Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in British Columbia is set to host the North American Ski Mountaineering Championships ©Getty Images

Steep Dreams, a three-day festival designed to celebrate skiing and ski mountaineering, is set to double up as host of the North American Ski Mountaineering Championships from tomorrow.

Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in British Columbia is scheduled to host vertical, individual and team races across senior and junior age groups.

Action is set to begin tomorrow with the vertical race, as well as teaching clinics, opportunities to try out the course and practice skills.

An individual race, one of four on the Canada Cup circuit, is scheduled for Saturday (March 26), with skiers of all abilities invited to compete alongside North America’s fastest ski mountaineering racers.

Action will take place on a mass start ski mountaineering course designed to match International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF) criteria, with multiple ascents and descents and mandatory backpack sections, as well as 1600 metres of vertical gain.

Sunday (March 27) is set to feature a long distance teams race, with teams of two set to tackle some of the resort’s most challenging terrain, including five distinct summits and 2500 metres of vertical gain and loss.

The top ranked North American in the men’s ISMF world rankings is Cameron Smith of the United States in 46th, while in the women’s standings the highest ranked racer from the continent is Rea Kolbl in 34th.

Ski mountaineering is scheduled to make its debut at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.