“You’re looking down at 1,500 stairs,” says Colin Bell, as we gape from the platform atop the new ski jumps in Whistler Olympic Park on a late summer visit.

The $27-million (US) facility will host men’s ski jumping events as well as men’s Nordic events, combining jumping and cross-country skiing.

The ski jumper will leave a downward-sloping solid-ice platform at speeds up to 95 kilometers an hour. A very good jump will be about 140 meters (459 feet).

“If you like to shovel, apply now to VANOC 2010,” jokes the park staffer, referring to the Vancouver-based committee overseeing the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, to be held in Vancouver and Whistler from Feb. 12 to March 21.

Bell is serious. Because someone has to clear the snow from those 1,500 steps running down the sides of two jumps (one slightly larger than the other, and between which the athlete chooses). On the upside, the steps (for staff and officials only, of course) will be an ideal vantage point from which to watch this popular spectator sport.

But there are more pleasurable ways to experience the Olympic venues of Whistler. By summer 2010 you’ll be again be able visit this park, ride this ski-jump chairlift, and take in the spectacular views of the Tantalus Mountains. As well, cross-country and snowshoe trails in the park will be open to the public (for a fee) from Nov. 21, 2009 until Jan. 10, 2010, and after the Olympics.

The Olympic Torch Relay began its 45,000-kilometer (28,000 mile) circuitous journey in B.C.’s capital of Victoria Oct. 30. Over 106 days, the Olympic flame will pass through 1,000 communities, from the Inuit village of Qausuittuq (also called Resolute Bay) in the northern territory of Nunavut to Cape Spear in Newfoundland.

In the West, the flame will visit remote aboriginal communities like Bella Bella on B.C.’s Inside Passage, and the UNESCO World Heritage Site called Head-Smashed-in-Buffalo-Jump in southern Alberta, as well as innumerable larger centers. On Feb. 11 it arrives in Vancouver for the opening of the Olympic and Paralympic games.

Of the unusual plan to visit to so many small and remote communities—it will be the longest Olympic Torch Relay to take place in a single country—VANOC CEO John Furlong says: “Rule one was that nobody gets left out. We’re going to places we’d never heard of, and probably would never be able to get to except through something like this.

“This will be a chance for every Canadian to engage with the Olympic games in their own way. This will, for many people, be their Olympic games. And it’s a chance for the world to see our country.”

And whether torch carriers run in balmy Tofino on Vancouver Island, or frigid Iqualuit on Baffin Island, their presence will be memorable. Adds Furlong: “When you carry the Olympic flame—and I have carried the flame—you have this sense that you’re holding something quite precious, and that you have a kind of special place in history yourself.”

And a bonus for relay-watchers: the following relay stops in the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia are among the most scenic destinations in the country.

Victoria, October 30

The arrival by air of the Olympic flame from Olympia, Greece, the site of the first Olympic games, and the lighting of the cauldron, marked “the beginning of the end” of a 14-year planning process, Furlong says.

With the backdrop of the 1898 Legislature buildings and 1908 Empress Hotel, both beautifully illuminated at night, the torch-lighting location drew attention to this city’s Victorian-era architecture, lush vegetation and proximity to the ocean.

Nearby is the Royal BC Museum, where dramatic galleries examine the province’s history and natural environments. An exhibit of vessels by gifted Scottish silversmiths, running to Jan. 10, is a reminder that Victoria is the place to revel in High Tea—English-style. It’s also a city of gardens, among them the Butchart Gardens.

Beyond the city, farms generate an enviable culinary culture. Victoria is also a cycling city—with routes that include the 60-kilometer (37 mile) Galloping Goose Trail from the BC Ferries Terminal at Schwarz Bay to Vancouver Island’s southwest tip. Whale-watching, kayaking, golfing and beach walking—even surfing—are realities almost year-round in this small Canadian warm belt.

From Victoria, the Olympic flame—whose means of travel includes plane, native canoe, snowmobile, tractor, mountain bike, ferry and horse-drawn carriage—travels north on Vancouver Island, to the Queen Charlotte Islands and Yukon Territory, and the rest of Canada. On day 76 on its long trek, it arrives back in the West, in Edmonton, Alberta.

Edmonton, January 13

The North Saskatchewan River flows smack through this provincial capital, creating a vast valley with 150 kilometers (93 miles) of trails for walking, cycling, snow showing and cross-country skiing. This central Albertan city is also the gateway to Elk Island National Park, a sanctuary for prairie bison and moose, and Jasper National Park in the Canadian Rockies.

