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In the ski world, Warren Miller is a cult figure. The producer, director, writer and founder of Warren Miller Productions (Warren Miller Entertainment didn’t start until 1989) has created more than 750 sports flicks since 1949; most focus on skiing and snowboarding. Miller’s movies are renowned for their stunning photography and witty narrative humor. Though the icon was born in Hollywood, he spends two-thirds of each year on Orcas Island. Miller recently took a break from writing his autobiography to tell us where he likes to travel and where he goes to ski.

What made you settle in Washington, on Orcas Island?

My wife brought me to Washington, but it was the scenery that inspired us to settle on Orcas. The first time I came to the San Juans, my wife and I visited San Juan Island and took a bike ride from Friday Harbor to Roche Harbor. When I got on ferry with Mount Baker in the background and sailboats in foreground, I was hooked. We bought our place up on Orcas Island in 1992. I had to write a script during one visit, my wife had four or five days with nothing to do, and started looking at real estate. You can pretty much piece together what happened next.

When you venture off the island, where do you go?

We have a dock right in front of our house, so I spend a lot of time in my boats. We’ve been cruising in a 20-foot runabout for three years. We have a bigger boat, a 47-footer, as well. We take the boat around the San Juans a lot, but we prefer to go up to British Columbia—to Victoria, or farther up through the Gulf Islands there. We’ve taken the boats as far north as Glacier Bay, Alaska, which is about 1,000 miles away. When we fly, we love heading from Victoria to Tofino, B.C.

Where do you prefer to ski?

I hate picking favorites, but I spend a lot of time at Crystal Mountain on the northeast edge of Mount Rainier National Park. The child of a dear friend of mine owns the place. I like it because it’s higher than Snoqualmie and not nearly as crowded. When you’re retired like I am you have the pleasure of going during the week and not on the weekend. That means you have the entire mountain to yourself.

What’s your take on the Winter Olympics being held in your proverbial backyard?

The terrain at Whistler is fabulous for it, that’s for sure; great mountains, good trails, excellent facilities and a good village. What’s really impressive about Canada is the way the Canadian government is much more oriented to allow ski resorts to build and expand. It creates more room for everyone. Here, because there are so many rules and regulations prohibiting development, resorts are too crowded and people keep running into each other.

What is it about skiing that has kept your interest all these years?

To me, skiing is freedom. This whole notion of getting up on a hill and making turns—that’s what freedom is all about. Streets are straight, buildings are square, and yet your body is round. We don’t belong at desks, in buildings. We belong outdoors, experiencing nature. It’s really that simple. That’s what skiing is all about.