It's Snowing in the Mountains, and Tomorrow Is Opening Day at Mt. Hood Meadows

As your damp feet will tell you, it's been raining all week in Portland. It's been raining so much that Portland is basically underwater now. But there is a light at the end of this dark, wet tunnel, and that light is a far superior form of precipitation: snow in the mountains.

It's snowing on Mount Hood, and ski season is finally getting itself going.

Timberline, which is almost always open even when it really maybe shouldn't be, has two lifts running. Skibowl is still "waiting for more snow" but does have tubing going for people without the money or desire to ski or snowboard but who want to experience going downhill in the snow. But Mt. Hood Meadows is opening tomorrow!

Dave Tragethon, Meadows spokesman, says rain in the valley is definitely translating to snow in the mountains. "At 5,500 feet, we've received 16 inches of snow since yesterday," he told us over the phone this afternoon.

If you are interested in getting on skis and going uphill instead of down, and paying a little less, Meadows Nordic Center, at the Hood River Meadows parking lot, a mile toward Hood River from the main entrance, is also opening tomorrow.

According to Tragethon, not all the trails will be groomed, but Holly Falls and the Sprint Loop will be open and ready for traditional cross-country skiers and skaters for a $12 track fee. The Meadows Nordic Center is open Thursdays through Mondays after tomorrow.

And if you want to ski without paying, Teacup Lake across the street from Meadows Nordic Center is open and groomed too, right now, for free (but you should make a donation, you cheapskate).

So, maybe you feel a bit of a cough coming on? A light flu? A touch of head cold? Some sort of rain-related illness? You probably shouldn't go into work tomorrow.

Willamette Week