Chairlift makeover, conveyor belts and skier upgrades at Swiss Valley, Timber Ridge
Downhill ski resorts in the South Bend area are firing up their snow-making guns when freezing temperatures, plus the right humidity levels, allow. They'd made significant piles of snow more than a week ago, which shrank in the warm spell.
The guns started blowing snow again this past weekend. It may or may not be very white in your yard by the time nearby resorts open for the season. So, while we watch to see if that happens during the holidays, here are some changes to expect.
Swiss Valley
New cushions will greet your tush on the chairlift to the top of Triple — ahem, make that Mountain Do — this winter at Swiss Valley Ski & Snowboard Area in Jones.
New paint, lights and other upgrades come to the Swiss slopes this season along with more memorable names for the ski runs, so dubbed in a naming contest on social media. One of the most significant changes, though, is hidden underground and won’t bear fruit — that is, more snow-making capabilities — until we see a few more revenue-pumping ski seasons like we saw through the pandemic.
Jamie Stafne, who oversees operations, says the 2020-21 season proved to be the best in Swiss’ 52-year history in the number of visitors as well as cash flow. Great weather for making snow and the pandemic had driven traffic to parks and resorts like no other year.
See last year's improvements: Ski season brings upgrades and plans for virus-free air at Swiss Valley
This season’s Swiss Valley ski pass sales are up. And, as of last week, reservations were already coming in for ski and snowboard lessons while sign-ups for the Junior Development Team (ages 5-14) were at a five-year high, Stafne says.
To her, it feels as though last year’s boost in business will continue, adding, “We are going to introduce people to the sport once again.”
Swiss has reinvested its improved income into a backlog of maintenance, Stafne says. Contractors replaced 1,500 feet of aged water lines through the valley, burying larger lines that will offer more volume and pressure, she says. You won’t see the payoff this year. Swiss is using the same fleet of snow guns, many of which were reconditioned last year. But, in years ahead, Stafne adds, the wider lines will support an extension and added snow guns that are on the long-term wish list.
Last season, the newish guns and renewed efforts — with less time spent on repairs — seemed to pay off in snow conditions that earned rave reviews late in the season. A PistonBully 400 groomer, acquired at the end of last season, helps to grind more deeply into icy snow and create a more consistent surface.
The terrain park will see a couple of added features.
Two of the chair lifts and their towers got paint jobs. No longer black, you’ll find the same gray color of paint that’s used at Vail Ski Resort in Colorado on the lifts along the first intermediate slopes, now known as Swiss Miss and Sandy’s Dandy, and on the lift for the most advanced slope, now called Three Sisters. The color gray lasts longer, Stafne explains.
The ski-lift shacks have been painted, too.
Some of the old lights on the slopes have been swapped out for LED lights, as needed, she says. Swiss eventually hopes to switch to all LED lights as it can be afforded.
The popular “Skibanas,” a pandemic creation with enclosed outdoor tents, seats and heaters, will return for group rentals ($100 per day), though Stafne says it’ll likely be in January. Outdoor picnic tables, lighting and take-out food will also return as options.
Indoors, carpeting has been replaced in the chalet’s restaurant and bar, in hallways and in a party room on the lodge’s lower level.
Wednesday races have been broadened to a family league rather than just for adults.
Need a job? Swiss needs workers in every area of the operation, from food servers to lift operators and snow makers. But Stafne says ski instructors are “desperately” needed — if you’re an experienced skier, she notes, “We can teach you to teach.”
• Where: Swiss Valley is at 13421 Mann St., Jones; skiswissvalley.com; 269-244-8016. Online reservations possible.
Timber Ridge
Timber Ridge Ski Area in Gobles, Mich., near Kalamazoo, enters its 60th year with several expansions. The managers who oversee Timber Ridge and Swiss Valley consider themselves “ski sisters” since their fathers started the similarly sized, family-owned resorts decades ago — fathers who are old pals, too.
General Manager Amy Schrab, whose dad is Gordon Rantz, says Timber Ridge’s first-ever double black diamond run, called Gord’s Gnarley, will feature moguls as it splits from the side of the run named Hemlock. Also, a short, steep ski run dubbed Fox has been carved through a wooded slope, making it a black diamond.
Harry’s Hollow is an intermediate run that hasn’t been used for a while because it’s been difficult to cover it with snow, now solved with new portable snow guns. It had always been a daytime run, but Schrab says lighting is planned for after the new year so it can be skied at night, too.
Timber Ridge also has its first-ever conveyor belts for bunny-slope skiers and tubing hill riders instead of tow ropes. Just step on and ride like those belts at the airport. It’s much easier than contending with the glove-scratching tow ropes, but it’s also expensive. Schrab says last year’s strong winter business made the investment possible.
A conveyor belt will transport skiers on Pine. Meanwhile, Schrab says the tow ropes themselves have been moved up the hill, making for a more beginner-friendly way to reach the four-seated (quad) chairlift than taking the triple-seated lift.
You may squeeze in more runs on the tubing hill, too, thanks to a second conveyor belt (quicker perhaps than walking) but also because the tubing hill has expanded from three to six lanes. The hill has been widened slightly, but a new groomer means that staff can pack in more lanes.
Altogether, Timber Ridge has replaced five of its portable snow guns this year, in addition to four new portables and two tower-based snow guns last year. All of them can make snow in warmer and more humid air than the old equipment, helping the resort to keep up the snow base in fickle weather.
We’ll stay tuned for a “'60’s fest” to mark the 60th season, possibly in late February.
• Where: Timber Ridge is off of County Road 388/D Avenue in Gobles, just west of U.S. 131; timberridgeski.com; 269-694-9449. No online reservations possible.
COVID protocols
COVID protocols look different than last season's mask-everywhere policy at ski resorts across Michigan.
The outdoors no longer require masks. Indoors, though, beware that there are variations at each resort, Mickey MacWilliams, executive director of the Michigan Snowsports Industries Association, says. Check the website of each resort before going.
“Some are requiring masks for staff and even proof of vaccination for dining,” MacWilliams adds. “Quite a few ski areas recommend pre-purchasing lift tickets and rental equipment. Last year the demand for rental equipment was really high, and it is good to have yours set in advance. Some ski areas ran out of rentals on busy days last winter.”
See last season's protocols: How we're adapting to new comfort zone and masks on Michiana ski slopes, trails
Online in this column, I link to an overview that MSIA has written on COVID policies that has links to the various resorts.
Indoors at Swiss Valley, Stafne says, masks are required if you aren’t vaccinated, and they’re optional if you are vaccinated. But masks aren’t required if you’re consuming something in a dining area or bar. All of that could change, Stafne adds, if health officials change their recommendations.
Indoors at Timber Ridge, Schrab says there aren’t any protocols. You choose whether you need to mask up or not.
Extra
• Dune hike: A naturalist will lead a hike at 10 a.m. CST Dec. 26 at Indiana Dunes State Park to explore the tallest dune there, Mount Tom.
Follow Outdoor Adventures columnist Joseph Dits on Facebook at SBTOutdoorAdventures. Contact him at 574-235-6158 or jdits@sbtinfo.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Swiss Valley, Timber Ridge upgrades: What to expect this season
