Summer 2023 will be the first full summer season at Sleeping Giant Ski Area and Ziplines since the mountain’s ownership changed hands in 2020. Much of the activity underway this summer will improve the outdoor recreation experience for future winter seasons.
For the first time since 2020, the Zipline Season at Sleeping Giant begins on June 15.
“This will be our first time running summer activities, and we look forward to returning this popular activity to Park County,” reads a May 30 statement announcing the area’s summer plans. “The management team has been hard at work for the last month getting the towers painted and the zipline prepped and ready. We plan to offer a few new twists to the services we offer this summer, to have more staff on the mountain to be able to service more tours, and hopefully provide a better flow for customers than SG had in the past.”
The ziplines have been closed since the end of the 2020 season, so Sleeping Giant’s management team could use the summer months to turn the ski area into a functional and successful winter attraction.
A limited kitchen (mostly convenience foods) will operate for the summer. Other planned events through the summer include movie nights under the stars, and a few campfire live music events.
Sleeping Giant’s management has also developed “ambitious development plans” to improve the overall outdoor experience by enhancing the mountain’s trails and core infrastructure.
One of those infrastructure improvements is over $50,000 in upgrades to the ski area’s lifts, including installing a new coms line for the Bighorn lift.
“We have been waiting for this line since 2021 when we installed a new lift computer and operations system. The coms line acts as something like a nervous system for the lift, connecting all its sensors and motor with the lift computer. Having a new modern line in place will help our lift run more efficiently and harmoniously. Following that, our maintenance team, together with our partners Electramics, will do a software update to the lift computer on the Sheepeater lift, replace its largest shiv bank and do some painting and clean up on the towers.”
Summer 2023 will also see “the most extensive trail clean-up and expansion in Sleeping Giant’s history. A Destination Development Grant from the Park County Travel Council will partly fund these improvements.
The project’s first stage involves earthworks for the installation of a large 3-lane tubing park, which could open tubing earlier next fall. A service road will be added to the Sheepeater side while trails in the same area are cleaned, graded, and expanded. The new road and improved trails will help Sleeping Giant’s ski patrols improve safety, expand skiable terrain, and make the Sheepeater side of the mountain more accessible.
This summer will be stage one of trail expansion. The future will require more collaboration with Sleeping Giant’s partners.
“We are working with our friends and partners at the US Forest Service to agree to further expansion that will include a traverse connecting the Sheepeater and Bighorn Lifts and another traverse on the eastern side of Bighorn to provide our skiers and riders with a better experience and easier access back to our lifts. We will also be cleaning and grading the area around Wild Bill into the Catch Pen to improve those runs and hopefully allow us to return to hosting High School races.”
This will be accomplished with a budget of around $200,000, including a $58,000 Destination Development Grant from the Park County Travel Council.
“We believe will allow Sleeping Giant to offer expanded access and improved experiences for all our skiers and riders and put us in a position to host new events and offer new outdoor activities in the future,” the May 30 statement reads. “So, as you can see, we have our work cut out for us this summer and, as always, will appreciate your support as we work to make our little Community Mountain a stable long-term resource for Park County.
See you at the G!”
