More about Stevens Pass

Established way back in 1937 in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie and Wenatchee National Forests, Stevens humbly began with a Ford V-8 engine, an assortment of wheels and shafts, and a hunk of rope. Total investment for the two young founders from Seattle - Don Adams and Bruce Kehr - was less than $600. Tickets sold for 5 cents per ride, and gross ticket sales were $88 for the first season. Because Highway 2 was closed during the winter at the town of Scenic, determined skiers would hike the last six miles or buy an 18-cent, one-way train ticket.

During the Fifties, Stevens operated over 20 rope tows. The Sixties ushered in the Seventh Heaven lift, and with it some of the steepest and most advanced skiing in the state. The Seventies brought along a new day lodge, while two more lodges were built and Mill Valley opened the following decade. Serviced by the Southern Cross and Jupiter lifts, Mill Valley added another 400 acres of skiing on the backside of the area.

The Nineties featured installation of two new high-speed quads, upgrades of the Tye Mill lift, and a brand-new day lodge to end the millennium. In 1996 the SkyLine Express replaced the old Barrier Double chairlift. Two years later, the Hogsback Express high-speed quad replaced the Blue Jay and Hogs Back chairs.

More recently, Stevens replaced the old T-Bar Lodge by building a new $5 million dollar lodge with a distinctly Cascadian look and feel. Construction materials include large wood beams and granite rocks taken directly from the Cascade Mountains. The new lodge forms the centerpiece of the base area and provides seating and dining for 150 more skiers and boarders than the old lodge did. The Tye Mill double chair was upgraded to a triple chair.

Copyright © 2001 Globe Pequot Press