Mount Ashland

It’s not the biggest resort by a long shot, but Mount Ashland is certainly one of the more interesting smaller ski areas in the country. Located in the Siskyou mountains of southern Oregon, this little area packs a punch with some tough terrain, great views, and cheap prices.

Management and Future Upgrades

Mount Ashland is unique as one of the few ski areas run as a nonprofit, which allows for more reinvestment in comparison to other ski areas of its size. During the summer of 2024, Mount Ashland is building a new chairlift, the Lithia chair, to serve some low intermediate terrain, filling a gap in the terrain progression, and expanding into terrain that hasn’t been lift-served in many years.

Mountain Aesthetic

Mount Ashland is the tallest mountain in the Siskiyou Range and one of the tallest in the region, and it provides incredible views of the surrounding area. This includes the prominent Pilot Rock, a nearby volcanic plug, and Mount Shasta, a stunning Stratovolcano and one of the most prominent mountains in North America. Also visible are the snowless fields of the Rogue River Valley 5,000 feet below the ski resort. However, Mount Ashland is prone to high winds and fog due to its proximity to the Pacific Ocean, which often block these views.

Within the ski area boundaries, there are a few other unique sights. The upper mountain is covered in wind-shortened trees, which can become pseudo-Snow Ghosts due to rime ice, making for some unique tree skiing. Trees further down the mountain shade well-maintained glades, which offers an interesting dichotomy on such a short vertical drop. Finally, the most famous terrain at Mount Ashland, known as The Bowl, holds beautiful rock-lined chutes and massive cornices and is a surprising sight at such a small ski area.

Size

At only around 250 acres, Mount Ashland is very small, even when compared to other local West Coast ski areas. The vertical drop is a somewhat respectable 1,150 ft, though this vertical is only served by the Ariel chair, and other pods have much shorter runs.

Terrain Layout

Mount Ashland has a very straightforward terrain layout, albeit with a few quirks. The parking lot is above some ski runs, giving parts of the resort an upside-down feeling. The lodge is also in a spot that separates the beginner hill from the rest of the mountain, which makes the beginner area much less crowded. The rest of the terrain is on a single face, with three lifts serving pods of increasingly steeper runs and glades.

TRAIL MAP

Snow

If you’re looking for the high snow totals and dense powder typical of the Pacific Northwest, you’ll be surprised by Mount Ashland. Due to a high base elevation of 6,350 ft, one of the highest in the Pacific Northwest, snow is a little lighter than typical cascade concrete. Along with the northern exposure and consistent winds from the southwest, which blow snow into the northeast facing slopes, coverage remains good across the mountain till late in the season. This is somewhat unexpected given the very low snow totals, averaging less than 250 inches annually, which is much closer to mountains of the east coast than the west. The wind also leads to some issues with terrain and lift openings, as strong winds and limited visibility can lead to closures in some of the most distinctive terrain.

Lift Infrastructure

All lifts at Mount Ashland are slow, fixed grip lifts. The only lift to the summit, Ariel, is the longest and oldest lift on the mountain, and has an antiquated center pole chair design that can be difficult for loading.

Beginner Terrain

For beginners, terrain offerings are limited, but great for learning. The beginner pod includes a dedicated carpet and chairlift, and is in full view of the base lodge, allowing parents to watch their kids learn from a cozy environment. However, once beginners have outgrown this area, there is a steep learning curve to the rest of the mountain. Luckily, for the 2024-25 season, a new chairlift will open more lower-intermediate terrain right next to the current beginner area, making for a better learning progression.

Intermediate Terrain

For those looking for long, blue cruisers, Ashland may scratch the itch, but it won’t blow anyone away. The best blue runs are in the Ariel pod, which nearly run the resort’s full vertical and provide great views of the rock-lined bowl and the surrounding area. The majority of intermediate runs are served by the Windsor and Comer chairs, and are much shorter than the runs in the Ariel pod. These runs all have good, consistent pitches, if a little steep for blue runs. Most of these runs are regularly groomed, so if you’re looking for a larger variety of intermediate terrain such as easy mogul runs or less steep glades, you may want to look elsewhere.

