Mt. Hood Reopening After Delayed Start To Season
Opening day at Mt. Hood Meadows was originally scheduled for December 9th, but much like many resorts this season, the opening had to be pushed back due to the lack of snow.
In an Instagram post yesterday, officials at Mt. Hood announced that reopening day will occur tomorrow, December 15th, thanks to the efforts of the snowmaking teams.
"We're excited to announce that we will be reopening Friday, Dec. 15! This is due to our dedicated team, who has been working extremely hard to replenish the snow in affected areas via snowmaking and snow harvesting."
Snow harvesting involves using construction vehicles to move snow around as needed when there isn't enough natural base to ski.
Often, this involves moving snow from the parking lots to connect trails together to expand terrain on the mountain.
In an article on snow harvesting from KLCC, Mt. Hood Meadows communications director Dave Tragethon explained that Mt. Hood "can get 2 to 4 inches of snow on this parking lot and have enough snow to build the ramps we need in the lower base area. That connects people to the upper mountain where we have more than enough snow."
For the reopening day, available terrain includes the same southside lifts (Buttercup, Easy, Daisy, Ballroom Carpet conveyor) as opening day, but Mt. Hood "may be able to add limited Vista and Cascade terrain at some point."
This is great news, and Mt. Hood plans to keep checking things out as the weather hopefully changes. They let guests know that their conditions may improve and they will keep everyone posted.
"We will continue to evaluate conditions throughout the week, so please check our Conditions Page on the website before coming up."
Looking at the webcams, the warm temps have led to there being a lot of water in the base and the snow is patchy on the lower slopes.
Check out Mt. Hood's webcams here.
So far this season, Mt. Hood has a 19 inch base. Hopefully they get a lot more snow, and they can stay open for good!
Related: Why Mt. Hood, Oregon Is The Center Of The Summer Skiing Universe
Don't miss another headline from POWDER! Subscribe to our newsletter and stay connected with the latest happenings in the world of skiing.
We're always on the lookout for amusing, interesting and engaging ski-related videos to feature on our channels. Whether you're a professional or just an amateur, we want to see your best footage and help you share it with the world. Submit your video for a chance to be featured on POWDER and our social channels. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch high-quality ski videos.
