Vermont’s Killington Resort, the largest ski and snowboard resort in Eastern North America and part of POWDR, and U.S. Ski & Snowboard, the National Governing Body (NGB) of Olympic ski and snowboard sports in the United States, today announced a two-year agreement for Killington Resort to host the women’s FIS Alpine Ski World Cup. 

As Maine opens for summer tourism, Sunday River readies for a busy events season in the mountains, with classic and revitalized events returning to the calendar. Most notably, the resort recently opened registration for the 11th annual Tough Mountain Challenge: a muddy obstacle race slated for July 24, which was postponed last summer due to the pandemic. Special events and activities listed below will take place at the resort and the surrounding towns.

2021 Summer and Fall Events Schedule:

River Rock Festival – July 2-3
A two-day Christian rock festival, River Rock brings many bands from opening acts to headliners to perform outdoors at South Ridge Lodge.

Scenic Lift Rides Open – July 4
Sunday River will offer scenic chairlift rides on the signature Chondola, which offers both open-air chairs and enclosed gondola cabins. Lift rides are available on Saturdays and Sundays from 10AM-4PM through October 10.

Bethel Area Arts & Music Art Market – July 10 & August 7
Local artists and artisans will gather on the Bethel Village Town Common to sell their wares.

Tough Mountain Challenge – July 24
Sunday River’s annual Tough Mountain Challenge is back! This is the ultimate running race and obstacle course, where over 3,000 preregistered thrill-seeking athletes face over a dozen mountain obstacles and some of the most demanding alpine terrain at the resort spread across a 5k course.

New England Forest Rally – July 30-31
The annual New England Forest Rally (NEFR) is a two-day car race that starts at Sunday River Resort before taking place on the back roads of Western Maine and Northern New Hampshire. Sanctioned by Rally America, the NEFR is one of six National Championship rallies that take place in the United States.

Bethel Harvestfest & Chowdah Cookoff – September 18
Come hungry because Bethel’s annual Harvestfest and Chowdah Cookoff is a delicious way to savor the flavors and colors of fall in the Western Mountains of Maine. The cookoff features mouthwatering creations from area restaurants including chowders, homemade pies, and Maine baked potatoes, not to mention a Farmer’s Market and activities including a wood-carving demonstration and free horse-drawn wagon rides.

Mahoosuc Ridge to the River Challenge – September 25
With 10k, half marathon, and marathon-length routes, the Mahoosuc Ridge to the River Challenges returns for a third year. The race, which benefits Inland Woods + Trails, Mahoosuc Land Trust, and the River Fund Maine, is a challenging trail running race that traverses Sunday River’s slopes. Registration is now open for all race categories.

Fall Festival – October 9-10
Celebrate one of Maine’s most cherished seasons with Sunday River’s favorite fall event—Fall Festival. Complete with the North American Wife Carrying Championship, live music, a beer garden, wine tasting, the annual Blue Mountain Arts and Craft Fair, children's games and activities, scenic lift rides, wagon rides, and more. Fall Festival the resort’s last long weekend for summer activities like scenic lift rides and mountain biking, and the unofficial kickoff to its winter season of skiing and snowboarding.

North American Wife Carrying Championship – October 9
Each year this fantastic event draws over 2,500 spectators who line the alpine course to watch teams of 50 husbands and wives from around North America compete for the grand prize of the wife's weight in beer plus five times her weight in cash. Registration will open later this summer.

New England Cornhole Championship – October 10
Cornhole. Corn toss. Bean toss. Soft horseshoes. A game with many names played by millions across the world. But there's only one winning team. 48 teams will take to Sunday River's snowless slopes on the Sunday of Fall Festival for the 7th annual New England Cornhole Championship where a cornhole team will be named champion. Cash prizes are up for grabs along with bragging rights! Registration will open later this summer.

Ski areas across the United States experienced a strong rebound this winter despite public health restrictions put in place amid the coronavirus pandemic.

For a Northeast Kingdom hamlet with just 1,700 residents and two stores, East Burke is a busy place these days. Burke's small ski area, Burke Mountain Resort, has welcomed visitors for half a century. But now the town's Kingdom Trails bike trail network is gaining renown; it attracted about 135,000 visitors in 2019. The rural area has drawn more newcomers than usual during the pandemic.

