By Lori Raab
Mount Bachelor, Ore. – It snowed much of the day yesterday up on Mount Bachelor. KBNW news talked with spokesman Drew Jackson yesterday morning. He says as of right now they are on track to open on time…in a couple of weeks.
“It’s a winter wonderland for sure up here at Mt Bachelor. 8 inches fell overnight and it’s continued to snow. It’s a good start for what we’ll eventually need is a 2 to 3 foot base in order to open.”
All that snow may be tempting for skiers and boarders who want to tackle the mountain before the season starts- but for obvious safety reasons- Drew says that is not a good idea.
“We actually discourage people from coming up this time of year because we are doing maintenance work in our base area and up on the hill and so there is limited access in our parking lot. Folks are welcome to park along Century Drive where it’s legal to do so and hike around and play in the snow wherever they’d like.”
So, what if it keeps snowing…will the mountain open early?
“Our target opening date is Nov. 26th the day before thanksgiving. Mother Nature is truly the one who will make the decision on that one- Historically we usually can’t make that decision until a few days before…depends..Lori: if you get a lot of snow could you open earlier? Possibly if we got several storms, there’s a chance we could open a little earlier, but at this point we’re holding to the November 26th date, unless something really strange happens…that would be the date.”
Mount Bachelor managers do have some ability to take matters into their own hands with the snowmaking system. When needed, the snowmaking system covers about 20 acres on the Thunderbird run. They say they’ll make snow if the temperature & humidity permit and if the forecast gives them confidence that the snow will stay and grow.
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