Whitefish Mountain Resort opens Thursday, expect some restrictions

Whitefish Mountain Resort will open for the winter season on Thursday and the operations team says the snow quality is actually better than recent years.

The resort saw a good bout of early season snow in November, and since then crews have focused snowmaking efforts on the lower mountain in preparation for opening day. According to the resort’s director of mountain operations, Bill Cubbage, the snow conditions are better than last year’s opening day because of the amount of natural snow that fell on the backside so far this year.

The resort is also making changes to comply with COVID-19 restrictions and will also debut the completion of phase one of the Hellroaring Basin Project later this season.

As of Monday, the settled base at the village is 6 inches, with 35 inches of snow at the summit. A few more inches of snow is in the forecast for Wednesday and Thursday as well.

The resort is planning to open Chairs 1, 5, 6, 7, and 11, T-bar 2, and the Magic Carpet for the first day of the season on Thursday.

According to Cubbage, the best snow conditions will be off of the backside with Chairs 7, 11 and some of Chair 5 serving up the goods. There also may be spot closures on East Rim and the resort reminds patrons to ski with caution while paying attention to the signage.

“Early season conditions do exist on the steeper aspects, for example stumps and rocks, so please ski with caution,” said Whitefish Mountain Resort’s public relations manager Maren McKay. “Also groomers are focusing snow making on Tony Matt, which will be open for opening day.”

Russ’s Street will be open at 3 p.m. to ski down, snow coverage is thin on that run so the resort is limiting skier traffic there; downloading will be available throughout the day.

This season the resort is implementing some changes in order to comply with COVID-19 regulations. Face coverings are required when around other guests or employees, mainly in the lift lines and indoor areas.

Because of the pandemic there will be a significant change to indoor seating areas. The Summit House and Ed & Mully’s will now be hosted seating only with limited capacity. All the indoor spaces are limited to 50% capacity to comply with Montana Gov. Steve Bullock’s restrictions on bars and restaurants, according to McKay.

Tables will also be limited to a maximum of six people and in order to have as many people be able to come inside to warm up throughout the day, the resort is asking people to clear their tables after 45 minutes. McKay says sanitation specialists will float through all areas to regularly sanitize and all food will be served in covered containers.

The resort has heated tents for overflow patio seating outside of the Base Lodge and Ed & Mully’s to accommodate for the limited indoor seating. The resort is also encouraging guests to safely tailgate at their own vehicles this year, but require people to pack out what they pack in or use provided dumpsters, and no pop-up tents or open flame fires are allowed.

The resort is not limiting lift ticket sales or requiring reservations for tickets. Changes to lift lines this season include eliminating the singles line and not requiring different parties to pair up for chairlift rides.

Other COVID-19 related precautions are listed on the resort’s website under the COVID-19 tab. McKay said that although there are many changes this season because of the pandemic, the resort is hopeful for an enjoyable season.

“There are some things that we simply won’t know until opening day this year,” she said. “However, we really feel like we’re armed with all the right tools to have a successful, fun and safe season. We will definitely adjust as the season continues where we see fit; like many other resorts, we must remain flexible this year.”

Additionally, the resort will debut the completion of phase one of the Hellroaring Basin Project this season. Hellroaring usually opens slightly later in the season, but guests of the resort will be in for a treat with new terrain in the basin.

This summer workers cleared timber for new runs and lift lines, as well as glading areas near several runs.