELESTE BANNING

apply for a temporary food service permit for each and every community dinner we cook there, and Vancouver Coastal Health will issue us a maximum of 14 such permits per calendar year.

“The Function kitchen, for which we’ll obtain a catering license, will free us from that constraint. Food cooked there can be transported to the ski club and other dining spaces in hot-holding equipment courtesy of 100 Men Who Care Whistler. Our hope is that … you’ll see ROCKS community dinners popping up in locations throughout Whistler. For example, we’ve had promising conversations around hosting dinners in local coffee shops in their after-hours.” ROCKS’ new location, once up and running, will also facilitate cooking methods like stewing and marinating. These approaches are ideal for producing inexpensive meals, but weren’t previously an option because the WMSC’s schedule requires staff members to cook everything in a relatively short window between 3:30 and 6 p.m. The place will also provide useful storage, enabling ROCKS to accept food donations and buy ingredients in bulk.

‘ASTONISHING SUPPORT’

Mark Springett, a longtime ROCKS supporter, acts as the organization’s new landlord. He voiced his goodwill towards them by way of email: “Congratulations on seeing your vision unfolding into reality before you. Thank you for all you’ve done

for the community.” “We’re so lucky with Mark!” Banning said. “He’s been very easygoing about our renovation plans and very understanding of ROCKS’ particular needs, for example, subleasing to offset operating costs. A landlord’s personality can’t help but pervade a rental and his blessing fills the space with good vibes.” However, ROCKS leaders still harbour long-term aspirations of moving into a shared permanent area with other Sea to Sky non-profits. Banning elaborated: “The astonishing support we’ve received in our first year of operation suggests that a space where the community can hang out together and share a free or inexpensive meal is a local priority. A definite theme at the Oct. 1 all-candidates meeting was the need for a multi-generational, multicultural space where the community can gather without spending money. So it seems reasonable to hope that the [Resort Municipality of Whistler] might work toward creating such a space in the near future.” Until then, Function Junction will serve as ROCKS’ meal preparation hub and occasional host venue to complement the WMSC. As of this writing, the next community dinner is scheduled for Oct. 26. Visit whistler-rocks.ca to learn more. n

ARTHUR DE JONG PROVEN LEADER AND VISIONARY CANDIDATE PRIORITIES FOR WHISTLER 1 Leadership Continue to bring experience, stability, vision, and empathy to my work for the community.

6 Affordability Work with RMOW staff to find savings, efficiencies, and redundancies.

2 Climate Safety Whistler will experience a catastrophic fire. Accelerate fire smarting and fire fuel reduction.

7 Housing Foundational to everything.

3 Climate Economics Accelerate future proofing to stabilize the declining winter business model, including a multipurpose recreation facility which includes racquet sports. 4 Climate Responsibility Drive Whistler’s Big Moves GHG reduction initiatives forward. 5 Growth The community decides on limits to growth, not the province, including Cheakamus Crossing.

8 Seniors Quality of Life A community’s heart is measured by how it cares for its seniors. Housing, health and a senior’s hub are critical. 9 Emergency Services Support Always support Whistler’s emergency services personnel who keep our community safe. 10 Education Get the new Waldorf School to the finish line.

Authorized by

Arthur De Jong

financial agent. arthur@artdejong.com

https://www.piquenewsmagazine.com/local-news/arthur-de-jong-seeks-third-whistlercouncil-term-with-climate-resilience-growth-limits-in-focus-12838383 20 OCTOBER 16, 2026

HOLIDAY PARTIES AT TABLE NINETEEN

Calling all Sea to Sky companies! Groups of 50 guests or more are invited to enjoy a private venue experience whilst smaller celebrations of 25-40 guests can reserve the dining room for a semi-private event. A range of dates in November and December are available. Email info_nicklaus@golfbc.com for more information.

Whistler’s Premier Visitor Magazine Since 1980 Both in Print & Online

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OCTOBER 16, 2026

NEWS WHISTLER

Naturespeak: Mycophilous beetle diversity BY SCOTT GILMORE THE MOST COMMON question heard at a mushroom festival is “can I eat it?” I like to take that question and turn it around a little and instead ask “what eats it?” A whole world opens up that I find far more interesting than “will this mushroom give me gastro if I eat it?” Mushrooms don’t grow just so we can eat them or worry if they are going to poison us. They are the fruiting bodies of much larger organisms and they are a food source for many, many creatures. There are the bigger beasts like deer and bear which eat fungi, while squirrels are also known to collect and eat some mushrooms. The rasping marks of slugs’ and snails’ tongues are not uncommon on mushrooms, showing they eat them as well. However, it is the insects which are really associated with fungi. Some of them spend their entire life cycle living in, on and around them. I like to find beetles and I really like to find beetles I have not seen before. Occasionally they are new to me, occasionally they are new for an area (like Whistler), a province, or even new to science. One of the best ways to find beetles that I have not seen before is to look in new habitats. Now habitats can be as different as a forest versus a field, or

DERODONTUS TRISIGNATUS A tooth-necked fungus beetle from the family Derodontidae. PHOTO BY SCOTT GILMORE

can appear much more similar but show a big difference when studied closely. Did you know that fallen dead wood and standing dead wood support different species of beetles? Enter mushrooms: different groups of mushroom species provide distinct habitats for beetles.

Mycophilous means “fungus loving” and where you find fungi you will usually find one or many different species of mycophilous beetle… occasionally in big numbers. From classic mushrooms to mould and crust fungi, and even the hard bracket fungus found on trees, there

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are beetles to be found on and within. There are entire families of beetles which only feed and/or reproduce on fungi: everything from the minute tree fungus beetles (family: Ciidae) to the round fungus beetles (Leiodidae) and hairy fungus beetles (Mycetophagidae). I should not forget the pleasing fungus beetles (Erotylidae) and handsome fungus beetles (Endomychidae) named to remind everyone how beautiful beetles are! Then there are some species in more well-known families which are usually not associated with fungi. The fungus-eating lady beetles (such as the twenty-spotted lady beetle, Psyllobora vigintimaculata) exclusively eat powdery mildew. By far the most diverse family associated with fungi is the rove beetle family (Staphylinidae). Next time you see a mushroom, take a closer look and see if there are any beetles. Don’t forget to look on the underside—a gentle tap can encourage them to crawl or drop out from between the gills. Oh, and the next time you are at a mushroom festival, consider what additional questions you could ask. This year’s Fungus Among Us festival runs Oct. 16 and 17. Naturespeak is prepared by the Whistler Naturalists. To learn more about Whistler’s natural world, and Fungus Among Us, go to whistlernaturalists.ca. n

Barbara Joan Leigh May 11, 1956 - Sept 16, 2026

Barbara Joan Leigh passed peacefully in the presence of her loving family on the night of September 16, 2026 due to complications arising from Alzheimer’s disease. Barb was born May 11, 1956 to the committed care of Marion and Ken Seaman. Soon sister Diane and brother Dave joined this loving Kitsilano family where laughter was their first language. A boating and skiing life ensured they were connected to each other and beautiful BC. Barb’s work ethic and near photographic memory found a flourishing career selling employee recognition award programs for OC Tanner. The same charm that found most of Vancouver's business leaders signing large purchase orders found Brent committed the day he met Barb skiing at Whistler in 1988. Four seasons later they married, moved to Whistler and on December 6, 1993 welcomed son Robert followed two years later by Kenny. The ensuing 30 years was as close to heaven on earth as you can get. Barb's joyful nature and caring ways were forever present with her “boys”, her extended family, the summer community of Buccaneer Bay, the hamlet of Pinecrest/Black Tusk and the broader Sea to Sky community. An avid community volunteer, Barb was also well loved across School District 48 where she served as a teacher’s aid. Happily, Barb's longest association in the corridor was the creative fellowship of her beloved quilt group, Club Thread. All of us close to Barb marveled at how she remained truly buoyant through the long decline of Alzheimer’s; if anything was a measure of Barbie's joyful spirit it was that. Diane, David, Brent, Kenny and Robert (in absentia), along with their extended families, wish to invite Barb's dear friends and associates to a celebration of her life and lovely ways.

Please join us November 7th -2:00 pm St. John’s Anglican Church Squamish. 1930 Diamond Road, Squamish.

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OCTOBER 16, 2026

NEWS PEMBERTON

Stewardship Pemberton to celebrate local agriculture with first-ever Harvest Festival THE NEW COMMUNITY EVENT WILL BRING FOOD, MUSIC, GAMES AND FRIENDLY COMPETITION TO THE PEMBERTON MUSEUM ON OCT. 24

BY LUKE FAULKS THE STEWARDSHIP Pemberton Society

(SPS) is inviting residents to celebrate the end of another growing season with its first-ever Harvest Festival—bringing local food, live music and a little friendly competition to the Pemberton Museum. The inaugural event takes place Saturday, Oct. 24, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The afternoon will feature familyfriendly activities designed to celebrate the farmers, growers and volunteers who help put food on local tables. “We wanted to create a new annual community event that celebrates Pemberton’s agricultural roots, the fall harvest and the people who grow, make and share food in our community,” SPS’ executive director Sara Bartlett wrote to Pique. “Stewardship Pemberton Society works year-round on local food security, community agriculture and environmental stewardship, and the festival is an opportunity to bring all of that together in a fun, accessible way. “We also wanted to create something that could become a tradition: a chance for the community to come together at the end of the growing season, celebrate what

FOOD FOR THOUGHT Organizers hope the festival will become an annual tradition celebrating the valley’s agricultural roots. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SLRD

24 OCTOBER 16, 2026

has been grown here, and support the work that strengthens our local food system.” Visitors can expect face-painting, fallthemed art, cornhole, horseshoes and a scavenger hunt dubbed “Squash Search & Rescue,” which will send participants searching for hidden squash around the museum grounds. Attendees with a competitive streak can enter pie, pickle and vegetable contests, or take a crack at guessing the weight of a mystery item. Ribbons and

events take place at the Downtown Community Barn, Bartlett said the museum offers an opportunity to connect the valley’s agricultural present with its past. “The Pemberton Museum felt like a natural fit because the festival is really about celebrating where we come from and the agricultural history that is such an important part of Pemberton’s identity,” she said. “The museum provides an opportunity to connect the current

“Fall is a particularly meaningful time in the Pemberton Valley.” - SARA BARTLETT

prizes are up for grabs. Bartlett said the activities are intended to make the festival an accessible afternoon for families and community members of all ages. Local pumpkins will be available by donation, while vendors including The British Baker, Blissful Bites, Sargent Popper Popcorn and 4Plus Coffee will provide refreshments. Live music will run throughout the event.

CELEBRATING THE VALLEY’S ROOTS

While many of Pemberton’s community

agricultural community with the history of farming and food production in the valley. We also wanted to create something a little different from the events that traditionally take place at the Barn and make use of another great community space. “Fall is a particularly meaningful time in the Pemberton Valley. It’s a chance to pause and celebrate after a busy growing season; the crops that have been harvested, the food that has been produced locally and the people who make our agricultural community possible.” That includes everyone from

farmers and small-scale growers to backyard gardeners, local food producers, community organizations and volunteers. Bartlett said SPS hopes the festival will recognize the many people who contribute to the valley’s food system, not just those working in commercial agriculture. The festival also reflects SPS’ ongoing work supporting community agriculture, rescuing food, sharing growing knowledge and strengthening local food security. “The Harvest Festival is a celebration of the work we do throughout the year,” Bartlett said. “Stewardship Pemberton Society is focused on building a stronger, more resilient local food system from growing and rescuing food to supporting community agriculture, sharing knowledge and connecting people with where their food comes from. “We hope people leave having had a great time, and with a greater appreciation for where their food comes from and for the people and organizations working to build a resilient local food and agriculture system.” Advance tickets cost $5 per adult, rising to $7 at the door. Children under 17 can attend for free. Proceeds support SPS’ food security, agriculture and environmental stewardship programs. Tickets are available at stewardshippembertonsociety.com/ events. n

NEWS PEMBERTON

Pemberton’s James Linklater eyes return to council table as village reaches growth ‘crossroads’

V A N C O U V E R

MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS SET FOR OCT. 17

BY CAROLINE EGAN PEMBERTON councillor, James Linklater, is looking to return to the council table. He brings with him a service-first mindset and a focus on managing the village’s rapid growth. Linklater previously served on council from 2011 to 2018, stepping away when terms extended from three to four years to focus on his family and career. Having moved to Pemberton from Whistler in 1995, he has spent decades volunteering with the local Rotary Club and Pemberton Youth Soccer. Now, with renewed time and energy, he said community members encouraged him to throw his hat back into the ring. Having heeded the call from local residents urging him to run, Linklater sees his candidacy as a natural extension of his longstanding commitment to community service. “I’m about service first,” Linklater said, noting that while he believes the village is managing well, his background can help navigate upcoming challenges. “I think we’re growing, and we’re entering a crossroads. I’m hopeful and confident my experience, my demeanour and my approach can serve the community well.” FORMER

