In Search of Powder: From Whistler to the Furthest Reaches

A small portion of the good in my backyard in British Columbia. Photo: Phil Tifo

Annie Boulanger later that day scoring one of the gems of the area we were in. Also in Pemberton. Photo: Phil Tifo

This French Canadian women is a one of the veteran of backcountry snowboarding in the women’s world. I’ve seen her crash so hard trying huge stuff but always getting back up. She also hack a damn stylish slash also. Shot in Pemberton, B.C. Photo: Phil Tifo

Same spines with Annie B., but on slope. She insisted that I would come shoot on slope so that I could get a nice run as well. Anytime I get to ride as well as shoot in the same day it keeps reinforcing my reasons to keep doing what I do. Photo: Phil Tifo

Clint Allan is an Aussie who had the choice to either be pro surfer or pro snowboarder. He picked snowboarding so he could get paid to snowboard and then have time off to surf his brains out when he’s “resting." Shot in Whistler. Photo: Phil Tifo

Marc Carter is a cowboy who lives in Ten Sleep, Wyoming. If you stop by there his family owns the Ten Sleep Inn. This was shot during a heli trip to Terrace, British Columbia. Photo: Phil Tifo

One does not stumble on perfect pillow fields like this around every corner. It’s so secret, way more secret than any of your waves. If you show up there without the right person they’ll send fucking angry hungry bears at you. With laser beams. That’s how localized shit is up here, eh. This is Mathieu Crepel from Biarritz, France. Yes he also get’s barreled. Photo: Phil Tifo

This guy is like our Gerry Lopez of snowboarding, but much younger. They are both legends but like the reverse of each other. Gerry surfs and shreds, but DCP (short for David Carrier-Porcheron) shreds and surfs. It’s different. This line is a 20 minute sled (we call snowmobiles sleds) ride from the trucks near Whistler. Photo: Phil Tifo

DCP in Niseko, Japan with a front three tail grab. Unbelievable snow. You must go there. Don’t eat the radioactive fish, stick to Kobe beef. Photo: Phil Tifo

Alaska in one hell of a place. DCP live for charging those mountains. This was the last day of our trip to Haines a couple years ago. Photo: Phil Tifo

In early December, I had been spending the fall at the beach in California where my wife is from. We just had an epic swell come through and I got the call from DCP that he was going for an early cat skiing trip to Retallack, B,C, and he needed me to come shoot. All I had to do was to fly to Belligham, WA, he’d grab my snow gear in Squamish, BC where we live and would pick me up. In less than 36 hours I traded my wet suit for waist deep snow. Photo: Phil Tifo

Romain DeMarchi is an absolute power house on his –and off- his board. This was on the same trip to Haines with DCP. Along with a couple other other guys they own a rad board company called YES. Snowboards. Best boards you’ll ever ride. Photo: Phil Tifo

Speaking of the other owners of YES this is Japanese ninja style master Tadashi Fuse. This is his run right after the photo of Romain in Alaska. Photo: Phil Tifo

Tadashi ripping the shit out of a descent in Alaska. Photo: Phil Tifo

This is Tadashi again in Haines, I love how shooting from the heli gives amazing perspectives. Photo: Phil Tifo

Martin Gallant is one hell of a character and the Godfather of Canadian pro snowboarding. He paved the way to riders that are now legends. The bastard is getting barrelled in Indo until the snow flies as I type this. You should see the log cabin he just built with his brother. Insane. Photo: Phil Tifo

I first met Blair Habenitch going surfing while escaping a snow storm in Chile during a YES photoshoot trip. He smoked all our weed and we weren’t impressed to say the least. He turned out to be a really nice guy after all so we kept hanging out. Photo: Phil Tifo

Mads Jonsson is a norwegian snowboarding legend. The snow was so light that it would stay in the air for so long after a good hack. Caught at Northern Escape Heli, Terrace, B.C. Photo: Phil Tifo

This is Mads Jonsson again going huuuuge at the end of our trip to Terrace. Photo: Phil Tifo

See this, kids? This is a perfect method taught to you my Mickey Pederson executed near Whistler. Photo: Phil Tifo

I’d say this is one of my most timeless, when everything lines up so perfect moment kind of photo. Benji Ritchie styles a frontside three during Golden Hour in Whistler. Photo: Phil Tifo

Alaska is... Alaska. Go there. Photo: Phil Tifo

I shot this in Alaska while waiting for the guys to get flow up to their lines. Everywhere you look there is nothing short of breathtaking. Photo: Phil Tifo

Dave Short is a nice mellow guy who loves to chase waves just as much as snow. He’s great to shoot with because he has a cool surf style and always knows where to kick up some snow where the light is best. Late evening session in probably March in Sledland. Photo: Phil Tifo

Logan short with a casual backside 180 in front of a really nice backdrop in Whistler. Photo: Phil Tifo

Here’s YES’s fourth owner, Norwegian JP Solberg on a new jump that we had just found. He is such a good jumper it hurts. Here’s he going massive with a backside 1080 that he stomped “on the bolts”. Do you surfers say that? If not it means he stomped it like so solid it was like a skater landing square on the bolts of his trucks. Photo: Phil Tifo

Snow can offer really cool texture, JP found the perfect pocket through avalanche rumbles in Haines, Alaska. Photo: Phil Tifo