Ski season not over yet
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 6 months, 3 weeks AGO
Nearby ski parks got a late-season boost Monday with a spate of new snow.
FILE PHOTO
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | February 16, 2026 2:41 PM
MOSES LAKE — This hasn’t been our snowiest winter, but ski resorts in the region got a late-season boost this week with a sudden snowfall, just in time for the three-day Presidents Day weekend.
“We’ve received over four inches, probably closer to five inches of new snow since about 8 o’clock this morning,” Tony Hickok, marketing director at Mission Ridge near Wenatchee, said Monday. “It’s the first significant snow that we’ve seen in a bit. A very welcome return to winter.”
Mission Ridge has been open since the beginning of December, Hickok said, but with limited terrain. All four chairlifts were in use for a brief time during the season, he said, but for the last month it’s been only three. Not all of the resort’s runs have been in operation either, he said, but thanks to a snowmaking system, the ones that are open have been kept in good shape.
Mount Spokane Ski & Snowboard Park, northeast of Spokane, was also happy with the gift of snow.
“It’s been snowing all day today, and we have snow in the forecast every day of the week,” said Assistant General Manager Jodi Kayler. “People are out here having fun … It seems like winter’s finally here.”
49 Degrees North Mountain Resort, near Chewelah, has done pretty well despite the warm winter, said Ticket Office Lead Harley Holt.
“We’ve been having pretty good daily (turnout),” Holt said. “We still have our season pass holders, and we have our dailies who love our mountain enough to keep coming back regardless of snowfall.”
Washington has been going through a dry spell in January, according to the State Climate Office at the University of Washington. Snowpack has been well below normal at barely over half the historical median.
“It’s definitely been less snowfall from years prior,” Holt said. “Last year was one of our golden years. We had like 108 inches finishing the season.”
49 Degrees North has 17 inches of snow at the base and 30 inches at the summit Monday, according to its conditions report. Mt. Spokane had 16 inches at the base and 34 inches at the summit, and Mission Ridge showed 19 inches at the summit and less than 12 inches at the base.
“About every 10 years we see a significantly lower-snowfall year,” Hickok said. “The last year with really low snow was 2014-15. So, it does happen from time to time.”
Keeping an eye on a ski park’s website is important, as conditions can change quickly. With spring around the corner, skiers should be extra aware of the terrain they’re skiing on.
“There are some rocks pointing out at certain spots,” Holt said. “I recommend bringing your spring gear, skis that you wouldn’t mind of they had a scratch on them.”
The Presidents Day weekend is a popular one for folks to hit the slopes, Hickok said, along with Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the week after Christmas.
“We’ve had a lot of folks getting out this weekend, enjoying the conditions,” he said. “And we expect to see an uptick in this coming week with the new snowfall.”
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.