“I’m hopeful and confident my experience, my demeanour and my approach can serve the community well.” - JAMES LINKLATER

A primary concern for Linklater is Pemberton’s Official Community Plan (OCP), which he noted hasn’t been updated for some time. With major developments underway throughout the village, Linklater stressed that growth must be methodical and aligned with an updated OCP to ensure road infrastructure can handle increased traffic. While he supports affordable and social housing initiatives like the Harrow Road project, Linklater emphasized the need to maintain Pemberton’s walkability, unique local shops and family-friendly character without succumbing to highway sprawl. Having commuted to Whistler on public transit for more than a decade, Linklater is a strong advocate for regional

IN THE RUNNING James Linklater. PHOTO COURTESY OF JAMES LINKLATER

connectivity. He supports Pemberton’s multimodal transportation hub and hopes to see a fully connected transit network stretching from the Líl’wat Nation down to Vancouver. On the topic of emergency preparedness, Linklater praised the local fire department and BC Wildfire Service for their swift response to this summer’s Signal Hill fire, but warned the community cannot rely solely on optimal circumstances. He advocates for personal civilian readiness and the formalization of “neighbourhood pods”—smaller, manageable groups where residents can check on vulnerable individuals, such as seniors or those with visual impairments, during an evacuation. He also stressed the need to identify community muster points outside the village, given the severe evacuation constraints of Highway 99, the Hurley River Forest Service Road, and the Duffey. In terms of governance, Linklater highlighted his past experience on the Winds of Change steering committee, which brought together the Village of Pemberton, the Líl’wat Nation, Vancouver Coastal Health and local police. He believes maintaining strong ties with the Líl’wat Nation, the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District and higher levels of government is essential to securing funding and services. Fiscally, Linklater advocates for pragmatism. While acknowledging community desires for large amenities like a pool or rink, he cautioned that Pemberton does not yet have the tax base or the 10,000-person population threshold to support the ongoing maintenance costs of such facilities. Ahead of the election, Linklater plans to focus on grassroots engagement, connecting with voters through doorknocking and community conversations to better understand their priorities.

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Read more about Pemberton’s election candidates at piquenewsmagazine.com. Election day is Saturday, Oct. 17. n

OCTOBER 16, 2026

RANGE ROVER

The win-win-win of MPAs IT’S SAID WE KNOW LESS about the

bottom of the ocean than about the surface of the moon. Which is likely why most Canadians are unaware of a substantive national achievement: Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). By preserving marine ecosystems and biodiversity in discrete areas of the ocean, MPAs represent a powerful nature-based solution to mitigating the

BY LESLIE ANTHONY impacts of climate change and resource exploitation, contributing to both national and international protection goals while supporting cultures and economies in coastal communities. These seafloor habitats are the focus of research for scientists like Cherisse Du Preez, a deep-sea spatial ecologist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada in Nanaimo and adjunct professor at the University of Victoria. “If you want your work to have the most impact, you choose the biggest ecosystem on the planet,” says Du Preez, referencing Earth’s single largest continuous environment, the one most responsible for planetary equilibrium. “It offers me the opportunity to protect stuff that matters not only to Canada, but to the planet.” Located some 250 km off Vancouver Island and 2,500 metres below the surface, Canada’s first MPA was Endeavour Hydrothermal Vents, designated in 2003. It was also the first globally to focus on these idiosyncratic structures, placing the country at the forefront of deep-ocean protection. “Off the West Coast we have the world’s fastest-moving tectonic plates,

WHAT LURKS BENEATH Canada’s Marine Protected Areas represent a substantive national achievement. PHOTO BY SHAY LALOR / ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS

26 OCTOBER 16, 2026

as well as the smallest. That makes for a very dynamic environment,” says Du Preez, who, in addition to her fair share of hydrothermal vents, has discovered dozens of seamounts in Canadian waters—volcanic structures of more than 1,000 metres in height. Unlike terrestrial mountains, which reach away from the life-supporting milieu of Earth’s surface, seamounts reach toward it, attracting and supporting their own biodiversity. Hydrothermal vents can be chemically, thermally and biologically unique, with roles in oceanic mineral cycling and carbon sequestration. Fragile and ephemeral, they are tiny geo- and

Du Preez, “but the basic protections can’t be turned off—and you can’t move the boundaries.” Canada’s first MPA is one of only four designated off B.C.’s Pacific coast; additional MPAs exist off our Atlantic (eight) and Arctic (three) coasts, the latter hosting the largest, Tuvaijuittuq, at 319,411 square kilometres. Aimed at protecting, conserving and understanding the Arctic sea-ice ecosystem in an age of rapid ice loss (the name is Inuktut for “place where the ice never melts”), Tuvaijuittuq represents about 5.55 per cent of Canada’s marine protection target under a global “30x30” initiative enshrined in the 2021

“The first thing to understand is that MPAs aren’t the only tool we have for managing marine environments.” - CHERISSE DU PREEZ

eco-diverse planets that exist for but moments in geological time amidst the enormity of the ocean universe. Given the wreckage caused by bottom-fishing and the looming prospect of deep-sea mining, the need to protect as many as possible could not be clearer. “The first thing to understand is that MPAs aren’t the only tool we have for managing marine environments,” says Du Preez, citing other levers like fishing closures. MPAs, however, share the unwavering feature of federal protections. While shipping, sportfishing and recreation may, at times, be allowed within their bounds, other activities are strictly prohibited: no bottom contact, no mining, no dumping, and no oil-andgas anything. Other prohibitions can be added, subtracted or modified to achieve specific conservation values (e.g., limits on sound that might interfere with whales). “It’s an adaptive approach,” says

UN Convention on Biological Diversity, which seeks to protect 30 per cent of Earth’s land and ocean areas by 2030. Tuvaijuittuq also represents another element of MPAs—collaboration on longterm protection priorities between the Canadian government and Indigenous partners. Scientists like Du Preez likewise focus on knowledge co-creation and cooperative management initiatives with Indigenous peoples, as illustrated in the July 2024 co-designation by Canada and the Haida, Nuu-chah-nulth, Pacheedaht and Quatsino Nations of Tang.Gwan–h_ačxwiqak–Tsig_is (ThT). This 133,019-square-kilometre MPA west of Vancouver Island comprises 47 seamounts and all of Canada’s known hydrothermal vents (some 35 fields). Its designation moves Canada halfway to its 30x30 ocean-protection goal. With a boundary 4.5 times the size of Vancouver Island, ThT protects an

even larger area comprising the threedimensional space between seabed and surface, which, as Du Preez points out, literally swells with life. “More than 90 per cent of biomass in B.C. lives in the deep sea,” she says. “The majority of the province’s wildlife are actually tiny, gelatinous, bioluminescent animals that never see the light of day and speak to each other in flashes.” Not only is it hard to wrap your head around the number of animals saved by protecting an area this large, but also the deep-time biodiversity preserved. “We used to clock the oldest deep-sea corals at 4,500 years, but we recently found some over 7,500 years old,” she says of why preserving long-lived species is important. “Some of the rockfish in MPAs—things you can find in the supermarket—are as old as Canada.” Physical threats to marine life raise eyebrows, but they pale in comparison to the hammer of climate change. The ocean absorbs 90 per cent of Earth’s nonradiated heat, but may be reaching its capacity for heat absorption. In a 2020 paper, Du Preez and colleagues suggested climate-driven ocean acidification and oxygen loss could lead to a massmortality event within a hundred years. Their prediction was realized in five. Studying an area near B.C.’s Explorer Seamount, it was discovered 90 per cent of sponges had died of oxygen deprivation. “That’s unprecedented,” she says. “Not just the fastest we thought a deep-sea animal could die off, but the first quantitative evidence that low oxygen is having these effects right now.” Existing and pending MPAs represent something for all of us to embrace. Given our general lack of knowledge of the deep sea, but its undeniable connection to our lives, perhaps the most important thing MPAs can conserve is the sense of wonder they deliver—and appreciation for what loss of that might represent. Leslie Anthony is a biologist, writer and author of several popular books on environmental science. n

OPINION

Eby's $10-a-day child-care spot reeks of hypocrisy BY ROB SHAW THE BC NDP government’s failure to follow through on a $10-a-day universal child-care system was always going to catch up to it eventually. You can’t promise something over three elections, completely fail to deliver, and just keep skating past the voters. Still, nobody expected the sharp, personal edge the issue would take Monday after BC NDP Leader David Eby revealed he, as premier, had accepted one of the very few $10-a-day spots in the province that are supposed to be, in theory, earmarked for the neediest. “My family has, yes,” he said, in response to a question at a rally in Delta. “How do you think, just the optics of that, and how people would feel knowing that you benefit from a program that very few people have access to, and one that you won't expand?” Global BC’s Grace Ke asked in her follow-up. “Well, I think it's absolutely crucial that every British Columbian get access to affordable child care, and we are committed to expanding child care,” replied Eby. Far from expansion, the Eby government froze enrolment in the $10-aday system in February over worries about cost, provider concerns and inequity. Tens of thousands of families still hoping to get one of the few true $10-aday spots have spent the year waiting for government to finish a slow-moving review, which has now been pushed off indefinitely due to the NDP’s decision to call a snap election. It’s hypocritical for Eby to access a $10-a-day spot while also refusing to expand the system, said Sharon Gregson, spokesperson for the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC. “What makes this so upsetting is that the government paused expansion on $10aDay this year instead of working to ensure it becomes universal,” she posted on social media. Only around 10 per cent of the 160,000 child-care spaces in B.C. are actually $10-a-day. That, despite eight years and billions of dollars in funding from Victoria and Ottawa. B.C. was one of the first provinces to promise universal $10-a-day, but now finds itself woefully behind the rest of the country with some of the most expensive fees in Canada. Getting a true $10-a-day spot is like winning the sweepstakes, Education Minister Lisa Beare admitted earlier this year. “We are hearing from families that it’s a lottery system,” she told media in February, after instituting a pause. Anyone, in theory, can win a $10-aday spot if they are at the right facility at the right time, know the right person,

can work their way past the epic waitlists and also convince the penny-pinching provincial government to fund the provider application. The premier won the lottery by having a child in a facility that happened to convert to $10-a-day two years ago, he said in a statement. Recognizing this, he said he made a donation to the facility. Had Eby not been so lucky, his income as premier (more than $230,000) and his wife’s income as a family doctor would have disqualified his family from any financial aid due to the $110,000 household income threshold his government set on what constitutes eligibility for provincial support. “Nobody begrudges David Eby and his wife for their success,” Conservative candidate Margareta Dovgal said in her party’s response. “What families will not accept is a premier who promised them $10-a-day child care, failed to deliver it, and then took one of the scarce spots for himself while a single mom working two jobs sits on a waitlist.” The NDP scrambled Monday to try and contain the damage to Eby. And the days ahead will likely be gripped with the narrative of the wealthy premier winning a lottery he didn’t need. But it’s not really about Eby. It’s about the BC NDP promising multiple times to create a universal $10a-day child-care system, and failing to come close.

It’s about an awful program, full of bureaucracy...

