Mt. Spokane Ski and Snowboard Park pushes back opening plans
A forecast calling for warm temperatures and rain has forced managers of Spokane’s backyard ski hill to cancel plans for opening this weekend.
Mt. Spokane Ski and Snowboard Park announced on its website Wednesday that although the mountain has some snow, the shift in the weather means it can’t open for the season as planned on Saturday.
The National Weather Service forecast for Mount Spokane State Park is predicting highs in the 40s through the weekend. The ski resort’s announcement said the mountain needs colder weather to open. It didn’t list a new target date.
“Late-December openings aren’t unusual, and this slow start doesn’t change our expectations for a great winter,” the annoucement said. “There’s still plenty of precipitation in the forecast – we just need the temperatures to drop.”
The mountain relies entirely on natural snow. As of Wednesday, its conditions report estimates that it has 15 inches at the base and 19 inches at the summit.
The warm pattern is part of the atmospheric river that has been battering the Pacific Northwest this week.
Valerie Thaler, a forecaster with the National Weather Service, said the conditions are expected to continue at least through Thursday. Showers over the mountains may linger into Friday but will be less intense.
While the heavy rain might ease up, air temperatures are going to stay high into the early part of next week.
“Not seeing any signs of a significant cool down in the near future,” Thaler said.
That’s bad news for anyone with a ski pass.
Officials at 49 Degrees North, outside of Chewelah, still haven’t announced a planned opening date. That resort has snowmaking machines and has been able to use them, but it’s still lacking snow. On Wednesday, the mountain was reporting 9 inches of snow at the base and 15 inches at the summit.
Bluewood, a ski hill near Dayton, had hoped to open Thursday but called those plans off. The hill’s website shows an image of the bottom of its chairlift, with a bare patch of grass underneath it.
The season has gotten a half-hearted start in North Idaho. Skiing has taken place at Schweitzer, near Sandpoint, where one run has been open daily.
Silver Mountain in Kellogg and Lookout Pass near Mullan have been partially open on weekends. They both plan to reopen Friday.