Our Story

Look, we're not gonna pretend this whole thing started with some grand master plan. Back in 2012, what we had was a beat-up cabin, more enthusiasm than sense, and a stubborn belief that the wilderness around Revelstoke deserved something better than the usual cookie-cutter resort experience.

The Empire wasn't built in a day - hell, it wasn't even called an "empire" for the first three years. We just knew that people were tired of choosing between roughing it in the backcountry or being trapped in some sterile spa resort where the most "wild" thing was the wifi password.

What We're Actually About

Here's the thing - the mountains don't need us to improve them. They're already perfect. What we're doing is just making it easier for people to actually experience that perfection without freezing their asses off or eating dehydrated camping food for a week straight.

We're not about sanitizing nature or putting it behind glass. If you want a completely controlled environment, there's probably a resort in Vegas that'll suit you better. But if you want to get genuinely close to the wild while still sleeping in a real bed and eating food that doesn't come from a foil pouch? Yeah, we can work with that.

Every decision we make comes back to one question: does this respect the land or just exploit it? Sometimes that means saying no to stuff that'd make us more money. But we're in this for the long haul, and you can't sustain what you don't protect.

The People Behind It

Marcus Thornwell

Co-Founder & Operations Director

Former backcountry guide who got tired of watching people miss out on the mountains because the barrier to entry was too high. Spent fifteen years leading expeditions before deciding to build something permanent. Still spends more time on trails than in the office, which drives our accountant nuts.

Elena Nordstrom

Co-Founder & Hospitality Director

Hospitality veteran who'd worked at enough sterile five-star hotels to know what was missing - actual personality. Grew up in northern BC and never quite adjusted to city life. Handles everything from guest experiences to keeping Marcus from making impulsive expansion decisions at 2 AM.

Chef Raymond Kask

Executive Chef

Trained in Vancouver, got disillusioned with restaurant culture, moved to the mountains to "find himself" or whatever. Found himself cooking for us instead. Takes the farm-to-table thing seriously - like, he'll actually refuse to serve something if the ingredients aren't right. We respect that stubbornness.

Sage Blackwood

Lead Wilderness Guide

Third-generation mountain guide with encyclopedic knowledge of every trail, peak, and wildlife pattern within a hundred clicks. Joined us in 2016 and basically redefined what our expedition programs could be. Has forgotten more about these mountains than most people will ever know.