Michigan's 'Sleeping Giant' Ski Resort Makes Progress On Game-Changing Lift

Matt Lorelli
·3 min read

Snowriver Mountain Resort in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (UP) is undergoing a serious overhaul thanks to new ownership. Snowriver, which uses to be called Big Snow Resort, is comprised of two adjacent ski hills near Wakefield, MI.

The new owners have big plans for the historic ski areas, and with the first step being a new high-speed six-pack chairlift, the first of its kind in the UP. Check out the Tweet below showing the lift towers arriving at the ski resort earlier this week:

The new chair, which is called The Voyageur Express, will replace three old and slow chairlifts at Jackson Creek Summit, the larger of the two ski areas that make up Snowriver Mountain Resort.

The Jackson Creek Summit ski area was formerly called 'Indianhead'.

Specifically, the lift will replace the Chippewa Double Chair, Leelinaw Triple, and the Voyager Quad. The ride time to reach the summit will be cut by more than half to just 3.5 minutes.

Here's more information about how The Voyageur Express will change the ski area from Snowriver Mountain Resort:

"Snowriver Mountain Resort, the new name for the recently purchased Big Snow Resort, will be replacing the Chippewa Double Chair, Leelinaw Triple, and the Voyager Quad chairs out of the Jackson Creek Summit area (previously known as Indianhead, with the only high-speed detachable chairlift in the Upper Peninsula. 

The new lift will also be the only 6-person chairlift in the powder-friendly region known as “Big Snow Country.”

"The new six-pack detachable will be built and installed by Doppelmayr and will be named the Voyageur Express. The lift will feature 53 chairs and have a 3:30three-and-a-half-minute ride time to the top traveling at 1000 ft/min over the 538ft vertical rise. The lift’s initial capacity will be 2800 people per hour but will be upgraded to 3200pph in the future should additional capacity be needed."

Image above shows the new lift line (shown in dark red).
Image above shows the new lift line (shown in dark red).

Snowriver is a staple in the Midwest ski scene, and the upgrade will go a long way to improving the resort's quickly-aging infrastructure.

The new owner, Charles Skinner, Jr., also owns the largest ski resorts in Minnesota and Wisconsin with Lutsen Mountains and Granite Peak, respectively.

He's slowly but surely establishing his properties as the best resort skiing destinations in the midwest, but he still has plans in the works.

A spokesperson from Midwest Family Resorts, Charles Skinner's company, stated that Snowriver intends to link the adjacent ski areas with a chairlift.

The move has long-been desired by locals as the two ski areas have never been linked by a chairlift despite their close proximity.

Looking at Black River Basin from Jackson Creek Summit. Credit: Snowriver Mountain Resort
Looking at Black River Basin from Jackson Creek Summit. Credit: Snowriver Mountain Resort

Skiing in the midwest isn't on everybody's radar, but there are hundreds of thousands of skiers across the region that are passionate about the sport.

Snowriver has the potential to be one of the largest and most-visited ski resorts in the region if the infrastructure and accommodations continue to be upgraded.

Stay tuned with us here at Powder Magazine for all updates regarding the investment by Charles Skinner to reinvigorate Snowriver Resort. We'll keep you covered.

More information about Snowriver Mountain Resort below:

Snowriver Trail Map. Jackson Creek Summit (left) and Black River Basin (right) are separated by less than a mile as the crow flies.
Snowriver Trail Map. Jackson Creek Summit (left) and Black River Basin (right) are separated by less than a mile as the crow flies.

Snowriver Mountain Resort Combined Stats/Info:

Maximum Vertical: 638 ft.

Skiable Terrain: 400 ac.

Average Snowfall: 204 in.

Lifts: 11

Trails: 56

Snowmaking: YES

Night Skiing: NO

Mega-Pass: Indy Pass

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