Crystal Mountain

By Will and Kieran

Crystal has 30 inches of snow now and there is 3 feet of snow in an area called Green Valley. Normally this would be enough to open the mountain but this weekend they are expecting heavy amounts of wind and rain.  Therefore, the opening is to be determined and the winter season ends April 19th. When ski season does start, Crystal will be open every day at 9:00 am and close at 4:00 pm. All of the upper lifts close at 3:30, meaning there is no night skiing.

A number of the lifts have changed this year. The High Cambell lift that was destroyed last spring was replaced for this season. The chair is a fixed grip double manufactured by SkyTrac. The new chairs are twice as heavy so the lift will not close as easily as it did last year in one of the windiest areas on the mountain. The lift has been re-named Chair 6 for this year, the original name of the old lift. If the lift stops there is a full diesel back up.

Another lift that has been replaced is Quicksilver. It has changed from a double fixed chairlift to a quad fixed chairlift. It was replaced to make the mountain better for intermediate and beginner skiers.

New Chair 6 Statistics
900 people per hour
500 feet per minute
915 vertical feet
2,353’ slope length
13 towers
85 chairs at 7.2 second intervals

Crystal has also added a new snowcat for grooming this year.

PistenBully 600 Electric Diesel Snowcat

A new snowcat for grooming has been added. It consumes 20% less fuel and emits less CO2. Crystal mountain will be the first ski resort to get it in North America.

Food

There are many places to eat at Crystal. The nicest restaurant there is The Summit House and has been named the most scenic restaurant in Washington. This year they have a new Executive Chef, Zachary Reid.

Although the mountain is covered in snow and is very close to opening, skiers will have to wait a few more days to get back on the slopes of Washington's biggest ski resort, Crystal Mountain.

You can find out more at: http://crystalmountainresort.com