The ski and snowboard season gets underway officially on Thanksgiving Weekend, with downhill destinations from Alta in Utah to Windham in New York either already open or opening, and several are celebrating important anniversaries or introducing important new trams and lifts.
Here’s a round-up of the most important news for those with snow brains.
Season Pass News
This is your last weekend to buy passes for many ski/snowboard resorts, including the largest multi-destination passes..
Dec. 3 is the deadline for purchasing an Epic Pass for destinations owned by Vail Resorts
- New this season for Epic Pass holders is the ability to use your phone for lift access.
- Or, you can continue to use an RFID plastic card in your jacket or pants pocket to open the gates and save your battery for photos..
Dec. 14 is the deadline for deferring unused days on the Ikon Pass to the 2024/25 season.
Mountain Collective has a new physical RFID pass for direct lift access, so you don’t have to pick up a day ticket each time you want to ski. It’s available for member resorts in the US and Canada, but not for participating destinations in Europe or Asia. There’s also a new partnership with Air Canada for discount deals.
Important New Lifts & Terrain
Big Sky, Montana
Big Sky celebrates its 50th Anniversary season with a brand new Lone Peak Tram and a new pricing policy for riding it.
The old tram opened in 1995, big enough – or small enough – for only 15 passengers at a time, making it feel like an elevator with windows. On powder days, it could be a one hour wait to reach the double and triple diamond chutes and couloirs, including the famous Dictator Chutes.
The new tram is a high-tech wonder which can hold 75, with gi-normous floor-to-ceiling picture windows that add excitement to the view and the anticipation. Also new is the pricing – which will be cost per ride.
Read about my favorite run at Big Sky, which happens to be my mother’s name, on Seniors Skiing. The post also includes a video of me skiing the run.
I’m returning to Big Sky in January 2024. Will have more intel after my visit.
Palisades Tahoe, California
The former resorts Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows have more than a new name and joint operating system – there’s a brand new Base to Base Gondola linking the two.
The home of the 1960 Winter Olympics and its next door neighbor add up to one of the largest ski/snowboard resorts in the USA, with 6,000 skiable acres across eight peaks, an average annual snowfall of 400 inches, and Lake Tahoe’s longest winter season, stretching into May.
Steamboat, Colorado
Steamboat Ski Resort celebrates the completion of the most extensive project in the resort’s history, with the opening of the second segment of the Wild Blue Gondola to the summit of Sunshine Peak.
It is the longest and fastest 10-person gondola in North America at 3.16 miles, getting skiers from base to top in just 13 minutes, and increases uphill capacity from 6,000 people per hour to 10,000 people per hour, making for shorter liftlines.
Also new this season is 655 new acres of expert-level terrain throughout Mahogany Ridge and Fish Creek Canyon. This north-facing area will be double-black diamond extreme terrain with steep and treed slopes, rocks, and cliffs.
I am returning to Steamboat in December, and will have full intel after my visit.
Jackson Hole, Wyoming
This iconic resort was sold to new – local – owners this past spring, who promise to keep it independent and local. Jackson is a member of both the Ikon Pass and Mountain Collective systems.
There’s also a $25 ticket and equipment rental deal in December to meet a Guinness World Record.
Aspen Snowmass, Colorado
Aspen Snowmass is kicking off the new season with its biggest terrain expansion in almost 40 years. The new Hero’s terrain on Aspen Mountain features 1,220 vertical feet and more than 150 acres of new chutes, glades, and trails catering to intermediate and advanced skiers.
The expansion stays true to historical trail names like Powerline and Harris’s Wall and honors many of Aspen’s heroes with significant ties to the new terrain.
There are runs dedicated to the first female ski instructor Elli Iselin, to 10th Mountain Division soldier Percy Rideout, and to pivotal ski patrol members like Eric Kinsman and Cory Brettmann. Tim Howe, who originally coined the name Pandora’s Box, will be recognized with an eponymous glade.
Read more of my articles about skiing and riding on Seniors Skiing, where I am the Managing Editor.
ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter is a journalist with 20+ years of experience as a newspaper and magazine writer, radio & TV news producer & reporter, and author of guidebooks and smartphone apps – all focusing on travel, automotive, the environment and your rights as a consumer.
ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter currently serves as President of the International Motor Press Assn. (IMPA), a former Board Member of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) and a current member of the North American Travel Journalists Assn. (NATJA) and the North American Snowsports Journalists Assn. (NASJA).
Contact me at evelyn@ecoxplorer.com.
Copyright (C) Evelyn Kanter
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