Avalanche Bay Webcam – Michigan’s Largest Indoor Waterpark

The Avalanche Bay Webcam looks down over the deck of Avalanche Bay Indoor Waterpark at Boyne Mountain Resort in Boyne Falls, northern Michigan. In the middle of the frame sits the blue FlowRider machine of the Rip Zone surf simulator, with rows of white tables and blue chairs on the stamped concrete in front of it. To the left, a winding channel of turquoise water bends around islands of mock snow and rock, and a blue and purple tube slide spills out of a snowy grotto. Behind the surf machine rises a tower of stairs and slide platforms, while painted shopfronts with a clock tower line the right edge. The park is open all year, so the same deck can sit quiet with every chair pushed in early in the morning and fill with swimmers later in the day.

About Avalanche Bay Indoor Waterpark

Avalanche Bay opened in 2005 and covers about 8,200 square meters (88,000 square feet), which the resort bills as the largest indoor waterpark in Michigan. It belongs to Boyne Mountain Resort, which opened as a ski area in 1949 after a group that included Everett Kircher bought the site in 1948. The Mountain Grand Lodge and Spa, opened in the winter of 2005, stands next door, and the water inside the park is kept at 29 C (84 F) all year.

Six waterslides share the building. The Big Couloir was the first ProSlide SuperLOOP in Michigan, a slide with a 360-degree loop that riders must be at least 122 centimeters (48 inches) tall to ride. The Downhill Mat Racer lets four people race side by side on mats, the Vertigo Cannonbowl sends tubes around a giant bowl, and the Super-G Slide is a tube ride that runs both indoors and out. Several names borrow from the ski slopes outside, down to the Haute Route racing pool. There is also Blizzard Bay, a pool with basketball hoops, plus a lazy river, two hot tubs, the multi-level Splasherhorn Play Structure with its bridges and dumping buckets, Fritz’s Snow Fort for small children, an arcade, the Snack Shack and the Apres Ski Pub.

The surf machine at the center of the frame is the Rip Zone, which the park calls the first surf simulator in Michigan. Riders must be at least 107 centimeters (42 inches) tall and sign a waiver, and they can take the wave standing on a surfboard or lying on a boogie board. A rack of red and blue life jackets stands by the fence on the left, and a mural of pine trees and mountains covers the far wall above the pool.

Weather and Climate in Boyne Falls

Outside the building, Boyne Falls has long, snowy winters. NOAA figures put the average January high at minus 2 C (28 F) and the low at minus 10 C (14 F), with about 81 centimeters (32 inches) of snow in January alone and about 284 centimeters (112 inches) across a typical year. Winter is ski season on the slopes outside, so the resort can have skiers on the hill and swimmers in the waterpark on the same afternoon. Inside, the water stays at 29 C (84 F) whatever the thermometer says outdoors.

Spring arrives slowly, with an average April high of 13 C (56 F) and lows just below freezing. July brings average highs of 29 C (83 F) and lows of 15 C (58 F), while October averages 15 C (59 F) by day and 4 C (40 F) at night. On the Avalanche Bay Webcam the seasons hardly register, since the deck is under a roof and lit by the building’s own lights, so the clearest sign of the time of year is how many people are in the water.

Things to Do Near Avalanche Bay

The rest of Boyne Mountain Resort surrounds the waterpark. The ski area has 60 runs served by ten chairlifts and a carpet lift, with a vertical drop of 132 meters (433 feet) between the base at 219 meters (719 feet) and the summit at 351 meters (1,152 feet). SkyBridge Michigan opened on October 15, 2022, and the resort claims it is the longest timber-towered suspension bridge in the world. Other activities on the property include the Zipline Adventure, a disc golf course, two golf courses called The Alpine and The Monument, and swimming at Deer Lake Beach.

The village of Boyne Falls, which gives the resort its address, had 358 residents at the 2020 census and sits at 220 meters (722 feet) above sea level in Charlevoix County. Petoskey lies about 23 kilometers (14 miles) to the north in a straight line, and Gaylord about 25 kilometers (16 miles) to the southeast, so a stay at the resort can take in either town.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more of northern Michigan, and one more park built around a day of rides, try these cameras.

• Walloon Lake Webcam
• Ironton Ferry Webcam
• Kings Island Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Avalanche Bay located?

Avalanche Bay is at Boyne Mountain Resort, 1 Boyne Mountain Road, Boyne Falls, in Charlevoix County, northern Michigan, USA. It is about 23 kilometers (14 miles) south of Petoskey and 25 kilometers (16 miles) northwest of Gaylord in a straight line.

What can you see on the Avalanche Bay Webcam?

The camera looks down on the Rip Zone surf machine and the tables in front of it, with a winding turquoise channel and the exit of a tube slide to the left, a tower of stairs and slide platforms behind, and painted shopfronts with a clock tower on the right.

What is the weather like in Boyne Falls?

Winters are cold and snowy, with average January highs of minus 2 C (28 F) and about 284 centimeters (112 inches) of snow a year. Summers are warm, with July highs averaging 29 C (83 F). Inside the waterpark the water stays at 29 C (84 F) all year.

Is Avalanche Bay the largest indoor waterpark in Michigan?

Boyne Mountain bills it as the largest in the state, at about 8,200 square meters (88,000 square feet) under one roof, with six waterslides, a lazy river, two hot tubs and a surf simulator.

Is Avalanche Bay open year-round?

Yes. The waterpark is indoors and open all year, so it runs through the ski season as well as the summer. Daily hours are posted on the Boyne Mountain website.

Does Avalanche Bay have a surf simulator?

Yes, the Rip Zone, which is the blue machine in the middle of the frame on the Avalanche Bay Webcam. Riders need to be at least 107 centimeters (42 inches) tall and sign a waiver, and can ride it on a surfboard or a boogie board.

How tall do you have to be to ride The Big Couloir?

At least 122 centimeters (48 inches). The same minimum applies to the Vertigo Cannonbowl and the Super-G Slide, while the Splasherhorn Play Structure has no minimum height listed.

Source: Avalanche Bay Indoor Waterpark