Royal Gorge opening Saturday in the Donner Summit

Royal Gorge will open 19 trails and over 20 kilometers of terrain for cross-country skiing on Saturday. The Donner Summit resort will now be open seven days a week for the season.

The opening of America’s largest cross-country resort will be the first time that the resort opens to the general public under Sugar Bowl Resort’s new management team. Sugar Bowl took over operation of Royal Gorge in the fall, and updated the resort’s Summit Station lodge, added grooming equipment and bought new ski rental gear for the resort.

All services will be available at Summit Station lodge, including ticketing, rentals, food and beverage and ski lessons. Trail passes will also be available for purchase at the Van Norden trailhead. All-day lift tickets will cost $27. Skiers can receive a $10 discount on a Royal Gorge trail pass on Saturday, and every day throughout the season, by purchasing a $19 CORE pass.

Royal Gorge has over 200 kilometers of trails and approximately 6,000 acres of terrain that stretches from the open expanse of Van Norden Meadows to the foot of majestic Devil’s Peak. It is connected to Sugar Bowl Resort by an “interconnect trail” that leads skiers through Van Norden Meadows.

A cold winter storm dropped nearly a foot of snow at the resort on Wednesday, making for superb snow conditions across the resort’s trail system. For more information visit royalgorge.com or sugarbowl.com.