It’s about an awful program, full of bureaucracy, that doesn’t earmark the best spots for the people who need them most. And it’s about a party that after almost a decade in power has basically tossed its hands up in the air and admitted it doesn’t have a clue how to do what it said it would. Many well-to-do British Columbians have been quietly winning $10-a-day spots for years, while others at the poverty line suffer on waitlists. It’s how the system was (stupidly) designed. That successive NDP administrations defended this ridiculousness, and refused to change it, is the real scandal that should outrage voters today. Rob Shaw has spent more than 17 years covering B.C. politics, now reporting for CHEK News and writing for Lodestar Media. He is the co-author of the national bestselling book A Matter of Confidence, host of the weekly podcast Political Capital, and a regular guest on CBC Radio. rob@robshawnews.com n

Protect Priority Habitats, Preserve Our Future A free educational speaker series on wildlife & habitat

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Resort Municipality of Whistler

NOTICE OF DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY Pursuant to sections 24 and 26 of the Community Charter, Council of the Resort Municipality of Whistler intends to dispose of land to Whistler Sport Legacies Society (“WSL”) for less than market value for the development of a new rental apartment building in Cheakamus Crossing, located at: 1100 LEGACY WAY, WHISTLER, BRITISH COLUMBIA LEGALLY DESCRIBED AS LOT 2 DISTRICT LOT 8073 GROUP 1 NEW WESTMINSTER DISTRICT PLAN EPP153597 The portion of land to be transferred to WSL is: THAT PART OF LOT A DISTRICT LOT 8073 GROUP 1 NEW WESTMINSTER DISTRICT PLAN EPP1290 INCLUDED WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF LOT C PLAN EPP153597 as shown in the figure to the right highlighted, shaded and described as “Land to be transferred by the RMOW”. The transfer of land to WSL is contemplated under the Community Land Bank Agreement. Resort Municipality of Whistler whistler.ca OCTOBER 16, 2026

t e o xist’ n d l u ‘It sho

FEATURE STORY

d e l a e v e r y r e t s y m l a c i g o l o e a h c r a t n e i c n A s n i a t n u o M h t o o t r a e B s ’ a high in Montan

>>> story and photos By Nick Mott // Mountain Journal

ust try to follow Scott Dersam as he talks breathlessly, at hyperspeed, about his prehistoric discoveries after a couple beers at 9,500 feet in the Beartooth Mountains. It’s hard to keep up. “This sediment shouldn’t occur for us here,” Dersam says, thigh deep in an excavated pit as the setting sun bleeds orange on the horizon. “I wouldn’t say it’s impossible, but in standard paleoecology in the surrounding ecosystem, all the glaciology experts, this is just not something that should exist given the ecosystem we believe we had I wasn’t even trained for surveying for [artifacts as old as we’re finding] in these ecosystems because they wouldn’t have existed.” He says this even faster than the lack of punctuation here suggests. We’re at Dersam’s camp on his annual expedition into the high country a few miles outside the border of Yellowstone National Park, and he’s on a tear. “Sometimes when he talks, I record,” Zack Kenworth, a master’s student at the University of Montana, says from his camp chair. What Dersam means is this: We’re visiting one of several sites he’s unearthed that could shake up our understanding of both the human and geologic history of the whole region. Testing reveals the dirt he’s telling me about was exposed to sun at a time when the entire area should have been covered in a massive glacier. And he says along with that ancient soil, he’s found the highest- and potentially oldest-known human habitation sites anywhere in North America; maybe the Western Hemisphere. His findings suggest that humans lived here at least 13,000 years ago in a high-alpine ecosystem that prevailing knowledge says people couldn’t have accessed at all. “We could have the oldest Clovis sites in North America here and it happens to be in a place that shouldn’t exist in an ecosystem that shouldn’t exist,” he says. “It’s more than a monkey wrench to the current paradigm. It’s a full kick to the chest.”

Dersam is 39, lean and bearded. As he continues on his

excited, speedy ramble about how little we know about alpine prehistory, my eyes are on jagged chunks of exposed grey bedrock and alpine wildflowers. He points out chunks

Clovis people were mammoth specialists. Some artifacts are proportionately large in size, but others are curiously small

28 OCTOBER 16, 2026

of chert and obsidian shaped by humans hundreds or even thousands of years ago I’ve just stepped over. As a kid on his uncle’s property in Texas, Dersam came across his first projectile point. “It totally ruined me,” he says. Ever since, he’s spent the vast majority of his time on trails with his eyes glued to the ground, looking for artifacts rather than taking in his surroundings. He jokes he should write a book called The Peaks I’ve Been Near. In a past life, Dersam ran a sandwich and bread shop in Bozeman but grew sick of the kitchen and craved a new step. He cut his dreadlocks and went back to school late in life to pursue his passion: archaeology. He earned his PhD in 2022 and maintains an adjunct teaching position at Montana State University. But he and his wife, Sari, pursued a nontraditional approach to the discipline. Primarily, the Dersams run a non-profit called the Alpine Ecosystems Research Institute, or AERI. They bankroll their work mostly through institutional support and donations, along with a few small grants. They survey for landowners, lead credited field experiences for students, take volunteers out on the landscape, and dive into groundbreaking research on public and private land alike—like the trip I’m on in the Beartooths. At its heart, AERI studies why we use mountains in the first place. These highelevation ecosystems are, in many ways, a relatively blank spot on the archaeological map. For the most part, archaeological knowledge develops where we live and build, which is predominantly in the swathes of private land at lower elevations—not public land up high. “We know about archaeology because of bridges and roads and things getting developed on federal money,” Dersam says. Regulations like Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act mandate that the government consider the cultural and historical impacts of federal projects. But we don’t develop much in the mountains. So, primarily, a handful of passionate archaeologists have pioneered alpine research, uncovering the materials left behind by ancient peoples on ice patches, permafrost-laden soil and remote alpine plateaus. “It’s an implicit bias,” Dersam says of the paradigm that has seized the archaeological world for decades. “We’re not up here. Why the hell would they be up here all the time?“ A recovering rock climber, Dersam holds a long love affair with high places, and with the Beartooths in particular. But the range had something else unique going for it that piqued his interest. Vern Waples, a former game warden who passed away in 2006, collected more than 2,000 artifacts from the Beartooth and Pryor mountains as he rode around on horseback from the 1950s to the 1970s. After his death, Waples’ family donated his collection to the Custer Gallatin National Forest. “Only after he gave the totality of his collection did we realize it’s the largest and most dense high-elevation lithic collection anywhere in North America,” Dersam says. Along with the artifacts themselves, Waples left behind detailed topo maps of his findings. A handful of archaeologists retraced his steps to try to find more, but hardly found anything at all. “I got interested in this area because of that failure,” Dersam says. Equipped with scientific models that revealed sites with high likelihood of ancient habitation, Dersam also followed Waples’ decades-old tracks through the mountains. At first, he came up nearly empty-handed. But he modified his models and began having a bit more success. Then, in 2022, a natural calamity changed the game.

Archaeology thrives on disturbance. Wind-deposited

sediment, seasonal runoff, even road grades churn and move the earth, exposing our history—often in the form of red chert, petrified wood and the glassy black of obsidian. In June 2022, a torrential rain-on-snow event blasted the remaining spring snowpack out of the Beartooths and unleashed destructive floods throughout Greater Yellowstone. In high elevations, the force of the snowmelt roiled and uplifted sediment that had been buried for thousands of years. Dersam returned to the Beartooths in August of that year. Revisiting places he’d investigated before, areas with hundreds of flakes suddenly had thousands. Artifacts were surfacing from the soil where during previous visits he’d found only grass and rock.

FEATURE STORY “Things just absolutely exploded,” Dersam says. The earliest residents of North America left behind only tiny fragments of culture. Belief systems, cultural understandings of the world, aesthetic values—these are largely lost to time. Instead, the legacy we have comes in the form of stones knapped and hammered into specific shapes. Archaeologists call this “material culture.” From locations and styles of these remnants, scientists can piece together basic elements of how and where these groups persisted. In the way that Leonardo da Vinci passed down his aesthetic style, ancient ways of knapping rock to sharp points were an artistic endeavour, learned and handed down through generations. “It’s an understanding of the world that’s passed on technologically,” Dersam says. Glance down at your feet at these Beartooth sites, and you may just see broken rock, on a rare occasion something you might recognize as an “arrowhead.” But trained archaeologists like Dersam can instantly identify the age of a stone tool, the culture it’s associated with, even sometimes where the material came from. Scientists have long debated who got to the Americas first, when and how they got here. A handful of sites across the continent suggest humans arrived even earlier, but by and large Clovis people were the first group to leave behind a consistent and widespread trace of their existence. They persisted across the continent roughly 13,000 years ago. Even if there were earlier humans on the landscape, Clovis people made a mark like no one before them. While thousands of Clovis artifacts have been found across the country, the overwhelming majority occur at low elevations, Dersam says. Until now, little evidence exists to indicate they used the mountains; they specialized in killing mammoths and other massive megafauna that—as far as we know—roamed mostly on the plains. Their stone tools are known for being proportionately large in size—though plenty of small Clovis points exist too. The fluted, leaf-shaped tools they shaped millennia ago still litter the landscape. Today, at least 49 tribes have historic and cultural ties to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Clovis people, genetic testing reveals, are the ancestors of nearly all Indigenous groups in the Americas. In fact, they’re most closely related to current tribes in Central and South America. For decades, archaeologists had found a handful of Clovis points in the high alpine. But they were largely dismissed as isolated flakes, too sparse to prove much of anything. More recent cultures might have found caches of points and reused them, leading to the occasional rogue artifact in high elevations. For the most part, the theory went that Clovis people stayed down low, chasing big game. But that summer after the flood, Dersam found two clearly identifiable Clovis points and several more objects that were likely associated with that era of humans. A single artifact doesn’t mean habitation. But here, all at once, his findings couldn’t be explained by a one-off. “This is the first time we don’t have just one or two Clovis points. We have full sites,” Dersam says. “Everything but the kitchen sink.” Ever since that post-flood excursion, he’s been finding more. He names some of his findings playfully, after Lord of the Rings characters: Treebeard, Morgoth, Earendil, Galadriel and the Banded Eye of Sauron (or BEOS for short). Now, he’s trying to figure out how and why these people could have been here in the first place.

The morning after I arrive, we break into two groups: One

surveys for new sites, the other excavates for soil data adjacent to a site Dersam has already discovered. Dersam tells me I’m on survey. I tag along with some students to see if we can find ancient flakes, points and scrapers scattered atop the soil. People love to take artifacts home rather than leave them be, so we’re somewhat undercover. Bill Powell, a PhD anthropology student at the University of Montana, tells me if any passing dirtbikers get too chatty, we’ll tell them we’re surveying for drought-tolerant plants. Hopefully, he suggests, it’s just boring enough not to spur further inquiry.

University of Wyoming PhD student Claudia Celia sifts soil excavated from a pit adjacent to a Clovis site in the Beartooths.

Clovis people lived in Greater Yellowstone around 13,000 years ago, yet prevailing science indicated they persisted at lower elevations — until now.

As we set out, small pink flags in hand, I realize the work is mostly walking slowly and silently in dense grizzly country, eyes on the earth in front of our feet. We play music, in part to alert nearby wildlife to our presence. Almost immediately, Powell finds an artifact. It’s a flake—nothing groundbreaking. But I can feel my heart beat faster. “There’s no way that flake doesn’t have friends,” Powell says. Looking for artifacts is a bit like looking for shed antlers or morel mushrooms. At first, the whole affair feels hopeless. But then, your eyes dial in to the shape and colour you’re seeking. Suddenly, the ground is alive with possibility. We keep pacing the hummocky hills to see what else is beneath our feet. Humans have used this area for thousands of years. But the oldest findings are so remarkable because 13,000 years ago—the time of Clovis people—scientists believe the region was covered in an immense cap of ice. The Pinedale Glacier blanketed nearly the entirety of Yellowstone National Park and much of the surrounding ecosystem. It reached its biggest, thickest point about 20,000 years ago. Mammoths and bison antiquus—the much larger ancestor of modern buffalo—roamed the region. But much of Greater Yellowstone was blocked by this thick, enormous layer of ice. If humans travelled atop that frozen surface, the movement of the glaciers would have pulverized anything they left behind. Fauna wouldn’t have been here since there was no forage. And therefore, people likely wouldn’t have spent substantial time here either. Or at least that’s what we thought. Dersam has run soil tests finding sediment that saw sun anywhere from 17,000 to 22,000 years ago—right when ice should have been at its deepest. He thinks our understanding of glaciation in the region writ large paints with too broad a stroke. Maybe this particular basin never iced up at all during the Pinedale glaciation; maybe there were narrow corridors in parts of the ice, pathways for prehistoric fauna with ancient people in tow. This is part of the mystery Dersam’s trying to solve with his fieldwork, and why we’re surveying for more sites. Combing the mountains for artifacts is hypnotic for anxious pacers like me. This is a landscape that is well-loved and often abused by recreationists today. Far more than ancient flakes or points, we find the gleam of sun on old beer cans left behind by careless snowmobilers. Powell and Kylin Murphy-Garcia, a Montana State University undergraduate, have a friendly competition. Murphy-Garcia finds a flake Powell had stepped over. “Kylin you stole my point!” Powell jokes. “Sorry, Bill,” Murphy-Garcia jabs back. “Better luck next time.” In the end, after about 13 kilometres and eight hours poring over the surface of the earth, we leave having found only a few small fragments of tools. There’s little to report when we get back to camp. “There’s a saying in archaeology,” Powell says. “Absence of evidence isn’t evidence of absence.” He says if we’re coming back empty-handed, it might mean the other group stumbled upon something amazing. There’s a certain magic that way about Dersam’s archaeology in the Beartooths. We’ll find out when we get back to camp.

