Ahead of Presidents Day weekend, Oregon’s three biggest ski areas insist they have snow despite low snowpack.
BY JACOB PALMER | OB DIGITAL NEWS EDITOR
Leaders of Mount Bachelor Ski Resort, Timberline Lodge and Mount Hood Meadows are eager to relay that Presidents Day Weekend is still a good time to hit the slopes.
The Statesman Journal’s Zach Urness writes that mountain spokesmen say things aren’t as bad for the ski areas than what was previously reported:
“Yes, we’re down compared to what we’d see in a normal year,” said Dave Tragethon, spokesman for Mount Hood Meadows. “But because we can connect to the upper mountain, we still have more than enough snow to present a great experience.”
Drew Jackson at Mount Bachelor pointed out that the Central Oregon resort has 92 inches at mid-mountain, which is the deepest in Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada and Montana: “One hundred percent of our chairlifts will be in operation this weekend serving more than 2,500 acres of terrain,” Jackson said. “Although our snowfall has been below average, the mountain is still very well covered.”
If the ski areas get their wish, the routes from Portland to the mountains could become congested as is tradition. Read Oregon Business editor Linda Baker’s argument for a multimodal transportation plan to Mt. Hood (with a great throwback video at the bottom.)
