This past summer, Timberline on Mt. Hood, Oregon became the ski resort with the largest vertical drop in the United States after the purchase of Summit Pass. This week, Timberline unveiled its new master plan to the public. The major announcement from this 2022 master plan is the unveiling of the Timberline Express Gondola. This gondola will start at Summit Pass, and end near the top terminal of Jeff Flood Express. The mid-station will have various trails and surface lifts for beginner skiers, “a planned tubing site, an area for camping sites and/or overnight yurts, and a small guest service facility.” New trails will also be added to connect Timberline to the Summit Pass pod.
Other plans include the upgrade or replacement of the Summit Pass chairlift, upgraded guest service facilities at the Summit Pass base area, snowmaking upgrades to combat climate change, the expansion of their mountain biking trails to the Summit Pass area, expanded parking at Summit Pass and Timberline, a reworked entry plaza at the Timberline Lodge, a new mountain department personnel building, and more. They are hoping to complete the first phase of the project, the new gondola and redesigned Summit Pass base area, within the next five years.
A big portion of their master plans involves rising traffic concerns. Timberline believes that this gondola at the Summit Pass will have many guests avoid their congested access road. I was frankly impressed with how much of their master plan video(see below) discusses their traffic issues and how they plan to address them. Their application for the master plan was reviewed and accepted by the U.S. Forest Service, but it will still need to go through a public review and approval process for these projects to begin. You can view their master plan here.
Image/Video Credits: Timberline
