After a major terrain expansion last winter, Mt. Shasta Ski Park has begun work on another major addition. However, this one isn’t quite as popular with guests.

Earlier this month, the California ski resort announced its plans to add a twenty-foot Virgin Mary statue at the top of Douglas Butte. This project was a shared goal of owners Ray Merlo and Robin Merlo. Ray passed away in 2020, so Robin has decided to press forward with these plans to honor his memory. Construction began earlier this year and is expected to be completed next summer.

Some locals aren’t as enthused about the plans. They believe the ski resort should keep religion out of the skiing and riding experience, and that it would take away from one of the best vista spots at the ski resort.

As is tradition when something controversial happens, a Change.com petition was created to stop construction. The petition currently has over 1900 signatures. A key thing to note that is inaccurate from this petition though is that they claim that the ski resort is on National Forest land. That isn’t true, as the land is privately owned by the ski resort.

Ed Valenzuela, who’s a Siskiyou County Supervisor, challenged locals concerns in a statement to the Los Angeles Times:

“It’s on private property. It’s a private business, It’s the holiday season. I have better things to think about than a statue going up on private property. The people that are against it, their response would be then don’t go to the ski park.”

In terms of the current conditions at Mt. Shasta Ski Park, they have yet to announce an opening date for this winter but hope to start spinning the lifts soon.

Image Credits: Mt. Shasta Ski Park

It was an extremely busy offseason for ski resorts across North America, as terrain expansions happened throughout the United States and Canada.

I decided to compile a list of the expansions that are opening across the continent this winter and rank the five most significant ones. But first, here are some honorable mentions.

Honorable Mentions: 

Bogus Basin is adding two new trails to its front side, as pictured in the circle located on the trail map above. Independence is a roomy intermediate trail, while Blackbird is a spacious and open advanced run. 

Cape Smokey in Nova Scotia is adding seven trails to its trail network for this winter. These runs appear to be a part of prior trail maps but disappeared from recent ones when the mountain was community ran, likely meaning that they weren’t maintained during this time period. In my opinion, this still counts as an expansion.

Gore Mountain is opening a new run that makes accessing the North Creek Ski Bowl much easier. The Backwoods will be a groomed run with snowmaking capabilities that starts just below the top terminal of the Burnt Ridge Quad, runs alongside the Barkeater Glades, and ends above the Roaring Brook Bridge at the bottom of The Pipeline Traverse run.

The Montana Snowbowl is adding a Skytrac triple chairlift from its base area to the Top of TV Mountain. This gives skiers more access to this once-secluded peak, and they are opening new terrain around the lift.

According to an interview that the Snowbowl had with ABC 4, the new terrain will open this winter, and the new runs are very steep. There hasn’t been a new trail map released yet, but their master development plan map gives you an idea of what they’ll be like (pictured around the middle of the photo below, to the left of the purple/green rectangle).

Mount Bohemia is adding five glades to the gnarliest trail network in the Midwest. These new glades, which are all double-black diamonds, are circled below.

Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe added a new high-speed quad this offseason, with a new Lakeside beginner run servicing the top of the lift. The Around the World trail has also been rerouted.

After expanding onto a new peak for the 2020-21 season, Nordic Valley will be adding five new runs to the Nordic Express area. These are mostly glades, with them being of advanced and expert difficulty.

Utah Olympic Park is expanding its facilities onto a new peak with a high-speed quad and a few steep trails for training purposes, but this will be a private mountain that’s only accessible to athletes.

5. Sundance Mountain Resort:

Sundance Mountain Resort continues to rapidly improve its mountain, adding two new chairlifts last year, and expanding onto a new terrain pod this offseason. The forty-acre expansion will feature ten trails and a new lift. The new Wildwood chairlift is a fixed-grip quad with a ride time of seven minutes, while the runs consist of mostly beginner and intermediate terrain.

This week, Sundance Resort announced that they’re opening the Wildwood lift on December 16th, and will be serving hot bread and honey butter to the first one hundred people that arrive at the lift.

4. Mt. Shasta Ski Park:

Over the summer, Mt. Shasta Ski Park grew its vertical drop by expanding onto Gray Butte. Six new trails have been added to Mt. Shasta’s network, ranging from intermediate to the ski resort’s first double black diamond. The new lift gives them 211 more acres of skiable terrain and 250 acres of backcountry access.

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The new terrain pod is serviced by a fixed-grip quad chairlift, which has a vertical rise of 1,144 feet, and a ride time of ten minutes. Last week, they opened up Gray Butte thanks to the five feet of snow that they’ve gotten to start their season off.

3. Lookout Pass:

For many years, Lookout Pass has been working on expanding onto Eagle Peak. This project came to a head this offseason when they installed the new Eagle Peak Quad chairlift. This is a Garaventa CTEC Fixed Grip Quad chairlift, which was updated by Skytrac.

