BOISE, Idaho — Workers at Bogus Basin are prepping to open the resort up during Thanksgiving weekend. It'll be the earliest the resort has opened in a few years. Their new snowmaking system is being relied on heavily right now to open.
The mountain finished working on the system last year, and they'll be running it at 100 percent this year.
"This would be the first time we're able to open this weekend and be open on 100 percent man-made snow,” Director of Mountain Operations Nate Shake said. "Snowmaking on the ridge, our coach beginner hill and our tube hill."
One thing that won’t be ready for a couple weeks is the new lift, Morning Star Express. Work is still being done on it, and it is expected to open it up in early December.
"The lift should be ready for commissioning on Dec. 2,” Shake said. “Hopefully testing and open to the public sometime after the 8th of December.”
The new lift will bring more capacity than the old one, and it’ll slow down at the load and unload areas, making it easier for beginners and intermediate skiers to jump on.
“A lot more capacity, it's replacing an old triple fixed grip chair, so we've basically doubled or tripled the capacity by turning it into a high-speed quad,” Shake said. “Dramatically reduce any wait times that we had long lines there before that we won't have anymore.”
Another new feature coming to the mountain is preferred parking for people who carpool.
"If you are carpooling, you'll get to park closer to the lodge and then on weekends and holidays until that parking fills up of course,” Shake said.
If someone drives up to the mountain and they aren’t carpooling, they will simply have to park farther away in one of the ski in and ski out parking lots. Bogus is also partnering with ACHD's Commuteride program this year.
“Organize rides with your friends and family so that you can utilize our new car pooling and get your closet parking spot,” Shake said. “So, we want to get as many people up here we don't want to turn anybody away. So, we're encouraging everyone to carpool.”