Chair Lift
Headmaster Hugh Wilkinson (1972-75) first suggested Ski Week in 1972-73. It was a bold vision: to transplant the School – all students, most teachers, medical, transportation and kitchen staff – to a mountain for a week of skiing! That first year, they went to Green Mountain, approximately 2 hours north of Shawnigan. Since then, the location for Ski Week has been Manning Park Resort, often referred to as the School’s “winter campus.”
In 2023, Shawnigan celebrated its 50th anniversary of Ski Week, an annual tradition that was missed only a few times due to a shortage of snow and the COVID-19 pandemic. While skiing is the main attraction, Ski Week is about so much more than what its name suggests. Over the years, a variety of activities have been added both on and off the hill. In addition to skiing, both downhill and cross country, there’s snowboarding and snowshoeing and winter camping. Back at the lodge, there’s skating, swimming, a bonfire, and fun Carnival activities, including snow sculptures, Reach for the Top, board games and musical performances. From inter-House events to Snow Angels, the stimulation is abundant and the bonding is guaranteed.
Only seven years after it was established, Ski Week was already recognized as the best part of the school year for its defining moments in the Shawnigan experience: “It is now an established fact that Ski Weeks are one of the most important institutions Shawnigan has.” (Lionel Wild ’79 [Groves’]) Wild’s sentiments are shared to this day – now in its fifty-first year – by students and staff alike.
In 2022, Manning Park Resort decommissioned one of its orange chair lifts and replaced it with a new quad chair. They donated it to Shawnigan Lake School in recognition of their partnership over the decades. The orange chair has been installed permanently in the new Sport Village between the Ice Arena and Gym, reminding us of that week in February when the magic happens on our winter campus.
The information presented in this write-up is based on current information available in the School's Archives and in consultation with key people who have some relevant connection to this "object." If you have further information about this "object" that you would like to contribute, please contact the School’s Advancement Office at alumni@shawnigan.ca.
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Shawnigan Lake School is an independent co-educational boarding school for ages 13 –18 on Canada’s beautiful West Coast. Our diverse, interdisciplinary and innovative programming helps shape the next generation of global leaders.
