Your field of dreams in British Columbia

"When you see boot tracks up a hill, I always follow them."

You look out high across the evergreens bowing deeply before you, granting passage through your field of dreams firmly planted in Sun Peaks, a little known pocket of ski fun in British Columbia.

I’m with Ron, my ski guide, who recalls “you know, when you see boot tracks up the hill, I always follow them, you never know what you’ll find.” The sky is blue and the snow crisp underfoot as we remove our skis and dutifully follow the tracks up a short hill to the crest overlooking Gil’s backcountry.

Gil Marini, one of the resort's founders, liked to keep his powder stash safe and his back country ruled out of bounds. This naturally became the local’s favourite so they've now opened up 200 acres which stretch before us as we push off into wilderness blanketed in half a metre of fresh.

Yes, today was well worth following the boot tracks.

They call it Okenaga Champagne powder, and Sun Peaks gets 6 metres annually. To top that, there’s 2,000 hours of sun a year - hence the name of the resort. Simple really.

Born wild in the mountains in 1993, Sun Peaks is home to some of the greatest back country skiing you’ll encounter without a chopper. At 4,270 acres of skiable terrain, its the 2nd largest resort in Canada, but unlike her big brother Whistler, this place gets few crowds, and unbelievably one of the cheapest on-mountain accommodation and lift ticket we’ve ever paid. And this was peak season. Come off peak and you’ll probably never see a lift queue.

It’s not the easiest resort to get to. To get this good means you have to travel a little further. But we all know that's usually well rewarded. If you're arriving by air, you'll need to fly into either Kamloops or Kelowna airport. This is when the fun starts. Once seated in your tiny twin engine plane, your heart might skip a beat but you know you're getting closer to the adventure.

After an exciting landing, you pick your car at the airport and drive a couple of hours until you hit Sun Peaks - quite literally the prettiest tyrollean style ski village this hemisphere has seen. The main street is blocked from cars allowing access to only sleighs and husky dogs that blink at the fairy lights perpetually lining their path.

The next morning you'll be the one blinking though, as you glide effortlessly through the glades, champagne powder billowing up into your face, goggles in serious windscreen wiper mode. I always thought you needed a chopper to get it this good, but follow Ron and you'll find heaven waits after just a few steps following those boot tracks.