Travelers are starting to make plans for a post-vaccination summer and Colorado resort towns want them to fill hotels in the coming months.

Known for intimidating steeps, bounteous snowfall, and gobsmacking Grand Teton views, Jackson Hole looms near the top of every skier and snowboarder’s tick list. World-class runs like the South Hoback and Corbet’s Couloir keep starry-eyed visitors and grinning locals alike enthralled all winter long. Only recently, however, has Jackson Hole Mountain Resort been able to generate a similar buzz come summer.

Calling all mountain bikers — your time to ride the trails is nearing.

After one ski season under his belt, Sleeping Giant Ski Area owner Nick Piazza is looking to get ahead of the curve by further investing in his mountain this summer.

“In my businesses, I know things are running well if we’re not talking about things for tomorrow or next week, but we’re talking about things for two months from now,” he said.

Piazza is forgoing the summer zip line season in order to focus on construction efforts for the mountain. Although the zip line has traditionally been the mountain’s biggest money-maker, he said it only makes sense to take a season off and come back in 2022 in a more prepared state.

“It never really got big enough to really solve the issues of the ski season,” he said of the zip line. “So we had to make kind of a bet, and our bet was we really care about the ski season, so why don’t we try to make that the best it can be rather than operate a whole other business and try to learn that again.”

Mt. Bachelor ski resort is moving forward with plans to build a new 5.5-mile hiking and mountain biking trail that will loop from the mountain’s base to the summit.

Deer Valley Resort welcomes guests back to the mountains for a summer season full of outdoor activities. Summer chairlift operations are scheduled to run daily from June 18 through September 6 and then for three additional long weekends, Friday-Sunday, through September 26, 2021. (Weather and conditions permitting.)

Soldier Mountain opened its new mountain bike park this past Friday, after a raging wildfire last summer prevented the park’s 2020 grand opening. 

The snowpack is quickly dwindling, bike trails are drying out, and the long adventurous days of summer are top of mind. It’s hard to say goodbye to ski season when your favorite resort finally stops spinning lifts, but let’s be real—your aching feet could probably use a break from the harsh reality of being crammed in ski boots all winter. 

Following a historic winter season, Windham Mountain plans to spend more than $4 million in capital improvements for the upcoming 2021-22 winter season.  

The snow is still falling and the slopes just closed at Winter Park Resort, but the resort is preparing for warmer weather and summertime mountain adventure. Winter Park Resort is anticipating opening its summer activities, including its famed Trestle Bike Park, on Saturday, June 19, 2021.

Gunstock Mountain Resort will open its award-winning Adventure Park on May 29 for Memorial Day Weekend. The weekend marks the annual opening for Gunstock’s summer adventures, a favorite tourist attraction in the Lakes Region. Brand new this summer is The Patio @ Gunstock offering “brews and views”; a full-service outdoor dining experience at the base area.

Beginning with the 2021/22 ski season, Schweitzer will become a partner on the Ikon Pass, joining 44 other iconic destinations including Crystal Mountain, RED Mountain, Snowbird, Alta, Revelstoke, Big Sky, and Mt. Bachelor among others. Schweitzer is proud to be the first Idaho destination to join the Ikon Pass community.

Aspen Snowmass will open for the summer season Memorial Day Weekend, May 29-31, at Buttermilk. This marks the first time Buttermilk will be open to the public in the summer. Guests can sightsee, hike, play disc golf and enjoy food and beverage options from the Cliffhouse restaurant, all accessed by the Summit Express chairlift. Summer operations at Buttermilk will continue weekends, Friday through Sunday, until June 20.

Several Colorado ski areas are taking advantage of recent snowstorms and extending their ski seasons through late spring.

Winter Park has extended their season through Sunday where they currently have 1,325 acres open. 

Breckenridge plans to stay open through Memorial Day weekend - May 31st.

Arapahoe Basin is aiming for a closing date of June 6th this year.

After a warm first week of April, the snowpack took a nosedive across the state. But a cooler and wetter pattern through mid-April halted the early snowmelt for several more weeks and even added to the snowpack slightly.

The Beast of the East is here to stay for a little while longer. As per usual. 

High-elevation ski areas in France and Austria, largely shuttered due to the pandemic, plan to reopen for a summer ski season.