Mt. Bachelor Suspends Summer Operations Due To Heavy Wildfire Smoke
Mt. Bachelor, the largest ski resort in the state of Oregon by skiable terrain, was forced to suspend summer operations on Tuesday, August 15th, 2023 due to heavy wildfire smoke in the area.
Mt. Bachelor has yet to make a statement about today's operations (August 16th, 2023) as of 6:45 AM local time. We will update this post as more information becomes available. The resort announced the closure in a series of Instagram/Facebook stories that showed thick smoke obscuring visibility with a reddish brown hue.
The first post was published at 1:16 PM PT. Bachelor suspended operations at 1:58 PM. Screenshots of the announcements below:
At 6:45 AM local time on August 16th, 2023, real-time air quality monitoring site Purple Air is reporting a 10-minute AQI average of 175 at Mt. Bachelor's Pine Marten Lodge. The reading peaked at 217 six hours ago.
Purple Air explains what these readings mean for the health of those exposed to air that falls within the 151-200 range on the AQI scale:
"151-200: Some members of the general public may experience health effects with 24 hours of exposure; members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects."
The smoke at Bachelor is being produced by two active fires in the Willamette Forest to the east. Click here to learn more about the Bedrock Fire, and here for more about the Lookout Fire.
**UPDATE 10:42 AM PT**- Mt. Bachelor has released the following statement about smoke in the area:
"It is smoke season. Yesterday we were forced to shut down operations around 2:30 p.m. due to the heavy smoke up here. Huge thank you to all the teams involved in getting everyone safely off the mountain.
Today, fingers crossed, that will not be necessary. As of 8:30 a.m. the AQI reads in the 150-200 range. This is within our operating parameters but if you are someone who is sensitive to smoke, this might not be the day to come up. We are hopeful that we can stay open all day but will keep you updated if that is not the case. As always, please refer to our Webcams or Purple Air for real-time updates on conditions.
Overall weather for the day is partly sunny with a high near 80°. Northwest wind clocking in at 5-11 mph.
Please note: all bike trails are scheduled to open at 10:00 a.m. daily with the exception of Redline, which will open at 12:00 p.m. each day due to trail maintenance."
Stay tuned here at Powder Magazine for all updates regarding summer operations at Mt. Bachelor. We'll keep you covered.
Don't miss another headline from POWDER! Subscribe to our newsletter and stay connected with the latest happenings in the world of skiing.
We're always on the lookout for amusing, interesting and engaging ski-related videos to feature on our channels. Whether you're a professional or just an amateur, we want to see your best footage and help you share it with the world. Submit your video for a chance to be featured on POWDER and our social channels. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch high-quality ski videos.
