History of Lookout Pass

Winter 1935-36

• The Idaho Ski Club is born. A few ardent ski pioneers built a rope tow powered by the engine from an abandoned car they found on the old Yellowstone Highway, which is now I-90. They used a highway maintenance shed on Lookout Pass as a warming hut.

1938

• The Lookout Pass Ski Patrol joined the National Ski Patrol with registraiton number P009, making it the ninth patrol to join the national organization.

1940

• Lookout’s Famous Free Ski School founded. Over 80 years, volunteer instructors have introduced more than 75,000 kids to the world of skiing and riding.

1941

• Lookout’s historic lodge built. The U.S. Forest Service commissioned the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)  to build the original phase of the expanded lodge still in use today, the second-oldest ski lodge in the Pacific Northwest next to the Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood in Oregon.

1950s

• The Idaho Ski Club, the group of volunteers that operated Lookout Pass, sold lift tickets for 50 cents.

1980

• Lookout’s first chairlift – Chair One, was financed with contributions from local mining companies to provide winter recreation for their employees.

1992

• Idaho Ski Club sells out. With the mining industry in decline, Lookout’s volunteer staff dwindled. A group of locals who wanted to keep Lookout open takes over.

1999

• Lookout Associates LLC acquires the mountain. Lookout’s current owners launch a new era of expanding terrain and improving services for anticipated greater numbers of skiers and riders.

2003

• Timber Wolf double chairlift installed. The addition of Timber Wolf (chair 2) on the Montana side of the mountain added five named runs and glades, boosted the mountain vertical drop to 1,150 feet and opened spectacular views to the St. Regis and Copper basins.

2005

• Lodge expansion. A three-story, 6,000 square foot addition greatly expands food service seating and includes a retail shop, more restrooms, locker rooms, the Loft Pub & Grub lounge on the top level and panoramic slopeside views.

2007

• North Star double chairlift installed. North Star lift opened access to expert terrain on the prime north aspect of the mountain. The expert terrain offers a stunning bird’s eye view of the Coeur d’Alene River Valley.

2011

• Success Triple Chair aka chair 4 was installed, replacing the rope tow to service the beginner area.

2017

• The Record of Decision for the Eagle Peak expansion was officially approved by the U.S. Forest Service.
  This is another phase of a long-range plan to expand Lookout Pass Ski & Rec. Area to two additional peaks encompassing a total of 2,000 acres. 

2018

• Finished the season with 503 inches of snow! Though not a record, it was a very strong season.

2019

• The Peak 1 Quad Chairlift was installed replacing the older double chair aka chair 1 that ran up the front face of the mountain. This new Skytrac Fixed Grip Quad lift doubled the uphill capacity on the front of the mountain in preparation for the expansion to Eagle Peak.  

2021 

• Chair #2 the Old Timberwolf Double Chair was converted into a Triple Chair increasing uphill capacity by 50%. 

2022 

• The new Eagle Peak Expansion area opens with 1,650ft vertical, 14 new trails & 3 glades, adding 500 more acres of skiable terrain. This brings our total skiable acres to 1,023 acres. Top Summit elevation was increased to 6,150ft (higher elevations also has the benefit of receiving more and dryer snow). All serviced by the new fixed grip Eagle Peak Quad Chairlift. 
• Parking area greatly expanded in anticipation of growing attendance.

2023

• NEW Snow Globe Day Lodge installed offering almost 5,000 square feet of warm space. This Sprung Building was constructed to expand our guest service footprint and offers more warm indoor seating capacity and a selection of food service treats. The building added seating for between 200 & 350 more people based upon setup and currently has Big Screen TV’s and some comfy couches.
• The Eagle Peak Quad Chairlift motor controls were optimized over the summer speeding up the lift which shortened the ride time by 2.5 minutes.  

2024

• Finished the winter season with 452 inches of snow! Though not a record, it was a strong season. Snow coverage allowed us to open in October and close the last weekend in April.

2025 

Lookout Pass celebrates its 90th anniversary! recorded 454″ of snow and offered a real long season having opened on Nov. 8th and finished the season on the last Sunday in April 4/28/2025.