At Fort Edmonton Park, with 70 period buildings, the city’s era as a fur-trading post comes alive. You can stay in the park’s 1920s-style Hotel Selkirk and ride an old streetcar, steam train or horse-drawn carriage.

Edmonton’s August Fringe Theatre Festival is among the largest fringe festivals in the world. And when the Olympic flame arrives on the evening of Jan. 13, crowds will gather in Sir Winston Churchill Square in the Downtown Arts District. This urban park includes an outdoor amphitheater, art gallery, theaters, cinemas and public garden.

Calgary, January 18

This southern Albertan city holds an important place in Canadian Olympic history: it was here, in 1988, that Canada hosted its only other winter games. So the evening the flame returns to its Olympic Plaza will be a nostalgic one.

“We’ll be re-igniting the spirit of the Olympics,” says City of Calgary events planner Garth Jones of a crowd expected to include former Olympians—perhaps gold-medalists like speed-skater Catriona Le May Doan and skeleton racer Duff Gibson—as well as 2010 medal hopefuls.

World Cup competitions in free-style skiing, snowboarding, luge, curling and long-track speed skating take place here between November and February.

A youthful city within an easy drive of the Rockies foothills, Calgary offers backcountry hiking, fishing, mountain biking and skiing. It also boasts a lively nightlife. The big annual event is the Calgary Stampede in July.

Banff, January 20

All stops will be out Jan. 20 when the flame arrives in the town of Banff in Banff National Park. In a downtown park, the Canadian Tenors—four young belters, newfound superstars—will sing their signature “Because We Believe,” while the group Bomba! will add Latin vibes. “We’re going to really light things up,” promises event organizer Stuart Back. The event will include a performance of the “snow dance”—a kind of wild-man stomp brought to Canada in the late 1800s by Swiss mountaineers.

The park’s winter resorts of Sunshine and Norquay (near Banff) and Lake Louise attract downhill skiers from around the world. But the bigger season in the park—6,641 square kilometers (2,564 square miles) of mountains, glaciers, forests, meadows and rivers—is summer, with hiking, rafting, fishing, canoeing, kayaking, and trail riding and packhorse trekking.

Wildlife watching happens just about everywhere. In Banff itself attractions include the Gondola and Upper Hot Springs pools on Sulphur Mountain and golf at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. Accommodation includes rustic mountain lodges with fine dining. Among architectural and cultural treasures are the Scottish-baronial Banff Springs Hotel and Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies. Opened in 1968 by Peter Whyte and his Boston-born wife Catharine Robb, both noted artists, the museum is a celebration of mountain history, culture and artistic accomplishment.

Okanagan Valley, January 25-26

Extending from Osoyoos, near the Canada-U.S. border north to Shuswap Lake, this is a landscape of sage-covered hills and huge lakes, the largest of which is the 120-kilometer- (75 mile-) long Lake Okanagan.

Given reliably dry, hot summers, the Okanagan is prime grape-growing territory. It supports more than 100 wineries, some renowned. Wine festivals take place in autumn and spring. A winter festival—a celebration of “ice wine” made from frozen grapes—is held at the Sunpeaks Resort near Kamloops, to the northwest.

The Okanagan has an equally illustrious reputation as a grower of apples, cherries, peaches, apricots, plums and pears—and from summer through fall you can buy them by the tub at fruit stands along its spine-like Highway 97.

The first Okanagan cauldron lighting will take place Jan. 25 at the South Okanagan Event Centre in Penticton, a city beloved for its hot summers, modestly priced motels, sandy beaches and water sports.

Floating on big inflated tires down a canal that connects Okanagan and Skaha lakes is a popular summer pastime. Another is driving the nearby Naramata Bench road (16 kilometers or 10 miles), lined with orchards, vineyards and small wineries.

Golfing, fishing, boating, camping and wildlife viewing continue almost year-round in the Okanagan. While hiking and biking trails on the route of the former Kettle Valley Railway bisects the entire Okanagan Valley, the portion through the Myra Canyon, near more northerly Kelowna is particularly picturesque.

The Olympic torch continues to Kelowna, where, on the evening of Jan. 25 local athletes, holding candles, will light the “torch route” to the cauldron.

