With more than 80cm of fresh snow on the slopes, Shames Mountain is gearing up for its Dec. 9 opening.
New on the hill this year is a roughly $300,000 snowcat, which was delivered to Terrace on Nov. 7.
A GoFundMe campaign was launched on January 14, 2017 to help raise money for the purchase of a new snowcat, since the mountain’s old one had run to the end of its life expectancy, and will be retired at the end of 2017.
The Facebook page states that the snowcat makes it possible for the mountain to operate in any condition ranging from “deep coastal powder, to fluffy light stuff, to icy hard pack that hasn’t seen fresh snow in a week.”
“It is crucial to all aspects of ski hill operation from the process of clearing the life lines to grooming much loved runs such as Big Bunny and Python,” says the Shames’ Facebook page.
The campaign has raised $8,367 to help purchase the vehicle.
The mountain also received substantial contributions from the Port of Prince Rupert, CityWest and many other corporate and private sponsors, which helped facilitate the purchase.
“My Mountain Co-op continues to do a remarkable job of operating the Shames Mountain Ski Area, providing our region with a unique recreational opportunity for people of all ages,” said Kris Schumacher, Communications Coordinator for the Port of Prince Rupert. “We’re proud to support this not-for-profit, volunteer-driven organization through our Community Investment Fund, and we look forward to seeing the new snowcat grooming our legendary North Coast snowfall for many seasons to come.”
The club is training staff Dec. 2-3 and now with the big snowfall, the mountain shouldn’t have to wait on snow to open, like in previous years.