Mt Baker Lodging

Gondola provides lift for summer recreation on Crystal Mountain

A new ride is transforming one of Washington's favorite winter resorts into a destination after the snow melts.

A glitzy gondola has swung open the door to a summer recreation season at Crystal Mountain Resort, one valley to the east of Mount Rainier.

Crystal has operated sporadically in past summers, but this year's Jan. 1 debut of the Mt. Rainier Gondola is letting the resort stay open seven days a week into mid-September (then weekends into October). The gondola serves winter sports, but its biggest value is to attract new visitors for summer recreation.

The gondola also transports hungry patrons to Washington's highest restaurant, where weekend brunches and dinners regularly sell out. When the clouds part and the sun sets over Mount Rainier, a dozen miles away, the view from the 6,872-foot-high Summit House Restaurant of the Cascades' premier peak is pretty much unmatched.

Portlanders already have two winter resorts on Mount Hood that cater to summer visitors, so Crystal Mountain is not going to become a top option for Oregonians. But neither Timberline Lodge nor Mt. Hood Skibowl carries visitors uphill with a gondola, a popular lift for riders who get queasy on an open chairlift.

There's something reassuring when the door of the gondola cabin closes, the steel and glass bubble attaches to the cable and up the hill you go.

At Crystal, the transformation is from 4,400 feet in the base area to an alpine ridge high in the rugged Cascades. All in a 10-minute ride.

The gondola was built by Doppelmayr of Austria, which also built the Portland Tram. Crystal's gondola is a continuation of more than $30 million in upgrades since Boyne Resorts of Michigan acquired the resort in 1997.

In old-style gondola cabins, riders may have glimpsed the view through a ventilation slot. In Crystal's modern gondola, the view is almost 360 degrees through tinted glass walls of the gondola cabin.

Mt. Baker Lodging Cabins and Condos at Mount Baker / Glacier ...

Description

WASHINGTON STATE: Conveniently located just 2-hours north of Seattle, and 1.5-hours south of Vancouver, B.C., Mt. Baker Lodging is your source for private, self-catered, fully equipped Mt. Baker area cabins, cottages, condos, chalets, and executive vacation home rental accommodations, located in the mountain villages of Glacier and Maple Falls, at the magnificent gateway to the Mt. Baker Snoqualmie National Forest, and the adjacent Mount Baker Ski Area!

The Mount Baker Recreation Area is a year-round playground! SUMMER Guests enjoy great hiking, mountain biking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, backpacking, freshwater fishing (lake and river), small game hunting, whitewater rafting, kayaking, canoeing, swimming, nature viewing, tennis, and golf. WINTER Guests enjoy spectacular downhill and cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, and sledding. Don’t forget your camera…the photography is unsurpassed year-round!

RATES:

Rates range from $109.00 to $1219.00 per night, and from $654.00 to $8533.00 per week USD + tax.

RESERVATIONS:

Reservations are subject to a 2-night minimum stay during regular periods, and a 3-night minimum stay during holiday and special event periods.

An Advance Reservation Payment equal to 50% of the total reservation cost, including tax, is required to reserve a vacation property. The remaining balance is considered due-in-full 14-days prior to our Guest’s scheduled date of arrival, and is automatically debited to our Guest’s credit card on the scheduled due-date.

PAYMENTS:

We gladly accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover/Novus, and American Express as forms of payment. Sorry, NO personal checks.

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