The archaeological history of Clovis peoplein Montana

reflects a larger tension: Archaeology has long been conducted by mostly white scientists studying cultures they’re not a part of. There’s a legacy of exploitation, extraction and abuse. In the late 1960s, two construction workers near Wilsall, in the shadow of the Crazy Mountains, stumbled on a cache of human remains and nearly 100 artifacts as they excavated a sandstone cliff with their front-end loader. Some of the remains, it turned out, were the carefully and seemingly ceremonially buried skeleton of a one- to twoyear-old child.

OCTOBER 16, 2026

Archaeologist Scott Dersam is finding evidence in the Beartooths that could upend our understanding of the human and geological history of the region.

FEATURE STORY

Dean Nicolai, a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and professor in the Native American Studies division at Salish Kootenai College in Pablo, Mont., subscribes to a similar philosophy. Nicolai has a deep background in archaeology, but his tribe holds a distinct view toward artifacts scattered atop the soil. “Things are animate, they’re alive,” he says. “So if we start to remove those things that context can be disturbed. And that’s a spiritual context.” The way an archaeologist interprets the land around them is embedded into the way they conduct their work, he says. “If I see the world as animate or alive, then I’m going to treat it as such. I’m not going to collect something that doesn’t need to be collected.” Nicolai finds himself in a sometimes fraught middle ground between tribal perspectives and traditional archaeology. “We don’t need somebody else to tell us about who we are, where we’ve been,” he says. “Our oral tradition tells us already what we know about ourselves. But then there’s this other curiosity that I have. I actually want to see it for myself too. I want to understand who these people were, what they were up to, where they were at, what they were hunting. All that is so fascinating to me.” Dersam’s findings in the Beartooths, he says, are intriguing and exciting. To avoid surveying altogether, Dersam says, risks losing sight of the importance of these places. In other words, when we’re not looking, we’re forgetting. But he says a central goal of his organization is to convey that archaeological artifacts are nonrenewable resources. “If everyone is picking up every flake they come across, Back then, few laws governed how to handle such a discovery. The site itself was eventually the true signatures of these peoples and their past on this landscape will largely destroyed. The artifacts were cleaned, erasing a trove of archaeological data. be lost,” he says. “It’s easy to erase a people.” Doyle, Nicolai and Dersam agree that the relationship between Indigenous groups The small boy was removed from his grave. Testing suggests he was buried about 12,600 years ago. The Clovis Child, or Anzick-1, was one of thousands of Indigenous and the discipline of archaeology has shifted radically in recent years, for the better. “Tribes now are seeing that working hand-in-hand with archaeologists empowers remains excavated and extracted from its burial by mostly white collectors. But to this day, the finding remains the oldest human burial site ever found in the Americas. them,” Doyle says. “It provides the context, the scientific evidence and the background to protect landscapes far greater than oral traditions can do on their own.” About 45 years later, Crow tribal member Shane Doyle worked with archaeologists to consult with tribes and ceremonially return Anzick-1 to the place he had laid for millennia. Back then, Doyle—now the North American Indigenous Rights Relations Director at The Nature Conservancy—had recently completed his PhD on the Dersam has a knack for finding the oldest and rarest. excavation of the Absaroka Agency and was teaching Native American Studies at A few months before my trip to the Beartooths, I tagged along with Dersam Montana State University. on a different survey conducted on a mixture of public and private land north of He told me he was unfamiliar with the Anzick site before he was brought into the fold Yellowstone. Almost immediately after I arrived, as we walked and talked along a midto rebury the child, but he knew through oral history in his tribe that his people had been elevation ridge, he bent down and picked up a Folsom point. Folsom people date just here since the ice receded. Learning about the Clovis Child, he says, offered an entirely a smidge more recent than Clovis. new level of appreciation for his ancient ancestors. “They left behind a legacy we are in “An archaeologist can go a whole career and never find something like this in a awe of,” Doyle says. “On our best day, could we be as strong as they were?” place like this,” PhD student Bill Powell said that day. His hands stayed on his head He told his uncle about what he learned and his uncle texted him: “If you had to for the next 20 minutes, processing the find. send a message 12,000 years into the future, what would it be? And how would you It was the second Folsom point Dersam had discovered that day. know anyone would even understand it?” In the Beartooths, Powell, Murphy-Garcia and I drive over the rutted and rugged Doyle says tribes don’t always see eye-to-eye with university archaeologists or even road back to camp after our long day surveying. Dersam is standing by our mess tent with one another. And perspectives on how to respectfully deal with archaeological with a couple other students. They’re buzzing. We can feel the energy as we approach. discoveries—and especially human remains—differ even within tribes. Dersam pulls out his phone to show us a video from earlier that day. We crowd In June 2014, the child was reburied. “The spirit is now back to the other side,” around the small screen. Crow elder Thomas Larson Medicine Horse Sr. said during the ceremony. In the video, he’s brushing away soil in a small pit. He’d uncovered part of what Today, more than a decade later, Dersam says bitterness between tribal people appeared to be an ancient hearth—dark carbon in the soil that didn’t fit a forest fire. and archaeologists still exists. The sites he found in the Beartooths are less than A piece of stone pokes through. French composer FKJ is playing piano through a 160 kilometres as the crow flies from the Anzick site. Dersam tries to involve tribes speaker out of frame. Dersam switches from a brush to a tool that looks like something every way he can and conduct his work in a respectful way. He says seven to 10 tribal you’d find at a dentist’s office. There’s giggling off-screen. historic preservation officers and elders attended a U.S. Forest Service meeting earlier “My nerves can’t handle this shit right now,” Dersam says in the video. this year and voiced support for his work in the Beartooths. “Oh God,” Colin King, a master’s student at the University of Wyoming, replies. That’s in part due to Dersam’s methodology. He’s not excavating and destroying sites. “Oh my God.” His findings are often linked to hunting, not burial and ceremony. He conducts what he “Yep, that’s a Clovis base,” Dersam says. “In the middle of the goddamn hearth.” calls “off-site archaeology,” only removing points that passersby might find and take for Perched over the pit, Claudia Celia, a UW PhD student, gasps and laughs in disbelief. their own private collections. Those points provide valuable data as well: He tests them The meaning here is hard for non-archaeologists to grasp. Dersam puts it like to find out if these 13,000-year-old hunks of rock passed through an elk, a mammoth or this: About 13,000 years ago—soil and carbon testing will reveal exactly when—an a bison. He leaves the vast majority of his findings in place, taking detailed notes, photos ancient hunter likely finished a hunt. Whether successful or unsuccessful, the and coordinates. The goal is to disturb the land as little as possible. piece of rock they used was done for. So they tossed it on the fire. In the millennia that followed, weather deposited more “We do our very best not to even touch soil atop the ancient, broken stone. As anything so it can remain in its preserved climate shifted in the millennia since, state in that cultural landscape,” Dersam says. as seasons of snow and rain and wind The artifacts themselves are almost a reshaped the landscape above, this footnote to his work. He uses complicated prehistoric tool likely never moved. The models that predict soil depth and context of the site was never disturbed. excavates only on the periphery of It remained buried deep beneath the sites. He analyzes pollen content in the surface of the earth. earth to reconstruct millennia-old plant “We had to take a damn breather,” communities. He even tests for when deep Celia says at camp. They’d been looking soil last saw sunlight. Taken as a whole, for dirt in the pit, not artifacts. After the his work aims to reconstruct both the finding, the three sat down for about an human and ecological history of the area. hour, shaking from the adrenaline. “We’re after dirt more than anything,” “There’s never been anything found he told me on my first night, gesturing to like this,” Dersam says. All the other his 30-pound backpack full of soil. “But if Clovis points found in high elevations we get something cool, it’s kind of like the were scattered on the surface of the earth. holy grail.”

30 OCTOBER 16, 2026

Dersam with a Clovis point.

FEATURE STORY “It’s like getting struck by lightning and winning the lottery twice in the same day. We will go our entire lives and never find something like this again, ever.” “Haven’t you already said that about these sites?” I ask him. “Oh, several times,” he says. “But this is above that. We have been researching this site for four years to try to find anything even of close potential to this. To have this intact component here, it will alter the past 60 years of high-elevation research in North America. Turn it right on its ass is what it’s going to do.” Dersam acknowledges all this depends on testing when he gets back home. Archaeologists are notoriously good at talking with each other and bad at talking with the public. But already he’s scheming about a big upcoming conference: “My poster for Paleoamerican Odyssey is gonna be lit,” he says. “This is generations of people coming back and using this landscape. It’s insane. It should not exist and that’s why it’s so much fun.” Suddenly, our work has an urgency and a focus. “We found a subsurface Clovis point,” Dersam says. “We’re busy now.” The Anzick site is still the only noncontroversial Clovis site discovered in Montana. Over the last four years, Dersam has found six more Clovis sites at high elevations, five of them in the Beartooths. That alone, he maintains, could demonstrate just how much some of the continent’s earliest peoples utilized the high mountains. And this piece of fractured rock, he says, “It’s the smoking gun.”

Montana State University undergraduate Kylin Murphy-Garcia and University of Montana master’s student Zack Kenworth study an excavated pit on Dersam’s annual survey in August 2026. Craig

Lee, a preeminent high-alpine archaeologist at Montana State University—and a former mentor of Dersam’s—had high praise for his protege’s work. Collectively, Lee says, there are few people that have spent the time Dersam has looking for Clovis artifacts in high-alpine environments: “He’s in the best of senses what you could call a good ‘dirt’ archaeologist,” getting his hands dirty, pushing our understanding of Paleoamerican culture further into new ground. “These aren’t trivial undertakings,” Lee says. Dersam makes sure to dot his i’s and cross his t’s. Before the work is done, the two small pits that were dug will be filled. There will be little evidence we were ever here. The vibe at camp when work is over is a combination of light debauchery and nerdery. Students go on nighttime walks, Coors in hand, to scour potential sites. They crawl on hands and knees by headlamp to look for more artifacts and marvel at their

findings. They leave them where they find them. One night, everyone slides down an ice patch using trash bags as sleds to celebrate a volunteer’s birthday. But mostly folks talk about courses, fieldwork, professors and archaeological theories. The volunteers are mostly university students, after all. The latest night ends around 10 p.m. As we sit in a circle, eating freeze-dried meals under the setting summer sun, Dersam often enters his lightning-speed diatribe-mode to make meaning of what we’re finding. “Mountain use in general has always been a response to climatological pressures,” he says one night. He explains that several thousand years after Clovis culture faded away, a warming period in the early Holocene pushed temperatures as much as five degrees hotter than they are today, leading to severe and widespread drought in the region. Bison populations crashed. During this time, humans, the archaeological record suggests, left the plains and headed for the cooler, wetter, higher elevations. The mountains called, and the continent’s early humans listened. “Mountains have always been a source of not just refugia but security for humans because we have the ability to survive up here,” he says. “It’s an area of resource density.” In Clovis times, Dersam theorizes that the melting glaciers and surrounding permafrost could have provided the opportunity to store meat. Megafauna like mammoths might have meandered up high—following the “green wave” of flora as spring and summer took hold, much like Yellowstone-area bison do today. People were likely in pursuit. “Humans have been one of the main keystone species in any ecosystem in North America for more than 13,000 years,” he says. “These ecosystems have always been part of our behaviour. We’ve been here for a very long time and have been an active aspect of keeping and maintaining the health of these ecosystems.” Going to the mountains, Dersam says, feels like coming home. Because they always have been a home. He takes issue with the idea of wilderness as the law conceives it: a landscape “where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” “We’ve always loved that idea of exploratory, off-the-map, terra incognita, the unknown landscape,” Dersam says. “It’s all bullshit.” Doyle and Nicolai echoed that sentiment: people have been everywhere, always, tending to and caring for the landscape. History repeats itself, Dersam says. As temperatures warm, alpine ecosystems will be in higher demand, he speculates. We talk about the Crazy Mountains, the Beartooth Front. Already, the wealthy are snatching high-elevation land, securing their own, personal safe havens and playgrounds as the valleys below face historic drought and heat. “These ecosystems are going to be more important than ever and they’re going to privatize faster than ever,” he says. At the same time these landscapes are facing unprecedented threats, he says we have a chance to restore our relationship with these high and little-known places: “We can make these ecosystems healthy again. We have a far longer history of being a benefit to these ecosystems than we have as a detriment.” The real results of his studies here will depend on lengthy lab testing and will involve peer review and publishing. He hopes to submit his findings for publication in the months to come. “How long do you expect to be surveying up here?” I ask Dersam. “For the rest of my life,” he says. “There’s probably 30 life spans of work in the Beartooths. And that’s a single mountain range. In truth, we know absolutely nothing about these ecosystems.” A version of this story was originally published in Mountain Journal on Sept. 7. It is republished here with permission. Read the original version here: montanafreepress. org/2026/09/07/ancient-archaeological-mystery-revealed-high-in-beartooth-mountains. Nick Mott is a Western Environmental Reporting Collaborative reporter for Mountain Journal and High Country News. He is a multimedia journalist based in Livingston, Montana, who focuses on the environment, wildlife, climate and public lands. n

Volunteers study sediment layers at a pit that could suggest soil layers here saw sun at a time when the scientists think the landscape should have been covered in ice.

