Season Pass Anxiety

Meadows Cut Off: Skiers Cope With Road Closure

By Tomi Owens, 11-10-06

	A washed-out section of Highway 35, south of Hood River at Newton Creek. (Photos are courtesy of ODOT.)

Gorge skiers and riders gathered last night at the Hood River Middle School auditorium for a showing of Warren Miller’s latest film, “Off The Grid”. The crowd was surprisingly upbeat considering that Mount Hood Meadows is, for the time being, almost totally cut off from the rest of the world and, more importantly, from us. Massive lanslides caused by the recent heavy rains have wiped out sections of Highway 35 on both sides of our local resort and according to the Oregon Department of Transportation our mountain is officially ‘off the grid.’

(I don’t think this is what Warren had in mind.)

The buzz of rumors about just how much damage was done and just how long it will be before Hwy. 35 reopens was incessant before, during and after the slick ski flick. And all the snippets of conversation I overheard were filled with the kind of giddy optimism that Titanic passengers must have felt as they made snowballs from chunks of iceberg. For example:

“ODOT is making it top priority.” “They are opening the Hood River side in two weeks.”
“One lane is still passable.” “We should be skiing in a month!”

I sure hope so. But skiing in a month will take more than just a reopened road. It is going to take snow, and lots of it, to build up a base worth riding. And I still have lingering fears that another dismal season like 2004/2005 is in store for us. Many of us have already bought our season passes, cashing in on the 4x4 deal (four people for $400 each) offered by Meadows until last Sunday, a well timed economic coincidence to be sure. And I really, really hope, like the rest of the die-hards at the movie last night that the weather gods smile on the Northwest this year. Our season pass anxiety is only slightly assuaged by our collective mantra: if-we-buy-it-it-will-snow.

According to Mt. Hood Meadows President and Chief Operating Officer Dave Riley's blog (which is worth the read) and today's Oregonian (for a bit of perspective) road crews are making Hwy. 35 north of Meadows their main focus. The White River Bridge is looking like it might take “a few more weeks to open.” Well, I suppose the up side is all the Portlanders will be rerouted through Hood River this year. Hundreds of skiers passing through town should be great for local businesses, huh? Oh, goody.

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