Spanky’s Ladder (Garnet, Diamond, Ruby and Saphire Bowls) is our favorite area on Whistler-Blackcomb for advanced terrain, especially on powder days or even the days that follow. To be completely transparent we are not experts on Whistler-Blackcomb. We’ve been there a few times and have figured out to get to most spots but we learn something new with every trip. After the last trip I wanted to share some of learnings on Spanky’s ladder, at least to orient people when they’re exploring the area for the first time. It’s an intimidating area since there is very little signage either on the trail map or in the area. The lack of guidance contributes to the allure of the area but I’m hoping this post will help some get started. There is lots to explore past what’s described below.
As a warning, Spanky’s ladder is for advanced or expert skiers. The area is rated double black diamonds and is not for the faint of heart. Please explore at your own risk.
Getting There
Spanky’s ladder actually describes a brief uphill hike to access the Garnet, Diamond, Ruby and Saphire Bowls. The ladder, more like steps made in the snow by skiiers, is accessed by taking the Glacier Express chair and exiting to the chairlift left. Spanky’s ladder is on top of a ridge to the skier’s right shortly down from the chairlift.
Basic Navigation
It’s hard to initially tell which direction to go at the top of Spanky’s Ladder. There is no trail map and there are multiple ways to get into the bowls. The Garnet bowl is right in front of you while the other bowls are arranged from skier’s right to skier’s left as Sapphire, Diamond and Ruby. We’ve found that ease of access goes the opposite way.
When viewed from the top you see this.
Ruby Bowl
The easiest bowl to access is the Ruby bowl. It’s the bowl furthest to the skier’s left from the top. Once you drop in from the top of the ladder hug the ridge to the left until the point shown above. You’ll then veer right a little before turning left into the bowl. You can also access through a high entrance that includes a hike. The bowl itself is a great size. It narrows about two thirds of the way day before it opens up again. You’ll likely see a couple of tracks to get you back to the Blackcomb glacier. Stay to your left to get as much speed as you can when hitting the Glacier since it’s a relatively flat ski out.
Diamond Bowl
The Diamond bowl is the middle of the gemstone bowls. We find it most easy to access just off center, shown via the first arrow path in the annotated picture above. I’ve seen this referred to as Diamond left. This path into the bowl drops you in via a side shoot which is reasonably wide and brings you to the middle of the bowl. There are also paths to enter via the top or right side of the bowl but we haven’t figured those out quite yet.
The Diamond bowl narrows shortly after getting in but then opens up into a steep and wide bowl. It’s not as well tracked as the Ruby bowl so you get access to some fresh snow longer.
Sapphire Bowl
The Sapphire bowl took us the longest time to figure out and for good reason. The entrances to this area are all very challenging and should be approached with caution. This bowl is for expert freeskiers. We found our way into the bowl by hugging the right side of the Garnet Bowl and following it around the ridge. There is a narrow chute as you approach the cliff area underneath the bomb tram that isn’t wide enough to be side stepped so you’ve got to bomb through. The run out is relatively flat so it’s not bad once you get through.
Once in the Sapphire bowl there it isn’t too complicated to get out to the Blackcomb Glacier although there are some chutes back to the Diamond bowl that we’ll likely check out in the future.
Good luck at Spanky’s!