Kees and Claire Memorial Hut
Guest Manual
Click Here to view .pdf version of the Guest Manual
Table of contents
1. Arriving at the hut
a. Custodians
b. Entry
c. Occupancy switch
d. Bunk assignment
e. Hut etiquette
2. Check out
a. Check out time
b. Lock-up procedure
3. Fire extinguishers and emergency exits
4. Drone use in Garibaldi Park
5. Outdoor area
a. Ski racks
b. Helicopter service deck
c. Upper deck
d. Snow water area
e. Hut entrances
f. Marmot slope and septic field
6. Vestibule and drying room
7. Kitchen
a. Choose your cooking time
b. Pack out what you pack in
c. Daily upkeep
d. Washing dishes
e. Water containers (winter)
f. Water containers (summer - after snow is gone)
8. Lounge and tables
a. Daily upkeep
b. Fireplace
9. Bunk area
a. Find your numbered bunk
b. Bunk room temperature
c. Eduardo Campos Room
10. Toilets
11. Starlink wifi
12. Emergency contact
Arriving at the Hut
Welcome to the Kees and Claire Memorial Hut!
This manual has been developed to help guests navigate the hut and its systems.
Reservations are required to enter, and to stay at the hut.
a. Custodians
- We strive to have a volunteer custodian at the hut every night we’re open. While a member of our team is present most nights, there are rare times when a custodian is not present at the hut. That’s why we’ve put together this manual.
- If you have a suggestion to help improve guest experience at the hut, please add that to the guest log book.
b. Entry
- When you arrive at the hut, please remove all gear and hang it in the drying room, including footwear. This applies in winter as well as summer. Do not bring ski or climbing equipment into the hut. We provide crocs for guests to use inside. No outdoor footwear is allowed past the front door.
- Use the door code supplied in your confirmation email to access the main door.
- Bring your pack downstairs to the bunk area and place it inside a cubby. There is absolutely no gear allowed in the bunk area. Do not bring your ski boot liners down.
- Store your food in the cubbies past the entrance upstairs. Absolutely no food allowed on the bunk floor. Keep your food sealed and do not leave open food around the hut.
c. Occupancy switch
- The Hut occupancy switch is located on the wall dividing the food cubby area with the main kitchen, in the grouping of light switches. This is to be in the ON position when the hut is occupied. When you leave the hut, if there are no guests returning to the hut, switch it OFF.
d. Bunk assignment
- Please seek out the bunk you chose when you booked the hut. Each bunk is labeled. Custodians may shift people around when the hut is under capacity, and may do the same in certain circumstances when the hut is fully booked. For example, Room 1 (Eduardo Campos Room) is the family room. A group with children may be moved into this room even if they did not previously book it. Please help accommodate groups with children.
e. Hut etiquette
- As a guest in this space, it is important to practice good hut etiquette. Leave the hut in a better state than you found it, and pack out everything you bring.
- This means helping out with communal tasks — like gathering snow for drinking water in winter, half-filling blue jugs with lake water and leaving those untreated jugs of water in the entrance vestibule of the hut, clearing snow from the deck, mopping snow melt/mud from your boots, and most importantly, cleaning up after yourself.
- Absolutely no smoking or vaping inside of the hut.
- Respect the hut’s quiet hours between 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.
- Keep your personal belongings in check, don’t sprawl out and take over the hut.
2. Check out
a. Check out time
- Check out time is 10:00 a.m. This means that on your final morning at the hut, your bunks will need to be cleared by this time. We expect that guests honor the 10:00 a.m. check out time and do not spend the rest of the day burning propane and using the facilities. Other guests will be arriving and expecting their booked space to be fully available for their reserved time.
- If you choose to day-hike prior to leaving the alpine, and will be passing by the hut, you may leave your large pack on the outside upper deck of the hut. Do not use the lower deck (helicopter service deck) as that is an operations deck.
b. Lock-up procedure
- If there is no custodian on-site, you are responsible for locking up the hut when you leave should it be empty. To do so, follow this checklist:
Shut all lights off.
Shut off the kitchen fan.
Check that all stove burners are off. The flames are hard to see in bright daylight.
Turn off the fireplace (if on).
Turn the occupancy switch to the off position.
Shut all windows and lock all access doors. (Lift handle up, turn deadbolt).
Leave the hut from the main entryway on the 2nd floor. To lock, punch in code and turn the deadbolt.
Take everything out that you brought in; nothing left behind, including garbage and food.
Go outside and check that all doors are locked.
3. Fire extinguishers and emergency exits
There are two fire extinguishers located in the kitchen. They are located on either end of the kitchen island on hangers. Please be aware of their location should you cook food that requires an open flame, like fondue.
