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  1. #1
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    Baldface lodge has Norwalk virus

    http://www.biglines.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=10646"]As posted by a (former?) client of Baldface lodge.[/URL]

    Quote Originally Posted by ws2001
    Having just returned... I wanted to let other customers know the deal - because Baldface didn't let any of us know what was up until we were already in their contaminated facilities!!

    They got infected at the start of the season. Have have up to 30 of 36 guests sick. They even closed down for 4 days the 16th to 19th to try to clean up... the results? Only 15 of 36 guests got sick the 20th to 22nd (our trip). None of the guests were told before they got up there either. Pretty slimy. Norwalk comes from contaminated water and/or food (or from an infected person handling the kitchen) Google for the symptons and what not. As soon as we got infected, we were pulled from skiing - refunds to be determined. Not what I signed up for!

    Their lodge seems to leave a lot to be desired from what I've heard too. The new chalets are pretty rough too - no carpet, no baseboards, unfinished outside, etc. etc. I worry about the drinking water supply - I'd guess that's where the infection is.

    Just a heads up

    Nothing like puking and diarrhea in a lodge when it's just dumped snow and the sun is shining :cry:
    You are what you eat.
    ---------------------------------------------------
    There's no such thing as bad snow, just shitty skiers.

  2. #2
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    That would be less good.

  3. #3
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    He just returned but he's never been to their lodge?
    Their lodge seems to leave a lot to be desired from what I've heard too
    Elvis has left the building

  4. #4
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    I'd never heard of Norwalk virus before reading this thread, although I've been to Norwalk CA more times than I can remember.

    [cut 'n paste]"Norwalk virus (NV), a prototype virus in the "Norwalk-like virus" (NLV) genus of the family Caliciviridae causes acute epidemic gastroenteritis in humans of all ages in both developed and developing countries [1]. Norwalk and Norwalk-like human caliciviruses (HuCVs) are spread by ingestion of contaminated food or water and by secondary person-to-person transmission [2, 3]. NV and NLVs are difficult to study because they cannot be cultivated in cell culture, and an animal model is not available for virus production or experimentation. In addition, very low concentrations of virus are excreted in stool samples of infected individuals, and most excreted antigen is in the form of soluble or proteolytically cleaved capsid protein [4]." [/cut 'n paste]
    Daniel Ortega eats here.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by cj001f
    He just returned but he's never been to their lodge?
    Ya I read that and wondered the same thing but I think he is just using poor grammar. There is the lodge, and there are cabins. I think maybe he hasn't been in the cabins or perhaps he never went in the lodge but only stayed in the cabins. maybe he was too busy puking and shitting to remember what the place looked like.
    Last edited by Beaver; 01-24-2006 at 10:04 AM.
    You are what you eat.
    ---------------------------------------------------
    There's no such thing as bad snow, just shitty skiers.

  6. #6
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    That's too bad, Jeff and Paula P. are great people and have done amazing things with the terrain and their operation.

    I was lucky to visit them before the lodge and cabins were built. Got to ski the goods with a bunch of professional riders. I hope their business rebounds from this setback.

    Looks like my trip will be to Red/Whitewater/Valhalla/and Rettalack this spring.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Viva
    I'd never heard of Norwalk virus before reading this thread
    It's actually been in the news a fair amount the last couple years. I remember a couple stories where cruise ships have had outbreaks. It seems to be the kind of thing that, once it takes hold, makes a lot of people real uncomfortable and can be tough to get rid of.

  8. #8
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    I'd say buddy just had a really shitty time, felt like he had been bent over, rid hard, and put up wet, and figured others should know what a bunch of scumbags they are.

    Just a guess though.

  9. #9
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    Oct 2003
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    Quote Originally Posted by JR
    I'd say buddy just had a really shitty time, felt like he had been bent over, rid hard, and put up wet, and figured others should know what a bunch of scumbags they are.

    Just a guess though.
    Heh. And it's just a coincidence you plug Ice Creek Lodge?
    Elvis has left the building

  10. #10
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    I was at Baldface on a last-minute cancellation last January ($300 instead of $1500 for three days of keeeeller pow!!) and Jeff was really harping on the Norwalk thing. They had hand sanitizer at the bar and various locations throughout the lodge. The food and guides were great, I thought. They had the uheated hallway with kind of a attached trailer ghetto setup for each room when I was there. They probably did some work on the sleeping cabins and perhaps water system since then...The lodge itself was really nice though.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
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    I'm the one who posted the original message. Yes I was there. Paid for 3 days of powder, only got part of 1 day (day 1 includes a couple wasted hours of hide the beacon)

    I made a typo... "what I've heard" should have been "what I'd heard"

    Ie. I'd heard the lodge was nice. It wasn't. Puking and shitting didn't help, but even without that, the lodge is unfinished. The cabins are unfinished. I'd heard that Baldface was THE cat skiing place. It's a far cry from any heli operation I've ever seen.

    The health authority has been contacted. They are seeking to speak with additional guests.

    The hand sanitizer is useless. It doesn't work on viruses, only bacteria.

    The lodge lacks hot water supply - no hot water when the kitchen dishwasher was running. So much for properly washing your hands.

  12. #12
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    Jan 2006
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    And snowfunk? Last January? As in 2005? They had norwalk issues then too?!?!

  13. #13
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    Jun 2004
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    Yep, January 14-16, 2005. He did mention norwalk in his speil at the start and stressed hand washing. I'm not sure as to the extent of any previous cases up there. Sorry you had such a lousy time. We had an epic three days of 20" of blower, blue skies and no wind. The legendary Gerry Lopez was up there then too btw.