OCTOBER 16, 2026

SPORTS THE SCORE

Georgia Astle and team receive 2026 Red Bull Rampage Digger Award ROBIN GOOMES BREAKS THROUGH FOR HISTORIC THIRD-STRAIGHT VICTORY

BY DAVID SONG ALTHOUGH GEORGIA ASTLE wasn’t

capable of defending her Red Bull Rampage bronze medal from last year, she and teammates Jacob Tooke and Jarrod Anderson earned a different kind of accolade on Oct. 8 in Virgin, Utah: the Cat Compact Digger Award. Normally, the Digger Award goes to the unit that shows the most work ethic, creativity and collaboration in building a competitive line for their rider. This year, at Rampage’s 25th anniversary, a new criteria was added: who could build the most natural line. Astle, Tooke and Anderson did not have access to hoses, nor did other builders. Instead they needed to water all of their features manually using cans and buckets. It was much more work than before, but it paid off. “I think we were rewarded for that based on our big solo landing,” Astle said. “On scope day, I actually saw everything that I wanted to ride from the get-go just because I liked how it flowed, all the features with one

DIGGING DEEPER Georgia Astle, Jacob Tooke and Jarrod Anderson receive the 2026 Red Bull Rampage Digger Award in Virgin, Utah. PHOTO BY MATTHEW TONGUE

32 OCTOBER 16, 2026

another. My line was pretty cohesive that way, there wasn’t a ton of traversing. “I felt ... really good actually to get recognized for that because my biggest goal for this year’s Rampage wasn’t necessarily results-based. It was just— the process of scope day is always the most stressful for me and I really wanted to find the line that flowed and have a big solo drop. I felt really accomplished to get all that done.” Astle’s contest run elicited 80.37

push Astle into eighth. “Robin is one of the most easygoing humans in normal day-to-day life. And then you see her at a comp and she fully goes into beast winning mode,” remarked Astle. “She’s there to win, she knows what it takes and she was fully able to put down the winning run when it counted. It was really tight between Hannah and Robin and Kirsten was willing to go up for a second run, so the podium was spot-on to me and I thought the girls did so well.”

“[T]he process of scope day is always the most stressful for me and I really wanted to find the line that flowed and have a big solo drop.” - GEORGIA ASTLE

points from the judges. It was a solid score, but not enough to challenge Robin Goomes who made history with her thirdconsecutive Rampage win (93.50) and also impressed viewers with the People’s Choice Award. Hannah Bergemann stepped up for silver and the BFGoodrich Tires Toughness Award (92.75), and Kirsten Van Horne clinched bronze (86.50) to

‘I FELT REALLY ACCOMPLISHED’

There wasn’t a lot of practice time for athletes to use, and the layout of Astle’s line precluded the execution of extensive tricks. Therefore, she focused on riding her line cleanly and was satisfied with one out of a possible two runs. “When I got down to the bottom, hit my biggest drop the cleanest I had

yet, I felt really accomplished and like I didn’t owe anything else,” explained the Whistlerite. “So it actually did light a little bit of a fire when I watched the broadcast and heard that the judges were hoping I was going to do a second run … it sounds like they would have scored me higher for just doing my run again. “But how I felt when I got to the bottom was really accomplished, and I didn’t even hear my score when I [finished]. I was already happy with just doing one run because I felt it was essentially the best I could have done. The top three girls definitely had tricks and everything else in their lines, so maybe getting a couple spots higher wasn’t the be all and end all … to me, I could have hit my very first exposed drop a touch better. I came up a tiny bit short, but everything else I cleaned perfectly and felt really good about.” Astle approached this year’s Rampage wondering if it might be her last, but now she’s excited to return in 2027. She believes the women’s field has progressed tremendously from its origins three years ago. Back then, they were trying to support each other at an experience foreign to them all. Nowadays, camaraderie still exists but every athlete is confident enough to aim for victory. Visit pinkbike.com/news/results-redbull-rampage-2026-womens-finals.html for more Rampage results. n

SPORTS THE SCORE

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STAYING SHARP An Axes Women’s Rugby player carries the ball during a game. PHOTO BY MEGAN KIMBLE

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DEVELOPMENTAL FOCUS

Meanwhile, the senior Axes roster is in a bit of uncharted territory after its partnership with the Vancouver Rowers concluded. Both organizations ran together as the Axes and Oars for three seasons and qualified for playoff contention last spring, where they lost 17-0 against Ridge Meadows. Now, the Rowers have elected to go in a different direction. Michener admits that this turn of events came as a bit of a surprise, for they expected one more year to develop talent with the Vancouver-based squad. They wish the Rowers well, however, and are making necessary adjustments. “We have a really wonderful core group of amazing and dedicated rugby players, but it’s not quite enough of a squad to commit to a full season of competitive play at this point,” Michener explained. “It’s a long season and a lot can happen. Rather than focusing on competitive play, we’re really focusing on development instead for folks who haven’t tried rugby before. “We’re going to put together some developmental games against clubs who we have connections with, and who are in similar boats where they have women potentially learning rugby for the first time. I think, in competitive games, you don’t [always] have the opportunity to add in learning aspects of the game because there’s so many rules and so much going on. Sometimes in rugby, it can be a bit overwhelming for folks who are learning the sport, so I think this will be a really cool season to be able to develop at a slower pace.” Michener has brushed shoulders with many newcomers who arrive at their first practice nervous, but leave happy and excited for more. They and their fellow coaches work hard to make sessions fun, while also emphasizing fitness and skill development. Visit axemenrugbyclub.com/womansrugby to learn more and to sign up. n

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in S

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SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2026 WHISTLER SECONDARY SCHOOL GEAR DROP: 9:30AM - 11:00AM GEAR SWAP: 11:30AM - 1:30PM **PRIORITY ACCESS TO WHISTLER NORDICS MEMBERS

OCTOBER 16, 2026

FORK IN THE ROAD

A pro's best advice on what to eat now—for ourselves, our communities MARION NESTLE'S LATEST BOOK IS A REAL EYE-OPENER ON NUTRITION AND FOOD POLITICS MATT DAMON has nothing but words of praise for the Vancouver stuntwoman who doubled for him in this summer's blockbuster, The Odyssey. Sure, some critics have thumbed their noses, but the reviews are mostly positive, and if you look at it as another example of Christopher Nolan proving why storytelling is important, you'll get the whole drift. But there's no equivocating about Damon's high praise for Devyn Dalton, the Vancouver stuntwoman who doubled

BY GLENDA BARTOSH for him in the scene where Damon, as Odysseus, and his gang fight the Laestrygonians—a tribe of man-eating giants in Greek mythology. She has "the greatest arms I've ever seen," says Damon. Ironically, the handy-dandy bookmark keeping my place in Marion Nestle's latest book, What to Eat Now: The Indispensable Guide to Good Food, How to Find It, and Why It Matters, is a Vancouver Sun feature on Dalton by longtime reporter and fellow Langara j-school alumna, Dana Gee. She details how Devyn has been doing stunt work since 2012, and from the Sun's photo you can easily see just how strong and healthy she is. Made to last, like Marion Nestle.

PUNCHING ABOVE THEIR WEIGHT CLASS Vancouver stuntwoman Devyn Dalton (left) who doubled for Matt Damon in the summer hit, The Odyssey, and Marion Nestle’s latest epic, What to Eat Now: The Indispensable Guide to Good Food, How to Find It, and Why It Matters. PHOTO BY GLENDA BARTOSH

34 OCTOBER 16, 2026

What to Eat Now is a classic, just like The Odyssey and Nestle herself—a molecular biologist and longtime professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University who's been highly regarded for decades as one of the most resilient, outspoken nutritionists in the world. Besides being totally down-to-earth, she's also a powerful political activist, digging deep into how and why it's critical to make "good and delicious" food choices, for ourselves, our families, and especially our broader communities. "Fighting the trillion-dollar food industry" is how she puts it. Pretty much like fighting a tribe of humaneating giants, I'd say. Like the widespread confectionery fraud with food corps complicit in everything from false labelling to substituting crappy sweeteners like glucose-fructose for real honey or maple syrup. In fact, Nestle points out that the broader issue of economically motivated food fraud (such as diluting pure virgin olive oil with cheap vegetable oil then selling it as pure olive oil, which made headlines years ago) is so common, America's Food and Drug Administration has its own page on it. Experts estimate food fraud impacts at least one per cent of the global food industry, to the tune of US$10-15 billion a year. Some think the high-jacked profits could be as much as US$40 billion annually. Nestle’s original What to Eat was first published in 2006, round about when I started this little food column. Nestle has updated and reissued her epic What to Eat Now some 20 years later after it dawned on her during COVID's early days in 2020 how much the food industry and food choices changed over time. For one, the industry is much more

consolidated now, with the top four U.S. grocery chains, like Walmart and Costco, controlling half or more of all U.S. food sales. I bet that might also echo here. Then there's online shopping and the ultra-processed food epidemic, which has resulted in things like the number of kids and teens aged five to 19 living with obesity globally quadrupling since 1990. I love how wide Nestle's reach is. For instance, What to Eat Now features entire chapters on foods just for kids and on pet food, including easy recipes for making your own that's way healthier and cheaper than the commercial versions in the inner aisles of your local supermarket. Her 15-book repertoire includes two entire books on pet food and the industry controlling it: Pet Food Politics: The Chihuahua in the Coal Mine and Feed Your Pet Right co-authored with Malden C. Nesheim. Then there's another story, or at least a chapter, where she describes all the complexity and planning involved in the

CONNECTING WITH MARION NESTLE To dive deeper into Marion Nestle’s amazing work, sign up for her e-newsletters at Food Politics. What to Eat Now is available to buy online, or borrow it for free at many public libraries. Unfortunately, none in Sea to Sky have it yet, but Whistler’s library does have a copy of The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: A Delicious Alternative for Lifelong Health, which Nestle contributed to. She’s also interviewed in the documentary In Organic We Trust, available at Squamish’s library. n

prime real estate of the supermarket to lure us hapless, daunted shoppers into those middle aisles where we'll see— and maybe buy more of—the 30,000 to 60,000 items on offer, especially the ultra-processed cereals, cookies, snacks and all the other overpriced, emptycalorie crapola. I also love how simple and practical her advice is, which pretty much echoes that other great food writer, Michael Pollan, in his best-seller In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants." Nestle's take: some foods are healthier than others, so eat fruits, veg, nuts and beans, not that ultra-processed stuff in those human-eating supermarket giants; whole grains, not refined grains; and water or 100-per-cent juices, not sugaror artificially-sweetened drinks. In a nutshell: "Delicious food is easy— good ingredients, well prepared." So what does 90-year-old Nestle eat? If you want to try the Washington Post, a 2025 article outlines her diet: Basically, not too much and mostly plants: Oatmeal or unsweetened shredded wheat and coffee with milk for brekkie; then lots of simple whole foods for lunch and dinner, like salads, eggs, greens and crackers. The Post has a deal on right now—a buck for a month. I know, I know, we all have issues with that Laestrygonian, Jeff Bezos, who now owns it, but WaPo still has some fine reporters thanks to the legacy of former publisher Katharine Graham—another strong woman with her ethics in the right place. Glenda Bartosh is an award-winning journalist who also loves Vance Packard’s 1950s epic, The Hidden Persuaders, which calls supermarket shopping “Babes in Consumerland.” n

MEADOW PARK SPORTS CENTRE SWIM • SKATE • SWEAT • SQUASH OPEN DAILY: 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. *some exceptions apply

FITNESS CLASS SCHEDULE

I Functional Strength & Conditioning 7:30 -8:30 a.m. Francesca

OCT 17 SATURDAY

I Strength & Cardio 7:30-8:30 a.m. Lou R Youth on Weights 9-10 a.m. Sylvie

I Kettlebell Functional Fit 9-10 a.m. Kelsey

I Low Impact Strength 9-10 a.m. Lou I Zumba 10:30-11:30 a.m. Susie

I Gentle Fit 12:30-1:30 p.m. Marie-Anne

OCT 18 SUNDAY

OCT 19 MONDAY

NO CLASSES

OCT 16 FRIDAY

F FLEXIBLE REGISTRATION

OCT 20 TUESDAY

OCT 21 WEDNESDAY

OCT 22 THURSDAY

R Elevate Training -Strength & Performance 6:15-7:15 a.m. Steve

R Small Group Training – Women’s 7:30-8:15 a.m. Julia

R Elevate Training -Strength & Performance 6:15-7:15 a.m. Steve

R Small Group Training Co-Ed 7:30-8:15 a.m. Steve

I Strength & Cardio 7:30-8:30 a.m Robbie

R Small Group Training Co-Ed 7:30-8:15 a.m. Steve

I Box HIIT 7:30-8:30 a.m Kelsey

R Small Group Training – Women’s 8:30-9:15 a.m Julia

I Strength & Stability 7:30-8:30 a.m. Andy

I Spin Mixer 9-10 a.m. Sylvie

I Aqua Fit Deep End 8:45-9:45 a.m. Marie-Anne

I Build & Burn 9-10 a.m. Kelsey

I Aqua Fit Shallow End 8:45-9:45 a.m Marie-Anne

I Zumba 10:30-11:30 a.m. Carmen

I Step & Strength 9-10 a.m Liz

R Mom & Baby Fitness 10:15-11:15 a.m. Sara

I Low Impact Strength 9-10 a.m. Andy

R Enduro Swim 12-1 p.m. Hector

F Power Yoga 12:15-1 p.m. Francesca R Gentle Fit 12:30-1:30 p.m. Mel

R Fit 4 Life 12:30-1:30 p.m. Steve

I Mountain Ready Conditioning 7:30-8:30 a.m. Steve

R Fit 4 Life 12:30-1:30 p.m. Steve

Flex-reg’ classes have a separate fee and allow you to register for classes on the days that fit your schedule.