Advanced Terrain

Mount Ashland really starts to shine at the advanced difficulty runs. Many narrow bump runs are found in the Ariel pod, and between these are glades with varying tree densities and types. The peak of Mount Ashland hosts many short, rime-covered trees, which give way to taller trees offering shaded slopes in lower elevations. Runs to the skiers right of the Ariel lift require a catwalk across the top; however, this catwalk is basically non-existent, and much edge control is needed to access this area. If The Bowl is open, advanced skiers can find some open runs in the 2nd Bowl, which requires a catwalk across the top of The Bowl. This bowl is very short, though the runout is through some winding trees along the boundary rope.

Expert Terrain

Surprisingly, Mount Ashland has a few runs that are dangerous enough to be classified as “expert”. The Bowl, which is easily accessible from the Ariel lift, hosts a few short, steep drops that are rock-lined, have steep cornice entrances, or both. While these runs only extend for about 100 vertical feet, these are no-fall zones, as going over can result in hitting rocks and not being able to stop until the bottom of the bowl. There is a small uphill section below The Bowl, but it’s easy to make it up with enough speed. This section, while easily accessible and lappable, is quite small, and can be fully skied within an hour.

Terrain Parks

Ashland also hosts a small, but well featured, terrain park. This, combined with night skiing, allows for the people of Ashland to have after-school/work park laps.

Navigation

Getting around Mount Ashland is very straightforward. Most of the ski area is in a single face of the mountain, and runs go down the fall line with a few useful traverses. There are, however, a few quirks that make it more confusing on a micro scale. For example, the beginner area starts at the base lodge, though to access it you need to hike up a small hill, which can be difficult for beginners on icy days in ski boots. Another navigational quirk is that you cannot access the Ariel lift from the bottom of the terrain park, even though it looks like you could from the map, so navigating to this lift can be a bit confusing.

Facilities

On the mountain, there is only one place to stop in, though it is definitely a unique one. The main lodge was built in 1963 and had some very interesting architecture elements. The lodge has four floors, and an open, airy feeling, and multiple large windows for enjoying the views from the heated interior. In the building there are a few places to get refreshments, including a main cafeteria style eatery, a small cafe-like counter, and the bar. All these options are fairly priced for a ski area, and are high quality. The bar has a local vibe, and the bartenders are very friendly and willing to give drink suggestions.

Getting There and Parking

For those in the Ashland area, Mount Ashland is very easy to get to. Located just nine miles off Interstate 5, and the only attraction at its exit, traffic is a non issue. Parking is not free, as the parking lot also serves a sno-park, and costs $6 for a day or $30 for a season. Parking passes can be purchased at many places throughout Oregon, including at the mountain, of course. Another parking issue is the long, skinny parking lot that can lead to long walks if it’s a busy day.

Lodging

There is no lodging on site, but there are plenty of options to stay in Ashland or in Northern California to the south. Mount Shasta is an hour and a half south, and offers more intermediate and beginner slopes as well, which could make for a compelling combination for traveling families.

Après-ski

If you’re looking for bar scenes late into the night, you won’t find that at Mount Ashland. The bar at the resort shuts down 30 minutes after the lifts; however, the town of Ashland hosts many cool late night spots.

Verdict

Mount Ashland is not a destination resort, but for a town hill, it punches above its weight in challenging terrain, views, and vibes. It does get low snow and can be very wind dependent, as well as a bit boring for intermediates, but at the price you’ll pay at the window it could be well worth it for the right people.

Pricing

Lift tickets at Mount Ashland top out at $74, which is quite reasonable. Due to long weekend hours from night skiing, there are also cheaper options for different time periods, such as half day and twilight tickets. Along with cheap on-mountain food and night skiing, it’s clear that this is a locals oriented mountain, though visitors are welcomed in with good prices and fun terrain. Mount Ashland is also accessible through the Freedom Pass coalition, which allows for three free days of skiing at other member mountains. Mount Ashland is one of the few mountains to leave the Indy Pass, which the resort claims to have done in order to give their pass holders better value with the Freedom Pass.