Boyne Mountain Resort opened its new SkyBridge Michigan in fall 2022. The resort is building the 1,200-foot-long, 118-foot-high timber-towered suspension bridge at the top of the ski slopes. Its towers are over 50 feet high and nearly 70 feet long, anchoring each end of the bridge in a design that nods to northern Michigan’s logging heritage.
Guests will ride one of several chairlifts to the mountain’s top and then be able to walk along the bridge to take in the panoramic views of Boyne Valley. The bridge is modeled after the Gatlinburg SkyBridge at Boyne’s sister property, Gatlinburg Sky Lift Park, in Tennessee.
“Boyne Resorts operates 12 properties throughout the United States and Canada, and a major benefit to that kind of geographical diversity is to learn from success stories and bring them to life in new locations,” says Erin Ernst, Boyne Resorts’ Michigan operations director of communications. “Boyne Mountain offers the right topography and tremendous scenic views suited for the addition of a bridge.”
A pedestrian bridge appeals to a broader market of people as it’s not an activity requiring a special skillset to do like some of Boyne’s other primary attractions, but the suspension aspect also brings a thrill factor, because it will sway as people are walking on it. “It will also have a glass panel section in the middle, making the attraction really appealing to adventurers,” she says.
Open year-round, SkyBridge Michigan should prove to be a major attraction, Ernst notes, adding, “The experience will be a great activity to incorporate into a northern Michigan visit.”
