North America — The 2024-25 ski season is over for most mountains, which means it’s a good time to look back at what transpired this past winter. Across the continent, various ski resorts opened new trails and terrain expansions this ski season. To celebrate the conclusion of the 2024-25 season, we’ve ranked the best terrain expansions from this past winter.
But first, here are some honorable mentions:
- Bogus Basin added a few new trails. Wake Up Jim is a new wide intermediate run off the new Bitterroot chairlift. Over at the new Coach Chairlift, Ida Belle is a new mellow intermediate trail that acts as a next step for beginners who want to challenge themselves. In addition, the Coach’s Corner trail has been extended by 3.5 times.
- Holiday Mountain sculpted a new double black diamond trail, Hackledam, and a new green trail called Mambo Nights. In addition, Holiday Mountain reopened the Independence Pass trail for the first time in forty years. More trails will be added in the years ahead.
- The small yet mighty Paul Bunyan Ski Hill added several new trails.
- Soldier Mountain opened a new sidecountry terrain expansion.
- Steamboat added three new expert trails to its trail map, although they technically were already a part of the Mahogany Ridge expansion that opened during the 2023-24 season.
- Sugarloaf added two trails to its West Mountain lineup, which debuted during the 2023-24 season.
- Telluride opened a new Heritage Trail.
- Tenney Mountain expanded its glade network.
5. Sun Peaks Resort: For several years, getting to most of the West Bowl wasn’t easy. This was due to the T-Bar that used to serve the area being closed for good in 2021. For several years, getting to the West Bowl required guests hiking in and out of most of its terrain.
At the beginning of the 2024-25 season, Sun Peaks opened the new West Bowl chairlift. The new chairlift is 800 meters (2625 feet) longer than its predecessor, and has an initial capacity of 1800 people per hour. This detachable high-speed quad travels to the top of the West Bowl in 5.5 minutes. While technically not new skiable terrain, the lift does increase accessible skiable terrain in the West Bowl from 54 to 169 acres. Three new runs have also been added: Gateway, Saddle Up, and Whyte’s Ride. In addition, glading work below the former T-Bar bottom terminal opened up more tree skiing in the West Bowl. Ultimately, we’re classifying this as a terrain expansion because it gives access to terrain that many wouldn’t have tried to access before.
4. Mount Bohemia: This past winter, Mount Bohemia opened the Far East.
These double black diamond glades start over at the Mordor trail and then go 90 degrees east into a valley. The run lengths and snow quality are similar to the glades over at the nearby Middle Earth, and you travel through rocky gorges and valleys. The fresh powder lasts longer due to these pistes being the furthest trails to the east.
The glades end at the bottom of the road, where Bohemia’s buses arrive every five minutes to pick skiers and riders up.
3. Whitewater: After the new Raven chairlift added 123 acres of new skiable terrain during the 2023-24 season, Whitewater added more skiable terrain this ski season.
The 60-acre terrain expansion has added new bowl skiing to the British Columbian ski resort. Situated in the Goats area of the Ymir Bowl, this terrain features south-facing, alpine-style advanced and expert bowl skiing and riding. This area was previously considered backcountry terrain, so this move makes it more accessible and safer for those who go there.
2. Powder Mountain: Powder Mountain added three new public chairlifts this ski season, which included one that gave access to an area that wasn’t previously accessible by a chairlift. Previously, it was only accessible by riding a snowcat, which was an add-on charge.
Lightning Ridge, a new fixed-grip quad chairlift, not only gives guests easy access to the area’s advanced and expert terrain but also provides an easy way to reach the Sundown terrain pod from the Timberline area. Their next planned public lift-serviced terrain expansion is into the DMI Zone and Wolf Creek.
1. Deer Valley Resort: A new era began at Deer Valley during the 2024-25 season, as the Utah ski resort opened the first phase of its East Village expansion.
Deer Valley added 19 trails, extended one run (McHenry), and opened three new chairlifts during the 2024-25 season. These additions were of the beginner and intermediate variety, adding more mellow cruisers to Deer Valley’s trail network. In addition, this East Village expansion added the first bubble chairlift to Deer Valley Resort. The Keetley Express is a Doppelmayr D-Line high-speed six-pack bubble chairlift that gives direct access to the Mayflower and Sultan Express chairlifts.
With 80 trails and 7 new lifts planned for the 2025-26 season, it sounds like Deer Valley also has the number one spot shored up for next season.
Image Credits: Sun Peaks Resort, Mount Bohemia, Whitewater Ski Resort, Powder Mountain, Deer Valley Resort
