The big Ski to Defeat ALS vertical challenge and fund-raiser is still on for April 11 at Meadows, but the annual pond skim scheduled for April 25 has been canceled due to “changing conditions.” And Meadows announced on Friday, April 10 that its final weekend of operations will be April 17-19.
A foot of new snow this week is enough to keep the season going a while longer, but the base on the south-facing lower mountain is down to rocks, dirt and grass, and the forecast is calling for warm temperatures. That’s bad news for fans of the annual Sno-Kona Pond Skim, a rocking event held each spring by the base lodge. The Meadows Events page for the April 25th Pond Skim has a new message in bold-face: “Due to changing conditions at Mt. Hood Meadows this event is canceled at this time.”
Fortunately, conditions are still good enough on the upper mountain to make laps for a while, especially if a few spring storms come through. That bodes well for Ski to Defeat ALS, a vertical challenge fund-raiser that mostly takes place on and around the Cascade Express lift at 7500 feet. Ski to Defeat ALS organizers recently sent out a message reassuring participants that the event is still on:
Despite the current snow conditions, The ALS Association Oregon and SW Washington Chapter stays committed to our mission and our 2015 Ski to Defeat ALS! Mt. Hood Meadows has been working diligently to harvest and haul snow, to help the grooming and snow maintenance of the lower mountain through the upcoming weeks. We are in direct communications with the wonderful staff at Meadows as well as our Presenting Sponsor, Franklin Control Systems, and Oregon Adaptive Sports to finalize “Plan B” details.
Together, we are committed to hosting an event on Saturday, April 11th. It might look different than previous years, but the “show will go on.”
This weekend’s Spring Brew Fest is also still on, but the Meadows Film Festival scheduled for March 31st has been changed into an online contest, so there will be no public viewing of top films as in years past. Filmers have until March 31 to shoot, edit and submit their videos for this year’s competition. The later submission date allows those shooting to take advantage of the spring storms and the new Cascade Spring Park. Details on how to enter are here.
As for how long the season will last at Meadows, the answer kind of depends on how much snow falls in early April. In response to a question from Shred Hood, Meadows spokesman Dave Tragethon explained in a March 31 e-mail:
Regarding our operations, Mt. Hood Meadows intends to operate on our original schedule – daily through April 12 and then weekends, if weather and conditions allow. While we’re making every effort through our snow harvesting and farming techniques, we will most likely need additional snow to maintain this schedule. We are hopeful that April will bring some snow fall so we can continue operations.
The $99 Timberline Spring Pass is valid through May 25 — so long as the snow holds up, that is.
Last modified: March 27, 2015