R REGISTERED FITNESS Registered fitness classes have a separate fee and a defined start and end date. Pre-registration is required for the entire set of classes.

I INCLUDED FITNESS These classes are included with your price of admission for no extra charge.

R Prenatal Fitness 5:15-6:15 p.m. Sara I Winter Strength & Conditioning 5:15-6:15 p.m. Robbie

F Spin 5:30-6:30 p.m. Marie-Anne

I Full Body HIIT 5:30-6:30 p.m. Andy

R Small Group Training - Women’s Only 5:30-6:15 p.m. Julia

I Trigger Point & Mobility 6:30-7:30 p.m. Andy

I Strength & Stability 5:45-6:45 p.m Julia

I Mountain Ready Conditioning 6:45-7:45 p.m Carly

I Zumba 6:30-7:30 p.m. Andrea

POOL HOURS OCT 16 FRIDAY

OCT 17 OCT 18 SATURDAY SUNDAY

OCT 19 MONDAY

LAP POOL

6 a.m. - 9 p.m.

6 a.m. - 9 p.m. 6 a.m. - 9 p.m.

6 a.m. – 3:45 p.m. 6 a.m. - 9 p.m. & 6-9 p.m.

6 a.m. – 3:45 p.m. & 6-9 p.m.

6 a.m. - 9 p.m.

LEISURE POOL

9 a.m. - 12 p.m. & 3:45-7 p.m.

9 a.m. -7 p.m.

9 a.m. - 12 p.m. & 3:45-7 p.m.

HOT SPOTS

6 a.m. - 9 p.m.

6 a.m. - 9 p.m. 6 a.m. - 9 p.m. 6 a.m. - 9 p.m.

6 a.m. - 9 p.m.

9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

6 a.m. - 9 p.m.

9 a.m. -7 p.m.

OCT 20 TUESDAY

OCT 21 OCT 22 WEDNESDAY THURSDAY

ARENA SCHEDULE Please see whistler.ca/recreation for the daily arena hours or call 604-935- PLAY (7529).

whistler.ca/recreation |

@RMOWRecreation | 604-935-PLAY (7529)

ARTS SCENE

Whistler Chamber Music Society opens 2026-27 Concert Series on Oct. 25 with Eagle Peak Trio VETERAN MUSICIANS CALVIN DYCK, IAN PARKER AND OLIVER DE CLERQ WILL PERFORM BRAHMS’ HORN TRIO AND OTHER ICONIC PIECES

BY DAVID SONG THE WHISTLER Chamber Music Society

(WCMS) is back delivering classical shows to locals. This fall, the 2026-27 Concert Series will kick off with an appearance by the Eagle Peak Trio: Calvin Dyck, Ian Parker and Oliver de Clerq. Dyck served for 26 years as concertmaster of the Vancouver Island Symphony. He earned a doctorate in violin performance in 1991 from the University of Southern California and has since played in 15 countries in addition to teaching, directing the Abbotsford Youth Orchestra and operating a Christmas tree farm in Mission. As one of British Columbia’s bestknown pianists, Parker holds a master’s degree in music from the Juilliard School in New York City and is currently a music director for the Vancouver Academy of Music Orchestra. His performing history spans North America and Europe alike. de Clerq joined the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) two-and-ahalf decades ago and at present is the group’s associate principal horn. He has recorded for film, video games, television

FLY LIKE AN EAGLE Eagle Peak Trio musicians, left to right: Calvin Dyck, Ian Parker and Oliver de Clerq. PHOTO COURTESY OF CALVIN DYCK

36 OCTOBER 16, 2026

and pop albums whenever he’s not being a featured soloist for the VSO, Boston Pops Orchestra and others. Together, they are headed to Whistler for a program loaded with classical and romantic trios, most notably the Brahm’s Horn Trio.

MUSICAL TRIOS

Johannes Brahms’ Horn Trio in E-flat major, Op. 40, composed in 1865, stands out among his chamber works for its unusual structure.

that alternates with more agitated “B” sections, creating contrast between reflection and emotional unrest. The second movement, marked “Scherzo,” is more robust and rhythmically complex, with a contrasting Trio section in A-flat minor. Huntingstyle horn calls and playful cross-rhythms add energy and movement. Movement No. 3, dubbed “Adagio mesto,” is written in E-flat minor with six flats and serves as the work’s emotional

“We wanted to find repertoire that’s both interesting for the performer and the audience.” - CALVIN DYCK

Rather than following a traditional firstmovement sonata form, the piece moves through alternating sections for a distinctive sense of musical progression. This Trio is also viewed as a personal undertaking for Brahms as it was written following the death of his mother, Christiane. It is often described as a “musical mourning cycle.” Its first movement follows an expanded ternary or rondo-like structure (ABABA), rather than the conventional sonata-allegro pattern. The recurring “A” component features a nostalgic melody

centre (“mesto” translates to “sorrowful”). Near its end, the horn introduces a more hopeful German folk melody: Es soll sich ja keiner mit Liebe abgeben (“In the Meadow Stands a House”). This is a tune that Brahms may have learned from his mother. The finale, “Allegro con brio,” returns to E-flat major and transforms the aforementioned folk tune into what some experts describe as a “glorified hunting piece.” The shift in character provides a sense of renewal and hope. Other items on the Eagle Peak Trio’s agenda for Whistler include Wolfgang

Amadeus Mozart’s Horn Quintet (adapted for three musicians), a piece by Czech composer Jan Ladislav Dusik and the Violin Sonata by César Franck.

MELODIC INTEREST

Most trios in the classical world are written for the violin, piano and cello, with the latter serving naturally as a bass instrument. Eagle Peak’s violin-French horn-piano combination is rare since the violinist and horn player usually take on melodic lines, requiring the pianist to handle low notes. “I think the most important part of a trio is probably the piano because that provides all the harmony,” opines Dyck. “And then you can have, in this case, two soprano instruments or melodic instruments. The challenge is to find music that’s interesting for all three of us, and I think these pieces do that. “What you will hear is that melodic interest is passed between the violin and the horn and the piano. We looked at probably 10 different trios, and most of them we discarded because to us, they were a little boring. We wanted to find repertoire that’s both interesting for the performer and the audience.” Dyck, Parker and de Clerq have known each other professionally for decades. They united as the Eagle Peak Trio last fall and get along very well. All look forward to their upcoming Whistler show on Oct. 25 at 5 p.m. in the Maury Young Arts Centre. Visit whistlerchambermusic.ca/ concert/eagle-peak-trio for tickets. n

ARTS SCENE

Book review: Sun, sex and secrets— Robyn Harding’s Strangers in the Villa ROBYN HARDING APPEARS AT THE WHISTLER WRITERS FESTIVAL ON NOV. 6

BY KATE HESKETT A DESTINATION psychological thriller, Robyn Harding’s latest novel Strangers in the Villa paints romantic treachery against idyllic seaside scenery. Desperate to save his marriage after admitting to an affair with a client, Curtis Lowe convinces his wife, Sydney, to trade in their busy New York lives for a run-down villa near the town of Cadaqués, on Spain’s Costa Brava. Perched high on an isolated hilltop, the villa offers beautiful views of the Mediterranean, the potential to plant a vineyard, copious amounts of delicious local food, and the added bonus of anonymity. Unfortunately, Sydney Lowe is so wrapped up in her emotions that she fails to be soothed by the stunning ocean or turned-on by Curtis’ guilt-fuelled culinary wonders. Stuck in a rut of wanting to fix their marriage but not knowing where to start, Sydney leaps at the chance to take in an attractive, Australian couple, who show up on their doorstep looking for help. But as the days stretch on, and their broken-down van doesn’t look like it will ever get fixed, tensions start to build between the two couples, and what began as a friendly trade of hospitality for free labour gradually shifts into something far more unsettling. Strangers in the Villa has all the classic thriller elements you’d expect: claustrophobic living arrangements, lifethreatening near-miss accidents, a secret phone, potential weapons and some menacing local wildlife. The promise of at least one death, as well as multiple layers of questionable back story, give the reader plenty to chew on as they imagine drinking coffee and eating deepfried pastries at the local café. But where Harding really takes this genre piece to another level is by overtly infusing Curtis and Sydney’s sexual and romantic insecurities into their perceptions of their guests. Having uprooted their entire lives to try and get past a non-consensual onenight stand, Sydney and Curtis are both taken aback when their houseguests, Damian and Bianca, declare themselves happy and secure in their long-term, open relationship. “Communication and respect are key,” Damian continues, like he’s some expert on relationships. “Monogamy isn’t our natural state, but that doesn’t mean commitment can’t work.” Bianca has a similarly simple explanation of their relationship dynamic. “I believe in love and consent and exploring my sexuality[.]” “I’m open and honest about my needs, and Damian respects that.”

And unlike Sydney and Curtis, they’re having lots of passionate sex. The introduction of a successful, alternate relationship structure throws a shadow over everything Sydney thought she knew, and doubles down on the physical threat Bianca’s fit figure poses. So when the attractive, young woman starts sunbathing topless, she finally finds her voice. “Curtis grew up in a really conservative family.” It’s an exaggeration, not an outright lie. His mother was a devout woman who considered sex and the body shameful. Curtis has worked through his issues, but his uptight background provides a good excuse. Because Sydney doesn’t want to admit that she’s insecure. That she still doesn’t trust her husband … “Is this about Curtis? Or about you?” … Bianca’s tone softens. “There’s something between us, isn’t there? A bit of a spark?” In this moment, our narrator not only doesn’t trust her husband, she also doesn’t trust herself. By creating considerable sexual tension while effectively questioning the fragility of the very structure Sydney and Curtis are clinging to, Harding gives readers plenty of juicy moments to sink their teeth into. Told from the perspectives of all four characters, the alternating points of view give the impression that none of the narrators are truly trustworthy. And the more we learn about each of them, the less likeable they become, leaving readers unsure of who they’re supposed to be barracking for. Ultimately, it’s these distasteful portraits, full of moral contradictions and questionable choices, that allow Harding to keep the plot twisting right up until the final, shocking moments. With a sun-soaked, creeping atmosphere, Strangers in the Villa is easy to get into, and love ‘em or hate ‘em, you’ll enjoy following these flawed characters around the coastline of Cadaqués. Just don’t invite them home. Robyn Harding is the international bestselling author of several novels including Strangers in the Villa, The Haters, The Perfect Family, The Arrangement, and Her Pretty Face. Harding appears in the Nov. 6 Reading Event Characters on the Edge: Analyzing Psychological Thrillers alongside A.D. Sui. Tickets are on sale at whistlerwritersfest.com. kate heskett loves stories about people pursuing pleasure and connection beyond the binaries. Their creative writing has appeared in Pique and The Lupine Review, and their personal story of identity and acceptance features in the best-selling anthology Awfully Hilarious: Pillow Talk. n

