Due to early season snow storms and a base of almost a metre of snow, Whistler opened five days early on the 17th of November. Your reporter had commitments on the 17th but was able to travel up from Vancouver in the pouring rain that evening, ready for the first lift on Sunday morning.

Despite getting to the lift well before it opened, we were at the end of a long line of keen skiers and snowboarders. I have never before seen so many people clutching shiny brand new snowboards and wearing unscuffed new boots. The mood was distinctly stoked. There were only two gondolas and three chairs open (Whistler Village and Creekside gondolas, and Emerald, Franz's and Big Red chairs) but there was more than enough snow to go round.

It had snowed overnight so there was powder on and off the pistes. Shallow powder, but powder nonetheless. Ski patrol had erected ski boundary markers to prevent you from accidentally finding yourself in terrain that wasn't served by an open chair, and there were warning signs everywhere that early season conditions meant unmarked rocks and other obstacles were hiding under the tempting snow. It didn't stop lots of people (including us) from taking advantage of the easy off-piste between the runs, especially the low-consequence grassy slopes with little twiggy bushes to swerve around.

Several locals hiked the face below the Peak chair. Despite feelings of insane jealousy when we saw the pristine fresh tracks, we were way too lazy to hike ourselves. We were having too much fun finding our snowboarding legs after the summer, trying out our new gear, and exploring runs we'd never bothered to ride before. We even went and found the kids' tree fort, which made me wish I was five years old again.

The sun came out, and conditions remained astonishingly good all day, especially considering it was November and the accessible terrain was limited and being well used. The easy powder got tracked out well before lunchtime but you could still get some nice turns in some patches. Near the bottom of Big Red chair the runs were a little icy but only by West Coast standards.

There was a terrain park featuring one kicker and several picnic tables, boxes and rails. It was very popular and way too busy and intimidating for me, so I just watched from the Emerald Chair.

The only downside I have to report is that the mountain restaurants are no longer serving chilli bread bowls. I shall be writing to the management.

Whistler is due to open fully on Thursday. It's currently raining and cold in Vancouver so it should be snowing some more on the mountain. It's looking very promising for another great season.