Early season snow at Government Camp on Mount Hood, October 12, 2017
© KOIN6Early season snow at Government Camp on Mount Hood, October 12, 2017
With a white Mount Hood barely a distant winter memory - and even with a wildfire roaring north of the mountain just a few weeks ago - more than 2 feet of snow have fallen at Timberline Lodge since Wednesday.

The early-season dump prompted the Timberline Ski Area to open a lift Friday with plans to operate two Saturday and Sunday.

Conditions that allowed the preseason opening, however, are expected to vanish by Tuesday, the National Weather Service said. Timberline officials urged skiers and snowboarders to check the early-season conditions before heading to the mountain on Saturday and Sunday.

A low-pressure area that dropped from the south over Mount Hood combined with "a fair amount of moisture from the Pacific produced an early-season snow event," said meteorologist Jon Bonk of the weather service.



"This is just an isolated snow system that occurred over the last couple of days," Bonk said, though there's potential for another Pacific storm, complete with snow at Mount Hood, hitting Wednesday.

The weather service forecasts only seven days in advance, but meteorologists will gather Oct. 28 in Portland to offer their predictions for the upcoming winter. The Oregon Chapter of the American Meteorological Society will host its 25th Winter Weather Forecast Conference at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. The meeting, starting at 10 a.m., is free and open to the public.

As for the early snow at Mount Hood, it's certainly not unprecedented, Bonk said. Timberline Lodge is at 6,000 feet elevation.

"There have been numerous times in the past where we'll get a winter-like storm system coming across the area in mid- to late-October," he said.

Timberline Lodge recorded 2 feet of snow from Wednesday through Friday, officials said, a foot of which fell between Thursday and Friday.

There's a 50 percent chance of snow showers before 11 p.m. Friday at Timberline Lodge, with new snow accumulation of less than an inch. The overnight low is expected to be around 21.

On Saturday, clear skies are expected with a high near 41, with a similar forecast for Sunday with a high of 47. Clear skies and a high near 54 are expected Monday.

The three-seat Pucci chairlift was open Friday and is expected to remain open Saturday and Sunday along with the Palmer chairlift, weather dependent, Timberline spokesman John Burton said. Lift tickets for the early-season offering are $39, all ages.

Burton urged skiers, snowboarders and others headed to the mountain to check the website or other sources before making the trip.

"These are early-season conditions," Burton said. "I can't encourage people enough to check the conditions before driving."

Timberline's winter season typically begins early to mid-November and continues through Memorial Day.

Mt. Hood Meadows, which is observing its 50th anniversary this season, usually opens near Thanksgiving Day, depending on conditions, spokesman Dave Tragethon said.

"As we get closer to Nov. 24 and see how much we have on the ground and the forecast," Tragethon said, "we'd be able to make any decision about early opening."