The terrain consists of fourteen easy, intermediate, and advanced runs and glades, with another lift planned in the future. The 500-acre expansion grows Lookout Pass to 1023 acres and increases its vertical drop by five hundred feet. Today, they just announced that the new peak will be opening tomorrow (December 16th).

2. Grand Targhee:

For years, the terrain off Peaked Mountain served as Grand Targhee’s spot for cat-skiing. Over the offseason, they added a Doppelmayr high-speed six-pack chairlift, which climbs 1815 feet up Peaked Mountain, and carries nearly 2000 skiers/riders an hour.

The 600-acre Peaked Mountain expansion has a mix of wide-open groomers, steep chutes, and expansive glades. When conditions permit, it also gives skiers and riders access to some of Wyoming’s most challenging terrain.

1. Palisades Tahoe:

This is the only expansion on this list that won’t add new trails, but it’s clearly the most significant connection to two ski resorts in the United States since the Park City-Canyons gondola.

Before this lift, you could only get from Alpine to Palisades or the other way around by hitting the road by car/shuttle or heading into the backcountry. The Base to Base Gondola doesn’t add new terrain to their trail network, but connecting two of the most popular ski resorts in Lake Tahoe seems like an expansion to me, as it’s finally feasible to get KT-22 and Alpine Bowl laps within a short timeframe.

The sixteen-minute ride from base to base features four terminals and ninety-six cabins, which can fit eight people into each one. The length of the gondola ride from base to base is 2.4 miles long, with it being a one-mile trip to get from the Palisades Village to KT-22 stations, and 1.4 miles from KT-22 to the Alpine Meadows base area terminal. The new lift will officially make Palisades Tahoe the largest ski resort in the Golden State.

The soft opening for the new gondola is December 17th. Matt Lorelli from Unofficial Networks will be there for its grand opening, so we’ll have more coverage coming your way on this impressive new gondola.

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Image Credits: Grand Targhee/Olim Wimberg(Featured Image), Lookout Pass, Bogus Basin, Cape Smokey, Gore Mountain, Montana Snowbowl, Mount Bohemia, Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe, Nordic Valley, Ian Wood Sundance Resort,  Mt. Shasta Ski Park, Palisades Tahoe

One of the biggest terrain expansions that will open next season is happening at Mt. Shasta Ski Park. Back in April, Mt. Shasta Ski Park in California announced plans to expand its lift-serviced skiing up onto Gray Butte. This new terrain pod will add new intermediate and advanced runs to Mt. Shasta and gives easier backcountry access to skiers and riders. The project was approved by the Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors in May. Since then, the parts have arrived for the new chairlift, work has begun on the lift, and the trail cutting on Gray Butte has continued. Yesterday, the chairs arrived, so you could say things are starting to get real.

For guests, the most exciting news is a recently released trail map that shows off the new runs. Last week, Mt. Shasta Ski Park unveiled the first draft of its new trail map, which shows how the expansion will fit in with the rest of the ski resort. The official artist drawing will come before the season starts.

Gray Butte Expansion Stats:

The New Lift: A Doppelmayr fixed-grip quad with fourteen towers, and a ride time of ten minutes.

The Terrain: Six new intermediate and advanced trails. The longest run, which will encompass new and old terrain, will be over three miles long. It will go from the top of Gray Butte to the base.

New Skiable Acres: 221

Acres of Backcountry Access: 450

Vertical Rise: 1144′

Image/Video Credits: Mt. Shasta Ski Park

Mt. Shasta Ski Park (California) is preparing to open a new expansion called Gray Butte for the Winter ’22-’23 season. You can read more about it here.

The expansion will offer mostly intermediate terrain on 1,154′ of vertical serviced by a new fixed-grip quad chairlift.

Mt. Shasta just provided an awesome update video that shows the new trails being logged and cleared for skiers and riders next season.

Check it out:

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Mt. Shasta also provided an update on the new Gray Butte chairlift. Construction hasn’t begun just yet, but it looks like Dopplemayr is shipping the parts to the ski area as we speak!

“Construction is right around the corner on Gray Butte. We got these images from Doppelmayr last week of our lift components getting ready to be shipped to our parking lot. We are so excited for this expansion and can’t wait to share it with you, our Skipark Family. Stay tuned for more updates!”

Mt. Shasta is an under-the-radar ski area by most standards.

They don’t get as much snow as their Tahoe neighbors, and don’t offer as much terrain. With that being said, I love love love love ‘small’ ski areas that preserve that mom-and-pop feel.

I definitely plan on visiting Mt. Shasta in the future and using my Indy Pass for my lift ticket! Looking forward to seeing what the Gray Butte expansion has to offer.

