Mt. Hood Meadows First New Trail Map In 15 Years Sparks Debate Among Local Skiers

In a recent Instagram upload, Mt. Hood Meadows, Oregon, debuted its new trail map. The resort hasn't updated its trail map in 15 years.

The map, created by VistaMap, better reflects the resort's terrain, covering the totality of its run offerings without inserts.

Here's a look.

Local response to the new map on Instagram was split.

Several skiers appreciated the map's improved readability—particularly the depiction of the Heather Canyon and Private Reserve zones:

"That's awesome. Looks like more of a true representation. Heather and Clark looked so small on the old map."

"I really like the organization and display of PR [Private Reserve]. Makes things much easier to understand and helps take some of the guess work out of identifying which lines I've hit and still need to hit."

In contrast, others mourned Meadows' previous trail map, painted by the legendary mapmaker James Niehues:

"It's a shame that it's not a Neihaus [sic]. Used to look a lot better."

"Looks worse than the old one ngl, James Nieheus [sic] maps look nicer but whatever."

One skier who missed Niehues' work did note that VistaMap's update provided a more accurate illustration of Meadows' terrain network:

"Private reserve is much more accurate though so that's cool ig."

VistaMap relies more heavily on digital techniques to create ski area trail maps than Niehues did. The mapmaking agency, led by Gary Milliken, has produced trail maps for ski areas like West Mountain, Arapahoe Basin, and Loon Mountain Resort.

Niehues has retired from the mapmaking game, but his prodigy, Rad Smith, continues the handpainted ski resort map tradition. Keystone Resort, Colorado, recently enlisted Smith to paint their updated trail map.

To see Meadows' new map for yourself, click here.

Related: Pro Skier Hands Out Cash To Local Kids

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