Ashland, Oregon — Mt. Ashland’s first new chairlift in 35 years will debut this weekend.
Yesterday, Mt. Ashland Ski Area announced that the Lithia Chair will debut on Saturday, December 14th at 10:30 a.m. The Skytrac fixed-grip triple chairlift runs on an all-electric auxiliary motor, the first in the U.S. to do so. The five-tower chairlift has a ride time of ninety seconds. Various historic Ashland tourist attractions containing the name “Lithia” inspired the chairlift’s name.
It will service easy and intermediate terrain, which includes the Sonnet, Poma, and Lupine (formerly known as Lodge Poma). A new run, Bumblebee, which will start next to the top of Sonnet, is planned to be added in the future. Lights are also planned to be added to these runs for night skiing and riding.
The project was made possible by two large donations made by one couple. The Sid & Karen DeBoer Foundation donated $2 million to the ski area, while Sid & Karen DaBoer made a separate donation of 500k.
This area was originally serviced by a Poma lift, but it was removed in the 1980S. Since 2004, a new lift has been a part of Mt. Ashland’s Master Development Plan. Mt. Ashland formally began work with the U.S. Forest Service in 2022 on this project. Construction commenced in September and only took 54 days to complete.
While Ashland is without its main workhorse (Ariel) for the foreseeable future, it will be exciting for guests to explore the Lithia area, which was underutilized for many years.
Image Credits: Mt. Ashland Ski Area
