Oregon — After a project-filled offseason, a non-profit ski area will need to complete another task to be 100% open this ski season.
Recently, a large tree fell on an Ariel lift tower at Mt. Ashland Ski Area. The tree struck the eighth Lift Tower, causing some damage. It took professional tree removers eleven hours to remove the tree from the tower. The chairlift will be closed for an undetermined amount of time.
Ariel services most of the terrain at Mt. Ashland, including The Bowl, a series of double black diamond chutes near the summit.
On Monday, General Manager Andrew Gast provided an update on the season ahead. It won’t be open for at least a few weeks. Mt. Ashland aims to open it around Christmas time, but that could change.
Regardless, Mt. Ashland still has an exciting ski season ahead. This season, the Oregon ski area plans to open the Lithia Chairlift, giving easy access to the Poma and Lodge Poma trails. These two trails had runouts, so having them lift-serviced will make lapping them easier. New lights have been added across the mountain, improving the night skiing experience. Other improvements include the widening of the Aisle 2 trail and a rebuild of the bar deck.
Mt. Ashland’s planned opening date is December 6th for passholders and December 7th for the general public.
Image/Video Credits: Mt. Ashland
