Local skiers and snowboarders have been crossing their fingers for more snow as they gaze up at the Big Mountain in anticipation for the ski season to begin.

Last year, a phenomenal opening day with bountiful snow spurred a record number of opening day visits at Whitefish Mountain Resort. This year, the resort plans to open on Thursday, Dec. 7, as scheduled, with limited terrain open.

“We have enough coverage that we’ll be able to open a decent amount of terrain and get people their skiing fix,” said Whitefish Mountain Resort public relations manager Chad Sokol. 

Thanks to a weekend storm that brought 10 inches of fresh snow to the summit, the settled base as of Monday was 35 inches at the summit and there were 11 settled inches at the base. 

Though the new snow is welcomed, Sokol reminds people to be wary of early-season conditions.

“Keep safety in mind. Slow down. If there’s the very end of a tree poking out through the snow surface, that can be pretty unforgiving,” he said. “It’s a long season. There will be plenty of opportunities to get your turns. There's no need to push it in the first week.”

Making snow requires the right conditions. Sokol said they’ve been monitoring temperature and humidity levels closely and added that the mountain has a couple snow guns that are calibrated to turn on and off according to the weather.

Officials likely won’t make the final call until Wednesday on what lifts will run and what terrain will be open but downloading is a strong possibility. 

“Our grooming and lifts and patrol teams have all been working hard to get the mountain ready,” he said. “Our crew has completed routine maintenance and inspections on all our lifts, including Chair 4, and we believe the challenges we experienced last winter have been resolved.”

Last season roughly 150 riders had to be evacuated off the new Chair 4, Snow Ghost Express, after a braking malfunction shut down the lift. Chair 2 also faced mechanical problems last season and maintenance crews have tended to both over the summer.

A big improvement skiers will enjoy this year is the addition of a second conveyor carpet. The new carpet is named 2 Easy, a nod to the original carpet called the Big Easy. The new carpet begins where Big Easy ends and travels uphill and traverses slightly to the east.

“It basically doubles the usable beginner slope for lessons, for first-timers and for parents with their little ones,” Sokol said. “Folks can get off at the top of the first carpet or continue upward and looker’s right a little bit and have way more space to spread out and practice.”

Both of the carpets are now covered with clear, plexiglass tunnels that will make the riders more comfortable.

“That should improve the experience for beginners,” Sokol said. “[The tunnels] keep the snow off of them and give a little bit of a break from the cold as they’re riding up.”

Additionally, the covers keep snow from accumulating on the carpets, so they will be easier to maintain.

Other improvements at Whitefish Mountain Resort include parking lot expansions that created a few more parking spots in several lots and a renovation of the base lodge bar. It now has more room for kegs and a second cash register was installed so the bar has more serving capacity.

The resort plans to be busy again this season. Last year, the resort broke its visitation record with more than 500,000 skiers and snowboarders. The 2021-22 season saw around 464,000 visits.

The season event lineup follows past years. Torchlight parades are planned for Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve and Presidents Day weekend. The Whitefish Whiteout ski mountaineering race is Feb. 10, with the 25th annual Nate Chute snowboard races set for March 16-17. The pond skim is April 6 and closing day is April 7.

The resort offers 11 chair lifts and 111 named runs across 3,000 acres. An adult lift ticket rings up at $97. A night skiing pass is $30. Kids 6 and under ski free.

For up-to-date information visit Whitefish Mountain Resort’s Facebook, Instagram or the snow report on the hill’s website, www.skiwhitefish.com

    Crews installed new plexiglass covers over the conveyor carpets this summer. The new protection will help keep snow off of beginner skiers and riders to improve their experience. (Photo courtesy of Whitefish Mountain Resort)