Back in April, Mt. Shasta Ski Park in California announced plans to expand its lift-serviced skiing up onto Gray Butte. This new terrain pod will add new intermediate runs to Mt. Shasta and gives easier backcountry access to skiers and riders. While the ski area continues negotiations with the county to get the installation of the lift approved, work has begun on the new terrain. The first parts of the fixed-grip quad have arrived on-site, and clearing of the lift line and trails has started on Gray Butte. Mt. Shasta Ski Park told me that Siskiyou County is still reviewing the proposed expansion, but they expect a decision to be announced soon. They aim to open the new lift and terrain for the 2022-23 ski season.

Update 5/19: On Tuesday, Mt. Shasta received approval from the Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors for their Gray Butte expansion. Work will begin on their new lift at the beginning of June.

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Gray Butte Expansion Stats:

The New Lift: A fixed-grip quad with fourteen towers, and a ride time of ten minutes.

The Terrain: Six new intermediate and advanced trails. The longest run, which will encompass new and old terrain, will be over three miles long. It will go from the top of Gray Butte to the base.

New Skiable Acres: 211

Vertical Rise: 1144′

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Image Credits: Mt. Shasta Ski Park, Google Earth

Mt. Shasta Ski Park might be one of California’s lesser-known ski areas, but it appears that ownership is trying to change that. The ski area just announced plans to add a significant new chairlift and terrain expansion.

Mt. Shasta plans on installing a fixed-grip quad that they’ve named the Gray Butte Lift. The lift will start near the Coyote Butte terrain, and run 1,154 vertical feet up above.

Here’s the stats according to Mt. Shasta Ski Park:

It sounds like the Gray Butte Lift won’t add any challenging terrain to Mt. Shasta’s repertoire, and that’s okay. The added elevation, expanded intermediate terrain, and publicity around the project should give Shasta a nice boost.

I love to see the “little guys” taking big steps forward like this. Especially when they’re part of the Indy Pass!

Mt. Shasta Ski Park Stats (before expansion):

Vertical: 1,435′

Trails: 32

Average Snowfall: 275″

Skiable Acreage: 425 ac.

Lifts: 3 triple chairs, 2 carpets

All Images Credit: Indy Pass Media Kit/Mt. Shasta Ski Park

^Coyote Cam from Mt. Shasta Ski Park on 3/11/22

It’s no secret that this season has been less-than-ideal when it comes to snowfall for many ski areas in the Sierras and other parts of the west.

Mt. Shasta Ski Park got dumped on in December, but warm temps and dry conditions are forcing the ski area to close early. Tomorrow, March 12th, will be the last day of the Winter ’21-’22 season at Shasta.

But, don’t be sad. Mt. Shasta is ending their season with a BANG. They’re throwing a huge St. Patrick’s Day party with live music, a rail jam, a race, and beer provided by Sierra Nevada.

Check out the full details below:

Remember- don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened. Here’s to a great season Mt. Shasta, and we hope the St. Patrick’s Day part is a blast!

Featured Image Credit: Indy Ski Pass Media Kit/Mt. Shasta Ski Park

“It’s been a tough year for Mt. Shasta, In the past, Mt. Shasta had year-round snow on its summit. But this summer is different. The white patches you see today are glacial — not snow. The glaciers are melting very quickly this year. Our hearts are with our neighbors who are currently affected by mudflows and wildfires.”– Brendan Hickey, Mt. Shasta Ski Park Resort Manager

The peak of Mt. Shasta in California is covered with snow year-round thanks to its various glaciers. Enter 2021, which has become the most traumatic year for California climate in the state’s history. The LA Times reports the impacts have been felt especially at Mt. Shasta, home to the Mt. Shasta Ski Park. The only snow remaining at the summit is glacial, and the natural snowpack that usually remains through much of the summer melted in early June.

The big issue of the summer had been mudslides, where the melting of the mountain’s glaciers have unleashed havoc on the surrounding area. These flows of partially volcanic ash and glacier water have turned the green meadows into hellish gray moonscapes. U.S. Geology Survey scientist Andy Calvert defines mudflows as “sudden releases of water that scour out-stream channels and pick up rocks and dirt on the way down, leaving a muddy mess.” These catastrophic mudslide floods trample trees, destroy roads, nearly burying the town’s water pipeline, and covered the area’s local dam.

Earlier this summer, we covered that Mt. Shasta Ski Park had shut down its summer operations due to wildfire threats and staffing shortages. Wildfires have gotten close to the resort, but firefighters set up shop at Mt. Shasta Ski Park a couple of weeks ago to prevent them from getting close. It’s unclear if the mudslides have affected the trails at the ski resort. Mt. Shasta confirmed the lack of snow on the peak on a recent social media post and presented it as a cautionary tale on the dangers of climate change.

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Image Credits: Mt. Shasta Ski Park