![]() In 1991, a grassroots effort raised two million dollars to save Mount Ashland from bankruptcy. Over the next four years, Harbor developed on-slope lighting, a vehicle shop, and the Sonnet and Comer chair lifts.ĭrought struck again in 1988–1991 and skier use declined. In 1983, Harbor Properties of Seattle purchased Ski Ashland from Hicks. Jefferies wrote to Ski Ashland in 1978, "The Mount Ashland Ski Area is a major source of sediment pollution in the East Fork of Ashland Creek." A 1979 report by James Montgomery to the city administrator made a similar finding. The monitoring effort led by USFS Ashland district ranger, Glendon Jefferies, observed the East Fork of Ashland Creek flowing "a solid reddish brown" below the ski area. In 1978, Ski Ashland installed the Windsor chairlift. In 1977, Dick Hicks purchased the ski area from Jackson County and incorporated it as Ski Ashland, Inc. In 1975, the City of Ashland signed a new Memorandum of Understanding with USFS in which the city agreed to hire consultants to monitor conditions in the Ashland Creek watershed and USFS agreed to implement any measures necessary to maintain watershed quality. The Southern Oregon College Foundation took over management the ski area after the people of Jackson County financed the purchase of ski area resources in the first of two public bailouts in the operation's history. ![]() In 1970, after three consecutive years of winter drought deprived the mountain of adequate snowfall to continue operations, the Mount Ashland Corporation folded. Medford businessman Glenn Jackson provided more than half of the $120,000 that financed construction of the lodge. It includes a ski lodge, the Ariel chairlift, a T-bar lift, and a rope tow on the north face of the mountain. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, backcountry skiing on Mount Ashland grew in popularity among local residents, prompting some to envision a developed ski area.ĭuring 1961 to 1963, the Mount Ashland Corporation raised money to clear trees, grade terrain, build roads, and develop a ski area. In 1929, the City of Ashland got the Forest Service to agree that the city would participate in any forest management that might impact water quality of the 15,000-acre (6,100 ha) Ashland Creek watershed, the city's main municipal water supply. The slogan of the community fundraising campaign was "Save Mount Ashland." In 1991, the City of Ashland purchased the ski resort through a community fundraising campaign and a grant from the Oregon Economic Development Fund. Two new lifts were built during their ownership and night skiing lights were installed. In 1983, the ski area was sold to Harbor Properties of Seattle, the owners of Stevens Pass Ski Area. In the 1970s, the area was managed by the Southern Oregon College Foundation (now Southern Oregon University) until it was purchased by Dick Hicks, a local businessman, in 1977. Half of the terrain is rated as advanced, and 15% is rated beginner.ĭuring the 1950s, the mountain was a popular destination for local back country ski enthusiasts, some of whom built the lodge and one lift in 1963. The mountain receives over 225" of snow annually, with a season from early December until mid-April. Mount Ashland ski area is located on 7,532-foot (2,296 m) Mount Ashland and features 23 trails on 200 acres (0.81 km 2) served by four lifts, in addition to chute skiing in a glacial cirque called The Bowl.
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