Ashland, Oregon — There were surprisingly some positives from Mt. Ashland’s very short 2025-26 season. But first, the negatives: they opened late, went through multiple starts and stops, and concluded their season in February. This gave them a total of 17 days of operations. They also lost their beloved General Manager to a (presumably) soon-to-be-under-new-ownership Eldora Mountain Resort. The positive? This gave two of their ailing lifts an extra year of life.
The Rogue Valley Times reports that Mt. Ashland has revised its lift replacement schedule. Part of the reasoning was that they didn’t raise enough money to replace the Windsor chairlift this offseason. Mt. Ashland is now fundraising to replace the key chairlift in 2027 and another chairlift in 2028. This was partially helped by the lack of operational dates during the 2025-26 season, which saw a minimal snowpack and excessive rain.
The plan is to replace the Windsor chairlift, a Yan double chairlift, with a SkyTrac fixed-grip triple chairlift in 2027. In 2028, Ashland plans to replace Ariel, a Riblet fixed-grip double chairlift, with a new SkyTrac triple chairlift. Its top terminal will be located around 200 feet below its current location and housed in a building to protect it from the elements. Following the demolition of the old lifts, the old chairs will be auctioned off.
“Replacing these lifts is critical to the long-term future of our Ski Area. Mt. Ashland Association is committed to serving the Rogue Valley for generations to come, and every dollar contributed by our mountain community will directly support these essential infrastructure upgrades and be a part of making history,” said Gabby Conner, Marketing Manager at Mt. Ashland.
“These chairlifts impact far more than skiers and snowboarders — they support youth programs, summer recreation, local businesses, tourism, and the broader outdoor culture of Southern Oregon. Losing access to this infrastructure would have a devastating impact on recreation and our regional economy, and Mt. Ashland Association is doing everything possible to ensure a sustainable future for our community asset.”
A current fundraiser features matching donations thanks to The Karen & Sid DeBoer Foundation. They are contributing a $500,000 matching donation to the campaign. The goal is to raise a little more than $1.87 million to replace Windsor by May 2027.
Click here to make a donation.
Image/Video Credits: Mt. Ashland, Wheelhouse Motion Pictures and Nathanael Lathrop
