My goal is to identify potential sites for new ski resorts within a reasonable distance from the rapidly growing Seattle metro area. The supply of resort skiing for Seattle has not kept up with demand. For the last few decades, Seattleites’ primary options for ski resorts have remained Crystal Mountain, The Summit at Snoqualmie, and Stevens Pass. This map and analysis aim to highlight sites for a new ski resort for the Seattle metro area.
I have incorporated a slope angle layer from a digital elevation model that highlights skiable terrain in green, flat terrain in blue, and very steep terrain in red. I have also incorporated a masking layer meant to darken terrain below 5000 ft to find terrain with a consistent snowpack. I included layers for average winter temperature and total winter precipitation, both using data taken from the PRISM Climate Group.
On top of these, I have incorporated two layers that show Designated Wilderness and Inventoried Roadless Areas. Designated Wilderness areas are shaded in green and Inventoried Roadless Areas are shaded in brown. Designated Wilderness areas fall under strict protections making any sort of development prohibited. Inventoried Roadless Areas also prohibit development but are more lenient and subject to change. Existing ski resorts are represented by grey mountains and the potential ski resort sites are represented by blue mountains. Further analysis is needed on development feasibility such as utility supply and road construction & maintenance as well as more detailed surveying of potential sites.
(Use the button in the top right to add or remove layers.)
This site is the most feasible for developing a new ski resort. It has significant terrain above 5000 ft. It experiences slightly cooler temperatures than the nearby Stevens Pass, however, it also has slightly less precipitation. The vertical drop would be nearly 3000 ft from the base to the highest lift-accessed terrain.
There is room for a base area at the head of Fortune Creek Trail or the Camp Creek Trail. The majority of blue and green slopes would lie to the immediate north of the cliff wall on Hawkins Mountain. There is significant expert and advanced terrain above these slopes. A lift to the northwest ridge of Hawkins Mountain would provide significant terrain ranging from blue to double-black slopes. Access to the bowl slightly north of this area would also provide exciting terrain. There is not a significant amount of slopes suitable for beginner skiers at this site. However, demand for beginner terrain would likely not be high thanks to the large amount of beginner terrain at The Summit at Snoqualmie which is also located on the I-90 corridor and is much closer to the Seattle area.
This site allows for significant expansion beyond its core terrain on the north side of Hawkins Mountain. There is potential for a large backside zone past Gallager Head Lake from the southern face of Hawkins Mountain to De Roux Peak. In this backside zone, there are tracts of unprotected areas flanked by Inventoried Roadless Areas. The most ideal solution for skiing would be to build lifts through the unprotected areas and allow for ski trails that cross into Inventoried Roadless Area, however, the legality of this is unclear. A similar situation exists to the northeast of Hawkins Mountain in the Van Epps pass area. Another issue is that the current boundaries of the Inventoried Roadless Areas as shown from the USFS PADUS data may not be accurate as there are currently forest service roads that travel through Roadless Areas. The ski area is roughly 100 miles from Seattle; slightly further than Stevens Pass and Crystal Mountain. The area benefits from being located on the I-90 corridor. I-90 won’t experience significant congestion from an additional ski resort, unlike Highway 410 and 2. Roughly 7 miles of the Cle Elum Valley Road would have to be paved. This would be similar to Crystal Mountain’s road expansion. Changes to Highway 903 may also be required as traffic to the resort would likely cause significant changes to traffic flow in the towns of Roslyn and Ronald.
I have also included a link to a Google Earth project below for a 3d view of the potential layout of the ski area.
Google Earth ViewLookout Mountain is located just south of Cle Elum. This resort also benefits from being on the I-90 corridor. Most of the resort would be above 5000 feet with a vertical drop of about 2000 feet. The mountain benefits from a variety of slope angles including significant beginner-friendly slopes. It lacks the striking rugged and steep terrain common in much of The Cascades. Slopes would begin at the top of Lookout Mountain which acts as a bowl. From there slopes would flow northeast to a base area around 4000 ft. The resort has significant room for expansion as the surrounding peaks are not in protected areas and offer slope angles suitable for skiing.
A major issue with this location is that it is tucked away from I-90 and Cle Elum by a steep ridge that runs for about 15 miles to the town of Thorp. Several forest service roads cross over the ridge but they may be unsuitable for paving and the heavy traffic that comes with a ski resort. A potential solution could be a gondola that takes skiers over the ridge. A similar solution exists on Silver Mountain in Idaho, however, this gondola would have to be over a mile longer.
Cole Butte is a large bowl also on the I-90 corridor to the northwest of Lookout Mountain. It would benefit from the ease of access from the Seattle Area. It rises to just over 5000 feet then drops 1000 feet to the valley below. From there there are mellow slopes to the northeast that end around 2500 feet. Lifts can reach the top of Cole Butte with slopes going down into the bowl as well as into the adjacent bowl to the northwest. This location features a large amount of skiable terrain however its lower elevation does not make it as snow-sure as the other locations listed.
An existing road from Easton to the Cabin Creek area to the north would likely have to be paved or a new road could be built directly north to I-90. The area is relatively flat so this would not prove as difficult as Lookout Mountain. Another potential transportation method for this site is rail, as a rail line passes directly through the Cabin Creek area. Although some Washington ski resorts have historically provided rail access, this has not been the case recently.