While the high may have been a balmy 64 degrees on Sunday, Aug. 17, at the White Pass Ski Area in East Lewis County, the weather was perfect for helicopter flights needed to transport the towers and other components of the ski resort’s new chair lift to the construction site.
The ski resort is currently upgrading its Chair 4 lift with a larger one, going from two-person chairs to four-person, according to White Pass Marketing Director Kathleen Goyette.
And the construction comes just in time as despite the summer weather, being at 4,500 feet elevation, the ski resort usually receives its first snowfall of the season by September.
The helicopter work was carried out by a Sikorsky Aircraft UH-60A Blackhawk owned by Idaho-based Timberline Helicopters Inc., which specializes in helicopter operations for ski resorts, logging operations and forest fire suppression efforts.
Additionally, resort staff are currently looking for a new name for the new lift, as Chair 4 was the only lift on the mountain with a simple number name. The four other lifts are called Far East, Great White Express, Basin Quad and Couloir Express.
Given that four of the five ski runs surrounding Chair 4 are named after birds — Quail, Grouse, Ptarmigan and Raven's Haven — staff are looking for an ornithological-oriented name and are open to suggestions from the skiers and snowboarders who will be riding it.
While the new four-person chair lift at Chair 4 will be faster than the old one, it will not be another express lift.
“You’ll have time to eat a snack,” Goyette said.
Additionally, the new Base Camp Ski Lodge at White Pass is also under construction on the east end of the resort near the Far East ski lift and near parking lot C, or as it’s known to many who frequent White Pass, the “RV lot.”
“It’ll be a three-story lodge, a daylight basement with two stories above it,” Goyette said. “It’ll have an all new learning center, because we’re gonna be focused on getting our whole community to ski and snowboard.”
The new lodge’s location puts it directly next to the White Pass “bunny hill” area, perfect for skiers and snowboards learning to keep their legs underneath them.
Goyette added there are also plans in the future for new beginner level ski runs near the new lodge, along with a terrain training park.
“There may be some this season, but definitely next season, it’ll connect to our terrain park,” she said.
The hope is to have both the new chair lift and lodge ready for this upcoming winter season. For more information on the White Pass Ski Area, visit https://skiwhitepass.com/ or follow the ski resort on Facebook and Instagram.
