summit west

Boyne Resorts’ massive master plans have transformed the ski resorts of Big Sky, Boyne Mountain, Loon, Sugarloaf, and Sunday River. The Summit at Snoqualmie is the latest mountain for Boyne Resorts that will be transformed. Stuart Winchester of the Storm Skiing Journal broke the news that the Washington ski resort has announced its own 2030 plan. Their master plans include new lifts, upgrades of their current lift network, additional summer activities, new lodges, and more.

This Summers Projects: The first projects will involve adding mountain biking trails and replacing the Hidden Valley chairlift. The mountain biking trails will open in the middle of this summer and will include five trails ranging from beginner to expert. The Hidden Valley double chairlift will be replaced this summer by a Doppelmayr triple with a loading conveyor “to increase capacity & reliability, reduce lines, and allow for more lift operations flexibility during the season.” The Armstrong Express will increase its capacity by adding 20% more chairs to the lift. The rest of the planned projects are described down below.

Alpental: Alpental features some of the most challenging skiable terrain in all of the Pacific Northwest. These new changes will add some new lifts, but will not overwhelmingly grow capacity. The new lift will be the long-anticipated International Triple Chair. This Doppelmayr fixed-grip triple chairlift will give direct access to Lower International, Snake Dance, Felson & the Back Bowls.

Two lifts at Alpental will be upgraded. The Sessel double chairlift will be upgraded to a fixed-grip triple that will give access to beginner and intermediate terrain, along with the International Triple Chair. The Edelweiss Chair will be upgraded from a double to a fixed-grip triple chairlift in order to increase “uphill capacity, reduce lines, and provide powder hounds with more laps in some of the deepest snow in North America.” As mentioned above, the Armstrong Express will add 20% more chairs to the lift, with an upgrade being possible in the future. New avalanche control systems, such as trams and other remote-operated systems, will be added to provide easier and faster mitigation work.

Summit: The Summit portion of the resort is three ski areas that are interconnected by cat track trails: Summit West, Summit Central, and Summit East. Summit West will see two upgraded lifts. The Pacific Crest lift will be upgraded to a high-speed detachable quad. This lift serves as the pod for beginners, families, and ski racers. After Pacific Crest gets replaced, Wildside will be upgraded to a fixed-grip quad.

Over at Summit Central, the Central Express will be replaced by a higher capacity lift, which could possibly be a six-pack. This new lift will be realigned to give more room for crowds around the Triple 60 lift. Shortly after, the Triple 60 lift will be replaced by a high-speed detachable quad.

Summit Central will also build a new base lodge that expands its footprint and reduce the amount of climbing required from the parking lot, which is the current issue with their base lodge. The lodge will contain “new dining experiences, scenic bars, guest-focused amenities, and services.” A new lodge will also be added over at their tubing park, which also serves as the starting point for their summer activities. Snowmaking improvements will be made to Summit Central to allow for top to bottom coverage.

The first Summit East addition will be the previously mentioned Hidden Valley chair replacement, which will happen this summer. Although not announced in the 2030 plan, East Peak could be upgraded in the future. Summer Activities: As mentioned above, mountain biking will be introduced in the middle of this summer. Summit is describing the mountain biking experience as “classic northwest flowing forest trails to rowdy rock slabs and technical descents.” Other summer additions being planned include an alpine/mountain coaster at Summit Central, disc golf, hiking trails, concerts, and community events. Improving Guest Experience: RFID tickets and passes, a new e-commerce store, along with a Boyne Rewards system featured at their other ski resorts will be introduced for the 2022-23 season. The Silver Fir lot and half of the Summit Central main parking lot will be paved in time for the 2022-23 season. Multiple parking lots will also be regarded and expanded in the future.

Click here for more information about their plans, and check out Stuart’s podcast episode with Snoqualmie President and General Manager Guy Lawrence here.

Image Credits: The Summit at Snoqualmie