  14. #14
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    Two completely different operations. One run by local Canadian boys, one run by dirtbags from Lake Tahoe. One is cat skiing that has taken over a huge chunk of mountains while the other is ski touring and has a minimal impact. I have not interests in either beyond the fact that I know the owners in each case. I like one owner and do not care for the other. So in a nutshell, that is why I would plug Ice Creek Lodge. That and I was hoping some of the brothers might get to scoop up some cheap weeks that are unbooked in some terrain that is stellar.

    Quote Originally Posted by ws2001
    The hand sanitizer is useless. It doesn't work on viruses, only bacteria.
    Pretty funny. That gives you some kind of idea how bright Jeff is.

  15. #15
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    They should market themselves as a cat operation/fat camp*- make some turns and then magically shit those extra pounds away!


    *probably called "Fat Cats."

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
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    How can Norwalk virus be prevented?

    Wash hands with soap and warm water after toilet visits and before preparing or eating food.
    Cook all shellfish thoroughly before eating.
    Wash raw vegetables before eating.
    Dispose of sewage in a sanitary manner.
    Food handlers with symptoms of Norwalk-like illness should not prepare or touch food.

  17. #17
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    Hopefully it wasn't one of the employees that gave it to people. As in a carrier. Just cause, my ex's dad had a couple really great mexican restaurants in corvallis. One of his prep cooks had hep or t/b, I forget which, and the negative press ended up bankrupting him.

  18. #18
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    Stupid fucking Snowcats?

    Seriously? Someone is blaming this on motorized transport ski facilities?

  19. #19
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    Nov 2002
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    Not that I am aware of.

    Quote Originally Posted by cj001f
    The biggest difference between those two operations is that Ice Creek Lodge went looking for terrain that nobody uses. Baldface came out of the bar, looked across the street and said, "We'll take that!!" Not too imaginative on their part considering the terrain is a real compromise. It is also short sighted of any government agency to grant such a large tenure immediately adjacent to a rapidly growing town. Most of the folks moving in are outdoorsy types who will increasingly need more area to go and recreate. Why should they be forced to drive for miles to go recreate in peace when it was right next door.

    Add to that a community that has the largest single piece of private forest lands in North America immediately south of town, starting south of Ymir Peak and running basically to Salmo, from the height of land beyond the highway to Salmo and out to Kootenay Lake, including the shoreline. This piece of land is gated and presently used by two commercial ski operations under arrangement with Darkwoods, the German company that owns it. Off limits to the general public, period.

    We also have another commercial ski operation with it's tenure immediately west and south of town, encompassing terrain that has been used for years by locals. The town is basically boxed in by these operations, leaving less and less for the local population. I think that is silly. I don't hate commercial ski operations. I just think that something should be left for the local population to use without travelling for hours. That amount should reflect future growth in the population. It does not.
    Last edited by JR; 01-25-2006 at 09:36 PM.

  20. #20
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    Somehow I remember Kootenay Heli Skiing had the rights to (and skied) that terrain back in the 70's early 80's. So, I wouldn't say they just stepped out of the bar and said I want that.
    But, this is about the Norwalk and not about Canadian vs American owners isn't it? I believe it was a guest that brought it up there. Once a virus like that gets in an isolated lodge like that, it could easily survive for weeks, if not the whole winter. They've had a hospital cleaning crew up there twice (closing for 4 days the last time) and it still seems to persist...bummer! It could be any lodge like that, but it's there, much to Juniors enjoyment.

  21. #21
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    I'm not trying to make this into a Canadian vs. American issue. We've got decent operators locally who are American that a considerate of locals. They call themselves Valhalla Powdercats.

    And I think saying that it is to my enjoyment is taking it a bit far. My heart does not bleed for the owners/operators, that's for sure. As for everyone else, shitting through the eye of a needle for a week or two has gotta suck.

    I guess its true what they say, Baldface does have the runs.

  22. #22
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    Good luck on the local land use issues JR.

    There always seem to be snakes in paradise.

  23. #23
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    Norwalk is pretty mild in nature when you consider all the types of viruses around. It's normally over and done with in 12-24 hours. The fact that this place has a longer term, ongoing problem, is what is at issue here.

    It's probably not an infiected employee at this point. It might have started that way, but people tend to have it and be done with it. It's now likely living on some uncleaned contact surfaces and will continue to until a) there are no more people around or b) it's cleaned up. Most of the cruise ships that get this thing going end up closing up for a week for a thorough cleaning.

    Quote Originally Posted by extreeski
    Hopefully it wasn't one of the employees that gave it to people. As in a carrier. Just cause, my ex's dad had a couple really great mexican restaurants in corvallis. One of his prep cooks had hep or t/b, I forget which, and the negative press ended up bankrupting him.
    Could have been TB or HepaA, which can both spread easily. Most restaurants never make it 6 months after getting their name in the paper because of an outbreak.

  24. #24
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    This is pretty much apropos of nothing, but I was interested in what JR said about the private land south of town. Darkwoods owns 53,000 hectares or about 131,000 acres. While this is a big chunk of land it's hardly the biggest piece in N. America. International Paper just sold a 1.1 million acre chunk in Maine, for example. But B.C. is 96% Crown Land, so I have no doubt that the Darkwoods property is huge there.

  25. #25
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    I'm impressed! You're right, I mistated that. "One of the largest" that should have read. Either way, for this part of the world, its big,private and off limits and contributes to decrease in lands available to the general public.

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