Big White Ski Resort, near here, and Silver Star, near Vernon, attract skiers for their dry powder snow, family friendliness and ski-in ski-out accommodation. Another option is Apex Mountain Resort near Penticton.

Finally, the torch relay arrives in Vernon Jan. 26. This is cross-country territory, and the Sovereign Lake Nordic Centre, with 50 kilometers (31 miles) of trails within Silver Star Provincial Park, will host ten national cross-country teams for pre-Olympics training. And from Jan. 29, Vernon will hop with its 50th 10-day Winter Carnival—including an ice palace and a youth Nordic competition.

Whistler, February 5

“February 5th is a watershed date for Whistler—when we’ll really feel that the Olympics are coming,” says Christa Vandeberg of the resort municipality. “From this moment on we’re going to looking beyond our neighborhood and welcoming the world.”

“Hopefully it will be a clear day, after a fresh dump of snow,” she adds. Members of the native Lil’wat nation will welcome the crowd to the Whistler Plaza. There will be live music and “roving characters” A torch carrier will arrive and light the cauldron.

During the games, Olympic alpine events take place on ten per cent of Whistler Mountain. The remaining ski terrain—the largest in North America—remains open to the public. Olympic Nordic combined, biathlon, cross-country and ski jumping events run in the Whistler Olympic Park to the south, while bobsled, luge and skeleton teams will compete at the Whistler Sliding Centre on Blackcomb Mountain.

From May 2010, Enjoy Tours of Vancouver will again take groups into Whistler Olympic Park, where you can ride the chairlift to the ski jumps. And from early next winter, Canadian bobsled team members will host bobsled rides at the Whistler Sliding Centre.

In summer, an equally big season, hikers have access to 50 kilometers (31 miles) of alpine trails via lifts that include the Peak2Peak Gondola, carrying passengers for 4.4 kilometers (2.7 miles) between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains.

In the valleys below you can canoe, kayak and white-water raft. Or seek out black bears with a local expert. Whistler Mountain Bike Park provides 200 kilometers (124 miles) of lift-serviced trails, while the 35-kilometer (22 mile) Valley Trail attracts cyclists of all ages. More than a dozen golf courses include four rated for championship players.

The Blackcomb Base Adventure Zone—with zip-lines, trail rides and more—is for kids—and adults. Art galleries, featuring exceptional aboriginal art, add a cultural component. Hotels, most with spas, are often spectacular. Dining is world-class.

Vancouver, February 11-12

Sandwiched between ocean, mountains and mighty river, Vancouver is blessed by a great setting. Stanley Park, on the downtown peninsula, is 1,000 acres of mostly forest with lakes and trails. Within it is the renowned Vancouver Aquarium.

The much-loved Seawall is a walking and cycling route around the entire park and downtown peninsula, including lake-like False Creek. Granville Island, on False Creek, draws visitors for to its artisan studios, public market, restaurants and theaters.

Grouse Mountain, with hiking in summer, and skiing and in winter is reached via a gondola from North Vancouver. Nearby is the spectacular Capilano River canyon and Capilano Suspension Bridge. This is also a city of gardens, among them the VanDusen Botanical Garden and the Japanese Nitobe Gardens at the University of B.C.

From Coal Harbour and Canada Place, on Burrard Inlet, to fashionable Yaletown in the south of the downtown, the city is walkable. Buses and passenger ferries run to Granville Island; a new rapid transit line connects the inner city and airport.

The city is known for well-priced restaurants and pan-Asian and West Coast cuisines. Cultural venues range from the Vancouver Art Gallery, right downtown, to the modern Centre in Vancouver for the Performing Arts.

Marking the flame’s arrival in Vancouver Feb. 11, a celebration will attract a crowd to David Lam Park on North False Creek. And as torch-carriers continue the relay through city neighborhoods, 10,000 Vancouverites are expected to greet them. Last stop for the Olympic Torch Relay will be Vancouver’s BC Place Stadium on Feb. 12. Events of that evening remain a closely guarded secret.

Furlong says only, “It will be so much fun to be there that Friday night, to feel the atmosphere, and the sense that the whole world is watching when the cauldron is lit—and for the biggest TV audience in Olympic winter game history. I don’t think there will be another moment in our entire Olympic project quite like it.”

Whether or not you or experience a cauldron lighting, all these towns and cities, with year-round attractions, merit a visit after the Olympic flame has returned to Greece.