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MUSEUM MUSINGS

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The arrival of bear-proof garbage bins in Whistler BY BRADLEY NICHOLS TODAY , bear-proof garbage bins are a

familiar sight throughout Whistler, but in the late 1990s, they were a relatively new addition to Whistler’s built landscape. As Whistler continued to grow, managing garbage and reducing conflicts between people and black bears became an increasingly important issue. In 1997, concerned citizen Sylvia Dolson helped establish the Black Bear Task Team, bringing together conservation officers with representatives from the municipality, Whistler Blackcomb, environmental organizations and waste management companies. The team began developing a comprehensive management plan to reduce conflicts between people and bears. A central concern was the availability of human garbage as a food source, which often brought bears into populated areas. Although Whistler already had regulations prohibiting garbage from being left unattended outdoors, many existing containers remained easily accessible to bears. By December 1997, the task force outlined plans to introduce bear-proof commercial containers and smaller pedestrian bins throughout the village. The goal was to have the village area bear-proofed by the summer of 1998. However, the task force recognized that replacing municipal containers alone would not solve the problem. More than half of the garbage bins in the village area were privately owned, making cooperation from businesses and property owners essential. As task team co-chair Dolson explained at the time, “We need to get public support to make all the bins bear-proof.” By April 1998, the first shipments of new containers had arrived in Whistler. These included 70 commercial garbage bins and 16 smaller pedestrian bins. The commercial containers were designed by the Black Bear Task Team to be both bear-resistant and accessible to people. Constructed from heavy-gauge steel, they featured sloped lids, smaller access doors, hydraulic closing mechanisms, and animal-proof latches. The first commercial containers were destined for Function Junction, Whistler Creekside, and other areas experiencing problems with bears accessing garbage. Of the approximately 360 commercial containers serving Whistler’s multi-family residences, hotels, and businesses, 50 could be retrofitted to meet the new standards. The remaining containers were to be replaced once the new design had proven successful. Carney’s Waste Management had already invested nearly $100,000 in the initiative at the time. The smaller pedestrian bins, known

PROOF POSITIVE Whistler Mayor Hugh O’Reilly (L) and Village Foreman Ted Pryce-Jones trying out one of the prototype bear-proof garbage bins in 1998. WHISTLER MUSEUM / MAKAREWICZ COLLECTION

as Hid-A-Bag containers, were fitted with cedar facing to complement the village’s appearance. The first three were to be installed outside municipal hall, with others distributed throughout key village locations. There were also efforts to encourage private businesses to participate. The Jennifer Jones Whistler Bear Foundation (now known as the Get Bear Smart Society) offered a $250 incentive toward the approximately $700 cost of a new pedestrian bin, while Whistler Resort Management and Sea to Sky Real Estate had already adopted the containers for the Marketplace area of Whistler Village. The new bins were only one part of the strategy. The task team emphasized public education, proper garbage disposal, habitat protection, and improvements to the landfill. Even the strongest container would be ineffective if its lid was left open or garbage was placed beside it. The transition continued beyond 1998. In November 1999, Whistler passed a new garbage disposal bylaw requiring wildlife-resistant containers or enclosures throughout the valley. The proposed regulations also addressed the outdoor storage of garbage and increased fines for improper disposal. The arrival of bear-proof bins in 1998 marked an important step in Whistler’s approach to managing human-bear interactions. What began as a coordinated effort involving the municipality, waste management companies, local businesses, and community organizations helped establish the garbage management practices that remain an important part of living alongside bears in Whistler today. n

PARTIAL RECALL

1+2 HOT TO TROT Three-hundred-plus participants took part in the 9th-annual Whistler Turkey Trot on Oct. 11, helping to raise more than $2,900 for Crohn’s and Colitis Canada and $900 for the Whistler Food Bank. Runners completed either a 5k Drumstick Dash or 10k Gravy Burner around the Lost Lake Trails. PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE WHISTLER TURKEY TROT / @WHISTLERTURKEYTROT 3 RUFFLECTIONS Teebo contemplates the complexities of life during a recent lake visit. PHOTO BY JON PARRIS 4 CAMPAIGN TRAIL At an Oct. 9 announcement in Whistler, the Green Party’s Jeremy Valeriote promised the BC Greens will get regional buses running on the Sea to Sky highway within a year of forming government, while investing millions in outdoor recreation, tourism infrastructure and workforce housing across B.C. Read more at piquenewsmagazine.com. PHOTO COURTESY OF BC GREENS 5 SPOOKY GOOD DEALS You never know what treasures you’ll find at the Re-Use-It Centre, like this awesome blow-up Halloween costume. PHOTO BY CATHERINE POWER-CHARTRAND 6 LAST STOP? Rocky Mountaineer founder Peter Armstrong (right) poses with CEO Tristan Armstrong and board members Ashley and Chelsea Armstrong on Oct. 8, potentially marking the train’s final journey through Whistler. PHOTO BY LUKE FAULKS

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OCTOBER 16, 2026

ENTERTAINMENT LISTINGS & ASTROLOGY IMFF WORLD TOUR 2026 The Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival (VIMFF) World Tour returns to Arts Whistler for two unforgettable evenings of outdoor adventure and mountain culture films on the big screen. This event is 19-plus. » Oct. 16, 7 to 9:30 p.m. » Maury Young Arts Centre

PIQUE’S GUIDE TO LOCAL EVENTS & NIGHTLIFE Here’s a quick look at some events happening in Whistler this week and beyond. FIND MORE LOCAL EVENT LISTINGS (and submit your own for free!) at piquenewsmagazine.com/local-events

WHISTLER WINE WALK The Whistler Wine Walk returns this fall with guided tours through Whistler’s vibrant art gallery scene. Discover local, regional and international artists, enjoy interactive art experiences, and sip B.C. wine at each stop along the way. » Oct. 16, 6 to 8:15 p.m. » Various locations

$100 AND UNDER ART SHOW The Point Artist-Run Centre presents $100 and Under, a fundraising art show featuring original works all priced at $100 or less. From Oct. 17 to Dec. 12, explore affordable local art while supporting The Point. Don’t miss opening night on Oct. 17, with music, food and an open bar. » Oct. 17 to Dec. 12 » The Point Artist-Run Centre

LEGENDARY LOCALS PRESENTS MAKE IT SNOW A weekly celebration of ski, snowboard and mountain culture, bringing Whistler’s community together for an evening of films, stories and pre-season stoke. Meet the people behind the footage, hear the stories that brought each project to life and take part in relaxed filmmaker and athlete Q&As. » Oct. 18, 6 to 10 p.m. » Longhorn Saloon & Grill

$100 AND UNDER ART SHOW PHOTO COURTESY OF STEPHEN VOGLER

THE BOO REVUE Arts Whistler Live! presents The Boo Revue!, a frightfully fun blacklight puppet musical set in a ghostly old graveyard. Shiver and shake along to spinetingling songs, colourful characters and supernatural sights in this family-friendly Halloween favourite. Two showtimes available, recommended for ages four-plus. » Oct. 20, 3:45 and 6:45 p.m. » Maury Young Arts Centre

IF3 WHISTLER 2026 Anticipation for winter is rising and the iF3 Whistler promises to be the ultimate kick-off to a great snow season. This four-day film festival features premieres of the year’s best ski and snowboard movies. » Oct. 21 to 24 » Various locations

YOGA AT THE AUDAIN Enjoy a relaxing one-hour yoga class surrounded by stunning architecture with rotating instructors. Focus on breath, movement, and mindfulness. Bring your own mat

or borrow one from the museum. Registration includes same-day gallery access during opening hours. » Oct. 22, 8 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. » Audain Art Museum

IF3 ALL GIRLS Presented by Rab North America and Scandinave Spa Whistler, the evening kicks off with a special show featuring hosts interviewing producers and athletes from the 2026 iF3 Official Selection films, with a focus on women-driven ski and snowboard film projects. » Oct. 22, 6:30 p.m. » evo Rentals

Free Will Astrology WEEK OF OCTOBER 16 BY ROB BREZSNY ARIES (March 21-April 19): Before Aries-born Maya

Angelou became a celebrated author, she was San Francisco’s first Black female streetcar conductor, a calypso dancer, a cook, a journalist in Ghana, and an actress. She didn’t publish her first memoir until she was 41. She spoke six languages and refused to believe that any single identity could contain her. I offer her as your role model in the coming weeks, Aries. It’s time to celebrate the wondrous truth that you don’t have to be just one thing. In fact, the astrological omens suggest you’ll thrive by rejoicing in the many disparate selves you are and have been and imagining new ones you might like to add. How kaleidoscopic do you dare to be? TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Realities you’ve been oblivious to will soon pop into view. Hints and signals you’ve been unconsciously deflecting will flock toward you and become impossible to ignore. These are welcome developments! Be gleeful and grateful in gathering them in. And there’s more. A lingering emotional numbness will thaw, and surges of raw feelings will pour into your awareness. You will wake up to at least one mostly pleasant surprise that has been waiting for your attention. At first, it may all feel like an overload: too much data arriving too quickly for you to organize or interpret. If you’re willing to be patient and slowly metabolize the influx, though, the apparent chaos will weave itself into a luminous web of invigorated understanding. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Is your mental agility a gift or curse? It depends on whether you use it to avoid taking a stand or else deepen your understanding. In the coming weeks, Gemini, I hope you will practice the cagey skill of holding multiple truths simultaneously without letting that multiplicity become an excuse for never choosing or never committing. The goal is to encourage your magnificent mind to serve your heart rather than to override its tender wisdom. I love it when you unleash your clever analysis and it doesn’t devolve into sophisticated evasion.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Astronomers searching for planets around distant stars rarely see the planets directly. Instead, they notice tiny wobbles in the stars or faint dips in their brightness as the planets pass in front of them. You can and should practice a similar art now. Dramatic evidence may be unavailable, so watch for subtle shifts in mood, timing, synchronicity, and atmosphere. Small disturbances may reveal important hidden influences. Your most useful discoveries won’t come from looking harder but from noticing more gently. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Glassblowers repeatedly place molten glass into blazing furnaces as they shape it. They don’t heat it once and expect it to stay pliable forever. Again and again, they return it to the fire so new possibilities become available. This reminds me of the current chapter of your life story, Leo. Emotional intensity keeps recurring, repeatedly returning you to the heart of the heat and pressure. This may sometimes feel like a test or ordeal, but I think it’s the best way for you to master the crucial lessons and ensure the healing transformations. Be patient as you forge your masterpiece. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Master storytellers know that memorable heroes are admired because they continue moving despite uncertainty. Courage entails a resilient and affectionate partnership with doubt. I hope you’ll remember this if your confidence temporarily flickers in the coming weeks. There’s no need to waste precious energy trying to eliminate every hesitation before taking your next meaningful step. Let your questions accompany your convictions. They may sharpen your judgment. The coming weeks favour brave, thoughtful action, not flawless self-assurance. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): One morning soon, I predict you will open your inner eyes as well as your outer eyes and discover that you feel freer than you have in ages. Old spectres that once pestered you will seem strangely

powerless. Worn-out customs will have loosened their hold, and an ancient obligation will finally be settled. By some grace that neither you nor I can quite explain, at least some of the chains you fashioned in your own mind will have fallen away. What then? Celebrate! Host a personal “Out of Captivity” party, and give yourself a day or two to revel in your newfound liberty. Once you’re ready to make purposeful use of that delightful independence, ask yourself: “Where in my life do I most need a clean beginning?” SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Not so long ago, you got hints and clues that you were on the verge of getting a taste of tantalizing and off-limits treats. Weren’t you ready to accept when the invitation suddenly dissolved? And by now, haven’t you nearly stopped expecting to enjoy another chance? Then imagine your surprise if that temptation winds its way back to you soon. When you finally take a bite, it may taste and feel nothing like you anticipated. The wisest move will be to let go of your old assumptions and welcome the experience as it is. My prediction: You’ll be delightedly surprised by how deeply and sweetly it alters the way you understand reality—even if at first it feels disorienting. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Your upcoming challenges call to mind a feat once accomplished by conservationist and entertainer Steve Irwin. No, you won’t, as he did, feed a huge crocodile by hand while holding an infant in your other arm. But you may need to bring together qualities that seem at odds: fierceness and tenderness, a wild spirit and a protective instinct, boldness and love. Luckily, I am very sure you will summon the power and flair to do that. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Ecologists have found that transition zones, like where forests meet meadows or where land meets water, can support high biodiversity. They may include species from both neighbouring habitats as well as species adapted to the distinctive conditions in the boundary

zone. I propose we make these places your power metaphor for the coming weeks, Capricorn. You, too, can flourish in edge habitats. Instead of feeling compelled to choose one identity, community, philosophy, or style, appreciate your role as a translator between worlds. Your greatest gifts may emerge because you refuse to belong exclusively to any single camp. Revel in your fertile in-between-ness. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): After pondering what might bring fresh vigour to your love life, I’ve arrived at an audacious suggestion: Offer a smouldering prayer while making love to a saintly soul in a place you regard as sacred. If that combination proves impractical, try just one or two parts of it: Pray wildly during an intimate encounter; flirt with or even seduce a person of uncommon goodness; kiss and hug and cuddle in a setting that feels holy to you; or speak to the divine in a titillating language you wouldn’t use in a formal religious service. The point is to let sensual delight and spiritual longing meet rather than keeping them apart. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You sometimes regard pleasure like a reward you have to earn through suffering, as if joy were a luxury item requiring payment in pain. But I have an alternate theory: Relaxed glee and earthy enjoyments are essential nutrients that are key to your health. So in my view, denying yourself beauty and comfort depletes you. I hope you will heed my guidance in the coming weeks, which is to treat yourself to almost more fun, happiness, bliss, and amusement than is allowed by law. See if you can break all previous records for rejuvenating delectation. New law of your universe, at least for the next four weeks: The quest for jovial gusto and zesty zeal are mandatory aspirations. Homework: I dare you to do something that you’ll remember with pride and passion until the end of your days. https:// tinyurl.com/v55v55

