Washington Ski Areas Pop Open Early

A prolific November storm bumped open seven Washington ski resorts last weekend with powder conditions for the first turns of the season. What’s in store for this week at the Washington resorts? Snow, snow and more snow.
 
Crystal Mountain Resort, Stevens Pass, Mt. Baker Ski Area, Mission Ridge, The Summit at Snoqualmie, White Pass and 49 Degrees North cranked up their lifts for skiers and riders to hit the slopes this past weekend. By all accounts, the weekend served as one of the best openings for snow in recent years. Even the groomers sported powder.
 
Mission Ridge credited the storm combined with their snowmaking efforts in making last weekend’s skiing and riding one of the earliest openings in the resort’s history. Enough coverage allowed top-to-bottom skiing and riding.

Mission Ridge plans to offer skiing and riding Fridays through Sundays until daily operation begins in mid-December. Photo Courtesy of Mission Ridge.

Some of the resorts launched daily operations last weekend. Others closed this week, but intend to open up again for the Thanksgiving weekend. You can pack your boards to ski or ride this weekend at the following resorts:
 
Crystal Mountain:  open daily starting Nov. 23 in full operation

Stevens Pass: open daily with three lifts, but will add more chairlifts as conditions permit

Mt. Baker:  operating daily this week, pending conditions, check with the resort for early December schedule

Mission Ridge: open Fridays through Sundays until mid-December, when daily operations begin

Summit At Snoqualmie: opens Summit West Nov. 23 for Wednesdays through Sundays, but other areas will open as conditions allow

49 Degrees North: opens Thanksgiving Day, then begins its regular Friday through Tuesday operational schedule

White Pass: may open Nov. 23 or 26, check with the resort

Bluewood: tentative opening Nov. 26-27, open Wednesdays through Sundays until Dec. 14 when daily operations commence

Early season conditions exist, so use caution when skiing or riding as that big pillow of snow may just be a rock. Even though snow if predicted all week, a fluctuating freezing line may alter conditions. Check with the resort before driving up to the mountains: Crystal Mountain, Stevens Pass, Mt. Baker, Mission Ridge, Summit at Snoqualmie, 49 Degrees North, White Pass, Bluewood.