Indianhead Mountain opens with record snow

WAKEFIELD — Indianhead Mountain opened to skiing on Friday, after record snowfall has fallen this year.

“We’ve been fortunate to get all this natural snow and cold weather so we can also make snow,” said general manager of Indianhead, Barry Bolich. “Indianhead will be able to offer some of the best early season skiing in years,” he said.

The hill opened at 9 a.m. and by mid-afternoon, the hill and lodge were bustling with skiers and snowboarders.

Rick Martin, of Menasha, Wis., said the skiing was “really good for this time of year,” after spending the morning and early afternoon skiing.

“It was fun. Cold, but fun,” said Ramona Martin, also of Menasha.

“It warmed up a bit as the day went on,” Rick Martin said.

“It was a really good day for November. We’re lucky to be skiing in November,” Romana Martin said. “A great Thanksgiving break here.”

Many other skiers agreed, saying it was cold, but conditions otherwise were great.

Collin Gagnon, working in rentals, said it was busy all day. Last year, he said there were “maybe 15 rentals” for the opener, and this year, by mid-afternoon, it was “over 100.

“And that’s just rentals,” Gagnon said.

He also said, “I’ve never seen the parking lot so full on the first day.”

Another Indianhead employee, Tim Moon, said he heard conditions were “very good,” though he hadn’t had a chance to hit the slopes yet.

“The numbers aren’t in, but I’d say we’ve had double the business we had last year,” Moon said.

Skier Nancy Dohr, of St. Paul, Minn., always makes the trip to Indianhead and holds a season pass.

“It’s a real treat to have it open nice and early,” Dohr said. “Conditions are super.”

By mid-afternoon, she was done for the day, but said, “I’ll be back tomorrow.”

Recently, Indianhead Mountain Resort and Blackjack Mountain joined together to provide a single ski experience, offering an interchangeable ticket which allows skiers to enjoy both places.

The resorts offer a free shuttle service to transport guests back and forth. Blackjack Mountain, near Bessemer, plans to open on Dec. 19.

For more information or to purchase tickets visit Indianheadmtn.com or SkiBlackjack.com.