IN ADDITION TO THIS COLUMN, ROB BREZSNY CREATES EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES In-depth weekly forecasts designed to inspire and uplift you. To buy access, phone 1-888-499-4425. Once you’ve chosen the Block of Time you like, call 1-888-682-8777 to hear Rob’s forecasts. www.freewillastrology.com

40 OCTOBER 16, 2026

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GENERAL MANAGER / EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MAMQUAM RIVER ACCESS SOCIETY Permanent half-time position starting January 2027 Salary: $45,000 plus gas card (flexible hours) The Mamquam River Access Society (MRAS) in Squamish is a small non-profit registered charity which operates the Mamquam River Campground and maintains kayak access on the river. Reporting to the Board of Directors and working from a home-based office, the General Manager / Executive Director (ED) is the heart of MRAS, overseeing all operations including fiscal management, transparent administration of all programs and implementing future plans with the Board. While ensuring day-to-day campground operations are upholding the standards and policies of the organization, the ED is also the public voice for whitewater access throughout the Mamquam River watershed and beyond. A diverse set of skills are required including: ◆ Management, business & administrative experience ◆ Non-profit experience and vision ◆ Maintenance, with physical hands-on experience ◆ Mentoring Canada Summer Job students ◆ Hosting young international travelers (Workaway.info) ◆ Trustworthy, with integrity ◆ Committed, with passion ◆ Engaged in Whitewater recreation an asset ◆ Must be legally entitled to work in Canada

•

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Title & Rights •

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Assistant Director – Health ($80,160.00 to $115,230.00 per year) Community Health Nurse ($41.42 to $52.81 per hour) + $2.15 hourly premium) Peer Support Worker ($47,120.00 to $61,845.00 per year) Program Coordinator ($54,720.00 to $71,820.00 per year) Homemaker ($47,120.00 to $61, 845.00 per year) Bus Driver ($22.86 to $30.00 per hour)

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Xet’òlacw Community School •

We thank all interested applicants but only those selected for interview will be contacted.

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44 OCTOBER 16, 2026

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The choice is yours HAVING NOW had a chance to attend all of the all-candidates meetings, the chance to listen to and ask questions of all who attended WORCA’s wonderful speeddating night and had some one-on-one conversations with several of them, I’m ready to finesse the question of who to vote for. During past elections, I felt it was the role of newspapers, or at least opinion writers who followed politics, to endorse candidates they considered the best of the best. I thought of it as a duty. I didn’t believe it was necessarily the role of the paper’s editor to have an “official” position, but columnists are a different animal—we don’t speak for the paper, we only represent one person’s opinion.

BY G.D. MAXWELL And to be honest, my opinion was frequently not shared by the rest of the people who voted. And at least a few people running considered my endorsement the kiss of death. Can’t be right all the time. So here’s my take on the lay of the land. In the brief history of Whistler, there has only been one time a sitting mayor who has chosen to stand for re-election hasn’t been returned to office. And there has only been one time someone who had never served on council was elected to the office. In 2011, mayor and all councillors standing for re-election were defeated. Nancy Wilhelm-Morden was elected mayor. She had previously served on councils and had a long record of holding elected office. Drew Meredith was elected in 1986 and served one term. He came to the role after being the founding director and chairman of the board of the Whistler Resort Association between 1979 and 1986. This is the first election in my memory where the sitting mayor has had to run against people who, forgive my indelicacy, weren’t fringe characters or, in the case of Bob, an actual dog. While the mayor has one vote, just like the other six councillors, he/ she is first among equals. He/she is the public face of Whistler to the rest of the province, country and world. I am not comfortable handing that role over to someone I haven’t seen perform in a collaborative setting like council. It’s a hard job and it doesn’t suit people who want to have things their way or no way. I sincerely wish, and have told each of

APPLY YOURSELF Show Whistler some love and vote in the Oct. 17 municipal election. IMAGE BY JON PARRIS // GEMINI 3.1 W/ NANO BANANA 2

46 OCTOBER 16, 2026

the mayoral candidates, they had chosen to run for council. If they had, and had been elected, we’d have seen how they work and how they might move Whistler forward. We’d have developed a good idea of their talents by the time the next election comes around. But if wishes were ponies... While I’ve frequently found myself opposing positions Jack Crompton has taken—and agreeing with some of the knocks people have been making about him—I’m comfortable with the thought of him being mayor for the next four years. I will be uncomfortable if he doesn’t consider this his last term.

of where we’ve been and where we’re going. That understanding is going to be important with the wholesale changes that have been made the past few months in the ranks of senior managers— including a new CAO—at muni hall. All six of them have a track record. If you’ve been paying attention, you’ve seen how they vote on issues, you’ve heard what they’ve said and you should have a pretty good read on who they are, where they stand and how they might deal with issues that come up over the next four years. I am not among those who are totally dissatisfied with how things are being run. Okay, I’d love to see lower property taxes

I may have had a bit more access to the candidates, but there’s enough information out there for anyone who cares to put in an hour or two digging through the candidates’ websites... In four years time, he’ll be the longestserving mayor Whistler has had. And if he doesn’t agree this will be his last time on the merry-go-round, I’ll henceforth refer to him as Mayor McCallion. Which is probably a good way to lead into the slate of people running for council. With the exception of Jeff Murl and Jessie Morden, everyone currently on council has been there for more than one term. Let me say, emphatically, there is nothing wrong with that and it’s not meant as an indictment. They’ve done a good job. They bring an understanding

and a smaller payroll. That said, there is no reason to fear new faces, new ideas, new perspectives. Arguments have been made by several of the candidates that some amount of churn, turnover, may be refreshing. I can’t argue against that perspective, having believed for most of my life embracing change is generally a good thing. And that raises the question of who, among a large field, I’d be comfortable seeing seated at the table when the next council takes up business. There are three. Claire Ruddy has a solid and

voluminous record of public service, locally and beyond, and will bring an unmatched skill set to the council table if enough people think the same way. Her time leading AWARE, her continuing education and her consulting work with various levels of government and the private sector is impressive. Robin Brown has long residence in town and a unique, analytical, problem solving life experience he can bring to the table. Having been, among other things, an expert witness in his field, he has an appreciation of the diverse facets of most issues. And other than me, is the only person I’ve heard voice support for zerobased budgeting. Something I continue to believe muni hall sorely needs. Mandy Rousseau’s quiet surface masks bulldog determination and a getit-done attitude she’s brought to tasks in her life. She has an impressive record of service on a number of local nonprofit boards, was executive director of the Whistler Institute and received Whistler’s Civic Service Award. That’s a short list. But I believe there are other candidates who simply need some more time to build their records of service and I hope to see them again four years from now. Among them, Eduardo Vazquez-Vela, Nicole Baudisch, Ivan Otto and Raul Bautista. They all hold promise. Like I said, this is just one man’s opinion. I may have had a bit more access to the candidates, but there’s enough information out there for anyone who cares to put in an hour or two digging through the candidates’ websites and/or Pique profiles to come to their own conclusions I’d like to think enough people care to do that and vote. It’s your/our town. Show it some love. Care and vote. n

ENGEL &VÖLKERS WHISTLER

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8232 Alpine Way, Whistler 3 Bed | 2 Bath | 978 sq.ft. $1,799,999 Peter Lalor

EW N

UA L

604-902-3309 broker@evwhistler.ca

5221 Jordan Lane, Whistler 4 Bed | 5.5 Bath | 3,720 sq.ft. $6,750,000 604-910-1103 Connie Spear connie.spear@evrealestate.com

6361 Fairway Drive, Whistler 4 Bed | 3.5 Bath | 3,200 sq.ft. $4,888,000 778-320-2426 Javier Hidalgo javier.hidalgo@evrealestate.com

SL3 1307 Eagle Drive, Pemberton 1 Bed | 1 Bath | 704 sq.ft. $525,000 604-935-9172 Sherry and Rob Boyd boydteam@evrealestate.com

6403 St Andrew’s Way, Whistler 3 Bed | 2.5 Bath | 2,057 sq.ft. $3,950,000 604-966-4200 Rachel Allen rachel.allen@evrealestate.com

7505 Pebble Creek Drive, Pemberton Vacant Land, 0.731 Acres $759,000 778-998-2357 Gina Daggett gina.daggett@evrealestate.com

Boyd Team

2817 Clifftop Lane, Bayshores

$3,899,000 7313 Fitzsimmons Road South, White Gold

This spacious 5-bedroom home offers an exceptional combination of comfortable family living, mountain lifestyle just south of Creekside. Offering 3,315 sq/ft of interior living space across three levels there is plenty of space and flexibility for family and guests. Maggi Thornhill PREC*

+1-604-905-8199

maggi.thornhill@evrealestate.com Maggi & Max Thornhill Team

$4,999,000

This property offers a rare blend of privacy, tranquility, and a welcoming setting. You’re just a short 10 minute walk from Whistler Village’s shops, restaurants, and recreational amenities, as well as Lost Lake and the Fairmont Chateau Whistler Golf Club. Maggi Thornhill PREC* maggi.thornhill@evrealestate.com Maggi & Max Thornhill Team

Whistler Village Shop

Squamish Shop - NEW LOCATION

36-4314 Main Street · Whistler BC V8E 1A8 · Phone +1 604-932-1875

38167 Cleveland Ave · Squamish BC V8B 0P1 · Phone +1 604-932-1875

+1-604-905-8199

37 - 7134 Nancy Greene Dr. Fitzsimmons Walk - White Gold Estates

8200 Gun Lake West Road Gun Lake - BC

3D TOUR: rem.ax/37fitzwalk

Eagle Ridge - Whistler Cay Heights 3D TOUR: rem.ax/8718723DTour

WATERFRONT CHALET

CHALET

Dave

3 | 1,416 SQFT

604.905.8855

1,050,000

4 | 2,831 SQFT

$4,589,000

871/872 - 4090 Whistler Way

Beattie

CONDO

Dave

Sharpe

604.902.2779

901 - 4393 Mountain Square

6403 St. Andrew’s Way

Powder’s Edge - Whistler Village

Whistler Cay Heights

NEW PRICE

Denise

2 | 862 SQFT

$1,100,000

Brown

604.902.2033

401 - 4557 Blackcomb Way Le Chamois - Benchlands 3D TOUR: rem.ax/401lechamois

CHALET

TIMESHARES

Laura

3 | 2,057 SQFT

$3,950,000

Wetaski

604.938.3798

CONDO

Laddie

2 | 1,313 SQFT

$13,000

Hannam

604.603.7672

Mark

1 | 598 SQFT

Lasseter

$1,549,999

604.698.5230

311 - 4405 Blackcomb Way

3 - 2269 Nordic Drive

62 - 6127 Eagleridge Crescent

3D TOUR: rem.ax/311granite

3D TOUR: rem.ax/3ridge

3D TOUR: rem.ax/62eagle

Granite Court - Whistler Village

TOWNHOUSE

5 | 3,753 SQFT

$1,679,000

The Ridge at Taluswood - Nordic Estates

TOWNHOUSE

Matt

2 | 1,044 SQFT

Richard

604.935.9171

$1,999,999

604.902.4260

Chiasson

Eagleridge - Whistler Cay Heights

Grenfell

Sally

3 | 1,224 SQFT

$1,499,000

Warner*

604.932.7741

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR OPEN HOUSES: TEXT Open to : 604.229.0067

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