The hut is equipped with three emergency exits. Two are located on the bunk floor, on either ends of the hallway. The third is located in the Brett Carlson Lounge, adjacent to the kitchen area, and exits onto the upper deck. To lock, lift handle and turn dead-bolt. To unlock, do the reverse: lift handle, then turn dead-bolt back to allow the door to open.
4. Drone use in Garibaldi Park
Drone use at the hut — and within the Garibaldi Park boundary — is strictly prohibited. Please be aware that flying a drone after a warning from one of our staff can result in a ban from booking the hut.
5. Outdoor area
a. Ski racks
- Leave your skis and poles at the ski racks in front of the hut. Do not bring skis into the hut or onto the deck. If you see that the ski racks are getting buried, please help dig them out.
- Leave any other equipment with sharp edges, including ice axes and crampons, outside the hut on the upper deck or in the vestibule.
b. Helicopter service deck
- The helicopter service deck is the deck off that is on the same level as the bunk floor. Do not go onto the helicopter service deck. The hut’s propane, electrical and septic systems are operated by custodians and staff only. Do not smoke on the upper deck of the hut.
- Do not smoke anywhere near the helicopter service deck, where the propane is located.
c. Upper deck
- Clear snow off the deck in winter/sweep dust and dirt off in summer..
- Perishable food storage. There is a metal box at the South end of the upper deck for keeping food cool. Even in winter, wildlife is present around the hut, do not leave food outside unattended. Place food inside the plastic containers that are located inside the steel bin and secure the lids (mice) and then close the metal lid (bears).
d. Snow water area
- The roped and staked area in front of the hut is where we collect snow for melting. If the posts are getting buried, dig them out and place them in a higher spot. Do not urinate or put any gray water outside.
e. Hut entrances
- Keep the bunk area emergency exits closed and locked at all times. The bunk area emergency exits are not to be used for general access in and out of the hut. The emergency exit in the Brett Carlson Lounge can remain unlocked when there are people at the hut. Close and lock all doors and windows (the window handle points down when locked) before leaving if nobody else is present.
- The main hut entrance has a keypad and the code was provided in the email confirmation of your reservation at the hut.
f. Marmot slope and septic field
- The Eastern slope below the hut is a Marmot habitat. In spring and summer, the slope is roped off from the hut and guests should refrain from hiking down the slope as to not disturb the Marmots.
- Adjacent to the Marmot habitat, on the South side of the slope, lies the hut’s septic field. Walking over this field can damage the drip lines and contribute to erosion. Please refrain from walking in this area in spring and summer.
6. Vestibule and drying room
- The hut’s vestibule always remains unlocked and acts as a mountain refuge. Please remove all outerwear and footwear before entering the main hut.
- Hang all gear in the drying room. It is recommended that you mark your skins, as they tend to get mixed up in the winter months. The drying room temperature is maintained at 12C and cannot be adjusted. This is where any wet clothing, footwear, like ski boot liners, and packs are to be placed to dry.
7. Kitchen
a. Choose your cooking time
- Use the white board on the wall dividing the food cubbies and the main kitchen to schedule your 30 minute cook-time slot. This is especially useful when the hut is busy and late afternoon/early evening.
- Turn on exhaust fans using the switches proximal to the hut occupancy switch.
When cooking at your station, be mindful of those cooking around you. Don’t sprawl out too much and respect other people’s space.
b. Pack out what you pack in
- There is absolutely no garbage disposal at Kees and Claire. You must pack out what you pack in. This includes all food waste, wet and dry, and your food scraps retained in the sink filter. Do not allow food scraps to go into the drains.
c. Daily upkeep
-> Clean the surfaces using the sanitizing spray.
-> Clean the basins, sink, and strainer after use.
-> Put away dry dishes.
-> Empty coffee grounds into the designated bucket under the island. Pack out all other food refuse.
-> If there is too much moisture from cooking and the kitchen fan is not ventilating enough, open the windows to promote air flow. It may feel a bit colder, but explain to others this is to reduce humidity, which is bad for the structure.
d. Washing dishes
- To wash your dishes, heat up water in a kettle and pour it into one of the white washing bins. Use this as your washing water. Use the other sink and second washing bin as your rinse (add a few drops of bleach to the rinse water).
- Allow dishes to air dry on the rack. Place all dishes that have dried back onto the shelves.
e. Water containers (winter)
- Guests are responsible for melting snow for their water usage. Instructions for snowmelt and water treatment are posted at the South end of the kitchen. Do not boil water.
- Guests are responsible for filtering and treating their drinking water. We have the option to treat water using chlorine dioxide (bleach), but this is not required. Only put treated water into the blue drinking water containers.
- Remember to turn off the snow melt stove when leaving the hut and before going to sleep.
