June-July 2026

 Mt. Bachelor Announces Game-Changing Upgrades to Northwest Lift. The project will upgrade the utility power supply to the chairlift and replace the electric motor, auxiliary power unit, and all interior equipment, while preserving the foundation, towers, haul rope, terminals, and chairs. More. Powder

Timberline Lodge and Ski Area, OR, Pivots Away from Long-Delayed Mount Hood Gondola Project. The ambitious vision of a modern gondola rising from Government Camp up the slopes of Mount Hood has been discarded. Timberline Lodge and Ski Area has scrapped the high-profile project, choosing instead to re-engineer how guests transition between its lower and upper mountain terrain. More. SnowBrains

Sun Valley Upgrades Two More Bald Mountain Lifts for 2026. The existing Lookout Express lift is being replaced with a high-speed, six-person chair that cuts the ride time down to 8.5 minutes. The existing Christmas lift will remain a detachable four-person chair but will be upgraded to a high-speed quad. More. Freeskier

With Another New Lift, Deer Valley Will Reach 4,500 Acres Next Winter.  The most visible addition during the 2026-27 season will be the Hail Peak Express, a high-speed quad that departs from the new East Village area and brings skiers to the top of the nearby Hail Peak. The Express adds another 200 acres of terrain and seven new runs. More. Powder

Four New Chairlifts Are Coming To These 3 BC Ski Resorts Starting Next Season. The new lifts are set to be built at Fernie Alpine Resort, Kimberley Alpine Resort, and Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in 2026 and 2027, in some cases significantly changing how visitors can move through the mountains. More. Powder

Three New Midwest Ski Resorts Added to the Ikon Pass. Three new Midwest ski resorts are joining the Ikon Pass. Here’s what skiers need to know about Snowriver, Lutsen and Granite Peak before winter arrives. More. Freeskier

Eagle Point UT Assesses Significant Damage Following Cottonwood Fire. Approximately 300 of its 600 skiable acres were affected by the fire. The central Utah resort reported that Canyonside Lodge, one of its two day lodges, was destroyed, along with more than 100 condominiums and 30 cabins. Four of the resort’s five chairlifts also sustained damage, along with other buildings and equipment. More. SAM

When Does a Ski Pass Pay for Itself? Ski Calculated the Break-Even Point. SKI analyzed all of the major pass products and calculated approximately how many days it takes for each to beat buying day tickets. It all goes to answering the ultimate question-is a season pass still worth it if I only ski a handful of days? More. Ski

Want To Keep Skiing Into Your 70s? These Septuagenarians Have Some Tips. Don’t let aching knees keep you off your skis. Ski spoke to senior skiers about how they keep their bodies—and minds—in prime ski shape. More. Ski

Those Window-Rattling Booms on Powder Days? The Howitzers Behind Them Are Nearly Gone.  The combination of new avalanche mitigation strategies, dwindling supplies of the surplus ammunition used for mitigation, and retirements of people who know how to service an aging arsenal of howitzers has culminated in a more than decade-long push to eliminate reliance on artillery for avalanche mitigation. More. SnowBrains

An Age-Old Lift Problem. The ski industry in North America faces a significant challenge: nearly half of its lifts are at least 30 years old. That means resorts must adopt more rigorous maintenance regimens and plan for eventually replacing these lifts. However, rising prices, limited means of financing, and a reduction in the number of used lifts entering the market make replacement difficult. More. SAM

11 Largest Vertical Drop Chairlifts in North America, Ranked.  With ski tracking apps becoming more popular in recent years, people have become more conscious about the amount of vertical they are getting in every year. More. SnowBrains

More Skiers Than Ever Are Wearing Helmets and the Trend Is Growing. The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) reported that 91% of skiers and snowboarders in the United States wore helmets during the 2024-25 season. For comparison, only 25% wore helmets in 2002-03. More. SnowBrains

15 Mountain Truths Ski Patrollers Only Talk About After Hours. Ever wonder what ski patrollers talk about when the lifts stop running? From bizarre skier habits to mountain secrets, here is the ultimate after-hours debrief. More. Ski

Vermont’s Hermitage Club
The $75 million Hermitage Club, (formally Haystack Mountain Resort) is the only private ski resort in the east. Initial cost is $65,000, plus $5,150 annual dues. Begun in 2011, membership is capped at 1,500, and is now 750 member-families. The club packages skiing with fine dining, luxury lodging, and year-round recreation including an 18-hole golf course and a covered ski lift with heated seats — all just a 3.5-hour drive from New York City.
It’s located in the towns of West Dover and Wilmington, to complement the small-town, historic flavor of the Deerfield Valley. After crossing a truss-and-lattice covered bridge at the club’s entrance, families encounter a resort with a 1842 country inn, folks skating on a pond, and gliding over the snow in a horse-drawn sleigh. In winter, there’s snowmobiling on the mountain after dark, traveling to a mountaintop cabin by Sno-Cat for fine dining, and a 5,000-bottle wine cellar.
The master plan for the club includes more than 100 homes, a $15 million hotel, and a $3 million airport expansion to accommodate the majority of the private jets of the members. A $21 million, 80,000-square-foot Club House has 14 spa and treatment rooms, a movie theater, and an edit suite for GoPro helmet cams — where skiers and boarders can edit footage they’ve recorded on runs and post it on social media.

Colorado’s Cimarron Mountain Club
Membership in Colorado’s new Cimarron Mountain Club are available but just 12 people get to buy into the resort. starting at almost $4 million each. Denver attorney John Aronstein has owned 2,000 acres on the north slope of the Colorado San Juan Mountains since 2002, but now plans to develop his personal winter playground into the most exclusive ski and snowboard mountain in the West. So far, more than 60 trails have been cut along a 2-1/2 mile ridge off 11,453-foot Castle Rock peak. There are a few beginner trails, but it’s mostly chutes, couloirs, and steep glades on 1,600 vertical feet on the north end of the mountain slope.
Access to the skiing terrain will be via unlimited Snocat rides for members and snowmobiles, which is the only way into the dozen multi-million-dollar homes to be built on the property. Home site prices range from $2.7 million to $3.8 million, and annual dues start at $50,000.

Or You Can Rent Utah’s Eagle Point Resort
For the less-wealty who still want to ski on a private mountain, for $10,000 per day, Eagle Point Resort in southwest Utah will, rent the whole ski hill for up to 200 guests any Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday this ski season — equipment rentals included! About 40 cabins and condos are available at additional cost and the 12,000 square-foot Canyonside Lodge is available for parties, meetings, and entertainment.