About Fernie

Congratulations on your engagement. Get married in Fernie and make this the most romantic and unforgettable event of your life.

Fernie is the ideal location for your celebration of love. A unique mountain community, Fernie is full of beauty, history and charm. Located in the breathtaking mountains of the Canadian Rockies, Fernie is a year round resort town with endless options for winter excitement and summer play. And Fernie Alpine Resort is considered one of the premier ski and snowboard destinations in Canada.

Fernie is located east of Vancouver, B.C., site of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games; north of Glacier National Park, Montana; and 321 kilometres (190 miles) southwest of the Calgary International Airport.

With some wedding planning assistance you can arrive at your wedding day with serenity and enjoy one of the most joyful and magical days of your life. We Connect ensures that all wedding plans are executed with the utmost attention to detail, allowing the bridal couple and wedding party to enjoy every moment of their magical day ... stress free!

Fernie Legend: The Ghostrider

Lying in the shadows, a legend waits for the afternoon sun. On a summer evening, out of Mt. Hosmer's face, comes the Ghostrider - the shadow of a distinctive horse and rider, the ghost some say of an angry Indian Chief and his jilted daughter pursuing William Fernie.

As legend tells it, William Fernie was courting an Indian Princess to learn the source of her sacred black stone necklace. It is said that after learning the secret location of the Morrissey Coal Seams, Fernie stopped seeing the Princess and the tribe's medicine woman placed a curse on the Elk Valley.

Residents of Fernie feared the curse was real after several tragedies struck the town. Fire reduced the town to smoldering rubble in 1904 and again in 1908. In 1916, the Elk River flooded and in 1917 there was a mining disaster. A public ceremony in 1964 officially lifted the curse. Members of the Kootenay Tribes assembled in Fernie and Chief Red Eagle (Ambrose Gravelle) and Fernie Mayor James White smoked a pipe of peace.

Although the curse was lifted over 35 years ago, on summer evenings, the ghost of an angry Indian chief and his jilted daughter still rides above Fernie and their legend lives on in the shadows of the mountain.

The Legend of the Griz

As the legend goes, Fernie was not always blessed with an abundance of powder. It took a local man - a hero in these parts - to coax the snow from the sky, gracing the region with an astounding annual snowfall of over 29 feet. His name is the Griz.

As any local will tell you, in 1879, the Griz was born in a ferocious grizzly bear's den, prompting an epic battle between child and bear. The townsfolk, fearful of the noise heard that night, sent out a party in search of the cause. One man saw a boy wearing a bear coat and hat, but because no one believed what the man had seen, the sighting was almost forgotten.

The Griz was last seen by backcountry tourers ascending the peaks above Fernie Alpine Resort in a heavy snowstorm. No longer a boy, the Griz is of average height with broad shoulders six feet wide, holding an eight-foot musket. The skiers watched the 300-pound Griz shoot his giant musket into the clouds, coaxing snow to fall.

In his honour, the people of Fernie hold a carnival in early spring to celebrate the snow. Sporting events, competitions, parades and parties mark the festivities. The person who most typifies the Griz during the week is made honorary Griz for the rest of the year. Pleased with these celebrations, the Griz blankets the mountains with some of the best powder in the world.

Join the celebrations at this year's carnival. For event dates check out www.fernie.com