- Keep the area around the snowmelt station as dry as possible. When a snow bucket is brought in, it will be placed on the large metal drain pan. Only bring one snow bucket in at a time. Keep additional full snow buckets on the deck.
f. Water containers (summer - after snow is gone)
- Keep the Lake Water containers in the vestibule. Keep full containers on one side and empty containers on the other side (with the carrying backpacks and pumps). Do not mix up Lake Water and Drinking Water containers.
- Guests take the carrying backpacks and kayak-bailing pumps to Russet Lake to fetch water. A half-container (e.g., blue jug labeled as lake water) is normally a reasonable amount to carry back to the hut. Lake Water containers tend to build up with dirt and algae from the lake. Empty and rinse the Lake Water containers on a regular basis to keep them clean.
g. Water Treatment, Winter and Summer
- If you choose to do so, use your own back-country water filter.
- If that is unavailable, follow the drinking water treatment instructions to treat lake water by using bleach. The ratio is 0.5 tsp of chlorine dioxide, bleach, to 8 gallons of water. Use the large stainless steel water treatment vessel that has an emptying valve and plastic tube for treatment. After adding the chlorine dioxide, allow as much time as possible prior to transferring the treated water into blue containers that are labeled as treated water.
- Empty treated water containers are stored in the food cubby area under the table. Full treated water containers are stored at the South end of the kitchen area under the counter.
- Use the hose on the vessel to fill the Drinking Water containers with treated water. The full stainless steel treatment container at 8 gallons contains water to fill 1.5 blue containers — do not walk away when emptying the mixing container.
- When using the treated water containers. Use them only with their outlet nozzles over a sink. Always stand them up when finished taking water as they leak. Water spills need to be immediately dealt with, there is a mop in the cubby area.
8. Lounge and tables
a. Daily upkeep
-> Wipe down tables.
-> Sweep and vacuum the floors.
-> Mop floors in the kitchen and eating areas, and in the hut vestibule..
-> Reset pillows on the couches
-> Ensure the lounge area is tidy and kept respectful. There is a ‘ski-shelf’ for books, games, and yoga gear. Adjacent to the ski-shelf is a bin for additional games.
b. Fireplace
- The fireplace is for winter use only. Please note the hut will heat up without using the fireplace, if the occupancy switch has been turned on. Please allow time for this to happen. A custodian will turn on the fireplace if it is very cold (-15C or below), or if arriving at the hut after it has been unoccupied and cold.
9. Bunk area
a. Find your numbered bunk
- The hut has capacity for 38 guests and is often fully booked. Respect the hut and your fellow guests and keep your own gear tidy, organized.
- When you book your spot at the Kees and Claire Hut, you are now prompted to choose your bunk. Please find your corresponding bunk when you arrive.There is also a corresponding cubby on the bunk deck to store your pack.
b. Bunk room temperature
- The bunk floor is heated to ~8C in the winter and not any higher. In the summer, the furnace is kept off and the bunk area is a comfortable temperature for sleeping. Guests are recommended to bring a summer sleeping bag for sleeping inside the hut year round.
c. Eduardo Campos Room
- This is a family room. Families get priority for using this room. If an individual with a guide dog is present at the hut, they will be asked to use the family room (if it isn’t occupied by a family).
- If you have reserved a bunk in this room and are able to move when other guests have the aforementioned priority criterion, understand you should move voluntarily to another bunk-room.
- This room’s door should always be unlocked. Should you find this door is locked, the code for the key-pad lock is 1234.
10. Toilets
- The toilets are a urine diversion design. This means that urine will flow toward the front of the bowl into a pipe that leads to a holding tank in the basement. Solid waste falls onto a conveyor belt. The conveyor belt is to be emptied of solids, only excrement or toilet paper, by the user. The user depresses the pedal on the right-hand side of the toilet a minimum of ten times to drop the waste into a bin in the waste room below.
- Do not leave even a tiny piece of toilet paper on the belt. Do not put anything other than toilet paper in the toilet.
- Do not urinate anywhere other than the toilets.
11. Starlink wifi
- You may notice that the hut is equipped with Starlink internet. This is exclusively for emergency and operational purposes. Guests will not obtain internet access under any circumstances.
- Guests to the hut are recommended to travel with a satellite communication device.
- Guests may be able to obtain cellular connectivity at the hut either on the deck or on the small knoll located immediately West of the hut and having communication with the transmitter located on the top of Whistler mountain.
12. Emergency contact
Ambulance: 911
Police: 911
Search and Rescue: 911
Should an emergency arise, please contact 911. After emergency services are contacted, contact the operations manager right away. He can be reached at opsmanager@spearheadhuts.org.