Legal Dispute Forces Small Washington Ski Area To Delay New Chairlift Opening

Originally posted on Powder | By Ian Greenwood | Last updated Sep 2, 2025 1:19 PM ET

Ski Bluewood, Washington, won’t open its first high-speed quad chairlift this coming ski season owing to a legal dispute with its lift broker.

According to a letter published by Bluewood’s team, the original plan was to install the new Skyline Express this summer and open it once the snow began falling, but Bluewood said that because of the lift broker dispute, key parts for the Skyline Express are being held and haven’t arrived yet.

“We have taken formal legal action to resolve the situation and secure delivery of the remaining parts,” the letter reads.

Lift Blog reported that the new high-speed Skyline previously operated at Sölden in Austria from 1993 to 2025.

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While Bluewood has already received many of the components for the new chairlift, it said that the delay means it won’t be able to finish the Skyline Express before next winter starts.

Bluewood added that building the new Skyline Express requires completely dismantling its predecessor, a three-person chairlift.

If the ski area took down that chairlift without all the parts on site, it “would put us at serious risk of not being able to open this winter at all,” the letter reads. The current Skyline Express is the only chairlift that accesses Bluewood’s summit.

Still, this summer, Bluewood has started pouring the concrete footings for the new towers and prepared the loading and unloading terminal sites. The ski area said it will continue working on the Skyline Express project until winter starts, so that when next spring arrives, it can finalize the lift installation quickly.

The goal, for now, is to open the new Skyline Express during the 2026-2027 season.

To compensate its guests, Bluewood is giving eligible passholders a $100 credit that can be used for food, gear, lessons, and more.

“We know many of you have been looking forward to this upgrade for a long time. We share your disappointment that it will not happen this season, but this is the right call,” the letter reads.

Bluewood is a small ski area on the east side of Washington near Dayton and is a member of the Indy Pass.

This article first appeared on Powder and was syndicated with permission.

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