Skier in blue jacket descends snowy slope, surrounded by trees.

Summer Improvements

Hello Lutsen community — I’m Benjamin. Before stepping into my current role as Chief of Mountain Operations and Development for Midwest Family Ski Resorts, I served as General Manager at Snowriver Mountain Resort. While I was there, I started Ben’s Blog as a way to share behind-the-scenes updates and seasonal reflections with our guests. Over the last year I’ve been increasingly involved at both Lutsen and Granite Peak, and we've heard consistent requests for more information about how we're preparing for the coming winter season.

Based on this feedback, now seemed like a good time to re-start that sharing that I'd previously only done for Snowriver. This blog is the first, of what I intend to be many, similar posts for all three resorts to keep you connected to the improvements and projects shaping your experience across our family of resorts. I'll keep it high level in this first article, but stay tuned for more deep dives into individual projects and their impacts. 

Charlie's Alpine Bistro & Sunset Studios - Now Open

This summer, we completed a multi-year effort to replace Papa Charlie's, the beloved heart of our base area which was lost to fire in June of 2023. The construction of Charlie's Alpine Bistro and Sunset Studios was our largest single project across our family of resorts this year at a total cost exceeding $8 million. Open since Mid July, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro has brought new food and beverage options steps from the slopes, while the 8 new lodging units provide fresh, modern accommodations that will help meet demand during our busiest times. Take a look through the gallery below to check out the beautiful new spaces and imagine yourself enjoying dinner after a long day on the slopes, all while taking in the setting sun behind Moose Mountain.

Modern hotel room with balcony view of green hills, neutral tones, and cozy seating area.
Sunlit building by an empty road with power lines, evening sky in the background.
Modern hotel room with two beds, large window view of greenery.
Deck chairs overlooking a lush green landscape with hills.
Modern bathroom with large mirror, counter, and tiled wall.
Modern restaurant with bar seating, large windows, and warm lighting.
Spacious restaurant with large windows and modern decor, overlooking green hills.
Modern restaurant interior with high tables, chairs, and warm lighting.
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Modern living room with high ceiling, large fan, and open kitchen. Neutral tones and natural light.

New Ski-in Ski-out Condos

Another exciting addition this year is the conversion of our former registration and administration building into two new condos — one three-bedroom and one two-bedroom unit. Both will be true ski-in/ski-out accommodations, located just steps from the slopes and directly next to the pool and fitness center. These condos repurpose a central building that has long been part of the resort’s footprint, giving it new life as premium guest lodging. We look forward to adding two new family-friendly options that blend convenience, comfort, and unbeatable access to everything Lutsen has to offer. 

Large blue industrial generator next to a white control panel in a workshop.

Timberwolf Lift Upgrades

Looking back, it's been a few years since we've been able to operate the Timberwolf lift reliably. As a secondary lift, it's purpose is to provide additional uphill capacity on our busiest days, offering another option for accessing terrain on Moose Mountain. The challenging "Winter" of 23-24 didn't allow us the opportunity to make enough snow to get the lift opened up for our peak days, we were forced to continually make snow on the terrain we had open just to keep it open. 

After that experience, last winter we set out to make sure we got that terrain open as soon as we could and made more snow over in that area than we have in years. Unfortunately, in testing the lift to open it, after all the snow was made and the runs were ready for skiing, we discovered that our drive had failed. Given that we reached this point in early February, our window to source parts and make a repair was to short to make a meaningful impact on the guest experience before the end of the season.

Over the summer we've upgraded the power supply cabling, installed a new electric motor and a variable frequency drive completely replacing the heart of the lift. In addition, we relocated the operator house at the bottom closer to the lift and added power to the building, meaning our operators will have heat! With these improvements we expect to be able to run the lift more reliably when it's needed most. 

Aerial view of winding river and forest beside a forested hillside with a black pipeline.

Full Strength on Four Mountains

One area we’re especially focused on heading into this winter is Mystery Mountain. We know that over the past couple of seasons, some of our terrain has been closed more often than any of us would like and we share the same desire as our guests and passholders to be skiing on all four mountains. Mystery has been at the top of that list. Two winters ago, unseasonably warm weather kept us from opening it, and last year, a failed snowmaking pipe shut things down before we could get it running.

This summer, we took the opportunity to fix the problem for good, replacing the entire snowmaking line from the base up to the mid-unload point with brand-new pipe and fittings. We also increased the pipe diameter from 4 inches to 6 inches, more than doubling our capacity to push water up the slope. The result is a system that’s stronger, more reliable, and capable of making snow faster on the steepest sections of the mountain. Our goal is simple: to get Mystery open earlier, keep it open longer, and get everyone skiing on all four mountains once again.

Myriad of Minor Improvements

We’ve been busy making a bunch of smaller, but noticeable, improvements across Lutsen to make your experience smoother and the mountain even more inviting. You’ll spot fresh building paint, upgraded wayfinding signage, new lift loading platforms and more across every corner of our four mountains. These updates might seem small individually, but together they add up to a more enjoyable day on the slopes. Click through the gallery below to see some of what we’ve been up to!

Small brown cabin on a grassy hill under a clear blue sky.
Freshly painted Caribou drive station operator house. Our lift operations team managed to get new coats of paint on every one of our lift shacks across the mountains which has them looking better than they have in a decade or more.
Small wooden cabin near a luge track with autumn foliage in the background.
Our Flapjack conveyor operator house was elevated, reoriented and freshened up to provide better visibility for the operator down the lift and provide easier access for them to give a helping hand.
Rustic lodge with green roof in mountainous setting, autumn trees in background.
A new section of deck connects the backside of Rosie's to our new front entrance at one level. No more climbing down the stairs just to go right back up!
Ski lift with an orange mat and information board in a grassy setting.
A new loading platform with fresh M-snow will make for a consistent rider experience as they load the Raptor Express this season.
Ski lift with red mat at sunset, overlooking a forested valley.
New unload deck at the top of Raptor Express. The bright orange stuff is called M-Snow, it's color born out of the recycled construction barrels it's made from. This material has been used on many of our load & unload ramps across our company. It's great for making for a consistent and durable unload ramp that doesn't turn to ice or wear away throughout the day.
Lodge with dark exterior, surrounded by trees, overcast sky.
Eagle Ridge Buildings E & F also joined in with an exterior overall thanks to our awesome facility maintenance team who spent nearly every nice day this summer painting every building they could get to.
Mountain lodge and ski lift surrounded by trees under a cloudy sky.
A fresh coat of paint on the ticket office and chalet give both buildings a welcomed modern look.
Two-story brown house with beige trim and a satellite dish on a sunny day.
The former registration also got a fresh brown coat and a brand new set of stairs providing access to the top floor 2 bedroom condo currently under construction.
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See you soon!

While we’ve been busy at Lutsen, our other two resorts — Granite Peak and Snowriver — have also been hard at work improving the guest experience. From snowmaking and rental gear upgrades to lodge and technology improvements, teams across all three resorts have been tackling both the big projects and the smaller details that make skiing and riding more seamless and enjoyable. In the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing more updates and stories from behind the scenes, giving you a closer look at the work we’re doing as we get ready for the winter season. 

– Benjamin

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Skiers glide through snowy forest trail in winter setting.