Proposed Mission Ridge Ski Area Expansion

What We Know 

Mission Ridge Ski and Board Resort in Wenatchee has proposed an expansion project that includes enlarging the alpine ski area, constructing new chairlifts, creating a snow tubing and Nordic skiing zone, modifying roads and parking and adding residential units such as single-family homes, condos, townhouses; a new hotel lodge and employee housing; and commercial spaces.

This is a large-scale project that will increase the ski area by an additional 1,090 acres. This development will significantly alter the Mission Ridge landscape, and is a multi-year project that will impact the experience of recreationalists in this area in various ways. 

Chelan County is currently accepting public comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed expansion of Mission Ridge Ski and Board Resort. Public comment is due October 21.

Impacts to Non-motorized Recreation

While Mission Ridge is well known for resort skiing, there is also year-round recreational access in this zone, including backcountry ski and snowshoe terrain. Under the leadership of El Sendero, a local advocacy group, this area has gone through a collaborative recreation planning processes in the last decade with Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), and Chelan County, which has led to the development of two new winter non-motorized areas in 2022: Stemilt Basin and Clara Lakes.This non-motorized designation was created after many years of collaboration and negotiation and now these areas face impacts from the Mission Ridge expansion project. 

Area of Impact #1: Upper Stemilt Basin Access. 

The existing sanctioned uphill route to Stemilt originates from the Ski Area parking lot and ascends terrain that, under the proposed plan, would lie directly beneath a new chairlift and within the expanded ski area boundary. This area would likely become functionally inaccessible to backcountry travel once integrated into resort operations, assuming that Mission Ridge will continue applying its existing uphill restrictions policy. We would like to see revisions to the Draft EIS that include a designated uphill route to Stemilt Basin to preserve access to this important dispersed recreation zone.

Area of Impact #2: Parking Reduction for Clara and Marion Lakes

The Draft EIS indicates that the proposed road will reduce parking availability in the existing main lot, which is used to access the popular Clara and Marion Lakes trailhead and non-motorized zone. This trailhead not only provides access to those lakes but also to Mission Peak and the surrounding terrain. The Draft EIS mentions that a new proposed parking lot will help mitigate the anticipated crowding at the main resort access lot resulting from reduction of spaces from the proposed road. Unfortunately, that proposed lot is about a mile away from the trailhead, which may not be practical for regular access. We would like to see the Draft EIS include a detailed analysis of the impacts of parking reduction in the main lot and clearly describe the final trailhead layout, including mitigation measures for any loss or disruption of parking for backcountry users accessing Clara and Marion Lakes.

Map of proposed area and non-motorized zones (courtesy of El Sendero)- click to enlarge

Additional Considerations

This development is expected to bring a substantial increase in visitation to the Mission Ridge area, which may place additional pressure on the surrounding environment and recreation resources. According to the Draft EIS, Phase 1 alone is projected to result in an 89% increase in weekday trips and a 112% increase in Saturday trips. While this issue extends beyond the immediate scope of the DEIS, we strongly encourage Mission Ridge Resort to explore the establishment of a Community Benefit Agreement—or a similar mechanism—through which a modest portion of annual resort revenues could be dedicated to supporting local recreation infrastructure. Such funding could help maintain trails, improve signage, and support restoration or clean-up efforts to mitigate the environmental impacts associated with higher visitor volumes.

What You Can Do

To provide comment please visit the Chelan County website by October 21: https://www.co.chelan.wa.us/news/article/comments-open-for-mission-ridge-expansions-draft-environmental-impact-statement 

What to include in your comment?

• We encourage our backcountry users to identify themselves as a backcountry skier/boarder/snowshoer in their comment and ask that backcountry skiing and other backcountry winter recreation impacts be more thoroughly discussed in the Draft EIS including potential loss of access to Stemilt Basin and decreased access to Lake Clara and Lake Marion. 

• We also encourage residents of Chelan County to share their concerns about impacts to the road and long-term maintenance costs and potential for a community benefit agreement to help alleviate these concerns. 

If you are a backcountry user who frequents this zone and you have other winter backcountry access concerns not addressed here please email Brandon at brandon@cascadebackcountryalliance.com or comment below.