Winter 2025-2026 Preview

Skiers ascending. Photo: Iain Sherriff-Scott

The Kees and Claire Hut opened for the winter season on November 21, marking the start of our sixth operating season.

This fall, we ran three volunteer custodian training weekends, welcoming about 80 custodians who will help operate the hut this winter. Custodians staff the hut throughout the season and assist guests in getting oriented with the facilities and systems.

As Whistler Mountain prepares to open its alpine terrain in the coming days and weeks, uphill travel on Whistler is currently permitted on designated uphill routes. We encourage all of our guests to check Whistler Blackcomb’s live terrain status map and make travel plans accordingly.

If you’re interested in volunteering with the Spearhead Huts Society, keep an eye out for future recruitment campaigns. Our next volunteer intake will open in May 2026.

Rendering of the Macbeth Hut's South-facing facade. Photo: Michael Green Architecture. 

Fundraising Update

In October, the BC Mountaineering Club (BCMC) made a generous $40,000 contribution to support four communal dining tables in the future Macbeth Hut. In recognition of this gift, the BCMC name will be proudly displayed in the hut. With this contribution and several additional gifts received in recent months, our fundraising total has now reached $4.1 million.

The Spearhead Huts Society continues to welcome supporters, partners, and backcountry enthusiasts to help bring the Macbeth Hut to life. Designed to accommodate 24 guests, the hut will play a vital role in the Spearhead Traverse experience, offering a destination for ski touring, summer mountaineering and access to some of the most spectacular terrain in Garibaldi Park.

Your generosity fuels the next chapter of the Spearhead Traverse and strengthens backcountry access and stewardship for generations to come. To learn more, please visit our donation page or connect with us to explore partnership opportunities. Thank you for your continued support—we’re grateful to everyone who chooses to be part of this journey.

Click Here to Donate to the Macbeth Hut

ACC Squamish members at last year's Gourmet Dinner event. Photo courtesy of Esteban Sanchez.

Gourmet Dinner in Barbara's Kitchen 

The Alpine Club of Canada Squamish Section will return to the Kees and Claire Hut in January for its second annual Gourmet Dinner event, a backcountry celebration of food, friendship and hut cooking creativity.

The dinner, which takes advantage of the thoroughly equipped kitchen at Kees and Claire, is a group effort where participants haul ingredients along the skin track to cook elaborate meals at the end of big ski days. 

"Deep powder, gourmet food, wine pairing, and a fantastic cake surrounded by friends from ACC Squamish during the holidays. What more can you ask for?" organizers Esteban and Gabrielle said about the upcoming trip. "This is how the idea for our Kees and Claire trip started last year. The kitchen is well-furnished, the skiing is awesome, and it feels like luxury in the backcountry."
"For this year, while we can't control how good the snow will be, we have great ideas for how we can kick dinner up a notch! Thinking of including duck confit, homemade sourdough, and of course a decadent chocolate cake, among many other things."

The kitchen at Kees and Claire is dedicated to Barbara McGeough, an accomplished interior designer, specializing in hospitality spaces and restaurants. Barbara was an early supporter of the Spearhead Huts project and an avid skier, completing the Spearhead Traverse in 2015.

Coast Mountain High Routes

Few people have documented the Coast Mountains with as much care, artistry, and knowledge as John Baldwin. His writing and photography have shaped how many of us experience the alpine, and his 2009 book Exploring the Coast Mountains on Skis remains one of the most well-loved, dog-eared staples of the Kees & Claire Hut library.

This winter, we’re excited to share that John’s newest book, Coast Mountain High Routes, will be available at the hut for guests to enjoy thanks to a generous donation from John himself. The book reflects his decades-long dedication to sharing the beauty of this region and supporting sustainable, community-driven access.

We hope visitors this season take a quiet moment in the hut’s library to flip through its pages and draw inspiration from someone who has devoted a lifetime to exploring the extraordinary mountain ranges in our backyard.

Updated Avalanche Danger Cancellation Policy

This season, we’re making a change to our Avalanche Danger Cancellation Policy, which can be found on our website at this link.

In previous years, we offered full refunds to guests during both High and Extreme avalanche conditions as forecast by Avalanche Canada. After carefully reviewing the policies of comparable public and private backcountry huts across BC—and in consultation with BC Parks—we’re adjusting our policy to offer refunds in the case of Extreme avalanche conditions. 

We know this change may affect how some groups plan their trips, and we understand that it may be disappointing for those who have relied on the previous policy. Backcountry travel will always involve a degree of uncertainty, and avalanche conditions are sometimes part of that reality.

As a non-profit organization that funds hut operations entirely through booking revenue, this shift helps ensure we can continue to maintain, staff, and operate the Kees and Claire Hut to the standard our community expects, while still offering flexibility during the most serious avalanche hazard periods.

Thank you for your understanding, and for continuing to support Spearhead Huts. Your bookings directly sustain Kees and Claire and the team who cares 
for it.