Ski Bluewood, formerly known as "Bluewood Ski Area," is an

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

ski area A ski area is the terrain and supporting infrastructure where skiing and other snow sports take place. Such sports include alpine and cross-country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, sledding, etc. Ski areas may stand alone or be part of a ski resort. ...

in the northwestern

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, in southeastern

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

in Columbia County. Located at the northern end of the Blue Mountains in the

Umatilla National Forest The Umatilla National Forest, in the Blue Mountains (Oregon), Blue Mountains of northeast Oregon and southeast Washington (U.S. state), Washington, covers an area of 1.4 million acres (5,700 km2). In descending order of land area the forest ...

, the

elevation The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...

at the base area is

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

, with a summit of for a vertical drop of . The northward-facing slopes are about north of the

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

border and west of

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, part of the headwaters of the

Touchet River The Touchet River is a tributary of the Walla Walla River in southeastern Washington in the United States. The Touchet River drains an area of about in Columbia County and Walla Walla County.Washington Road & Recreation Atlas, Benchmark Maps, ...

, the main tributary of the

Walla Walla River The Walla Walla River is a tributary of the Columbia River, joining the Columbia just above Wallula Gap in southeastern Washington in the United States. The river flows through Umatilla County, Oregon, and Walla Walla County, Washington. Its dra ...

. The only surface access to the base area of the mountain is through

Dayton Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

, to the northwest and nearly below on North Touchet Road. Though the summit is only about due east of Walla Walla

as the crow flies The expression ''as the crow flies'' is an idiom for the most direct path between two points. Etymology The meaning of the expression is attested from the early 19th century, and appeared in the Charles Dickens novel ''Oliver Twist'' (1838): ...

, Ski Bluewood is about an hour's drive as Dayton is northeast on

U.S. Route 12 U.S. Route 12 or U.S. Highway 12 (US 12) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan, for almost . The highway has mostly been superseded by Interstate 90 (I-90 ...

. In addition to Walla Walla, Bluewood is the closest alpine ski area (in mileage) to the Tri-Cities to the west, and the closest

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers. They are the primary on-hill tran ...

-served area to Lewiston- Clarkston.

History

Originally conceived in the 1960s, and created by Skyline Basin Associates during the 1970s, the ski area's original name (as a concept) was "Skyline Basin." After years of planning, fundraising, and approval procedures, the ski area opened as "Bluewood Ski Area" in January 1980. The second season of 1980–81 was a very poor snow year,
Tri-City Herald
' - Bluewood area hardest hit by snow drought - 1981-01-13 - p.25 with only three days of skiing, and the fledgling ski area filed for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

protection in August 1981.
Tri-City Herald
' - Bluewood offer - 1981-07-05 - p.2 Auctioned off two years later and acquired by Rainier Bank, it was purchased for $550,000 in October 1983 by

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

executive Stan Goodell, a former president of the ski patrol at

Mount Hood Mount Hood, also known as Wy'east, is an active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range and is a member of the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It was formed by a subduction zone on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast and rests in the Pacific N ...

. To distance itself from the past financial difficulties, Goodell renamed it "Ski Bluewood" and relocated to Dayton to run the area himself.
Tri-City Herald
' - Sale should keep Bluewood ski area operating all season - 1983-10-09 - p.C1 An expansion in the summer of 1986 added parking and the ''Triple Nickel,'' a triple chairlift to serve the instructional area with a vertical rise of . It joined the existing lifts, the ''Skyline Express'' triple chair and ''Easy Rider''

platter lift A surface lift is a type of cable transport for mountain sports in which skiers, snowboarders, or Mountain bike, mountain bikers remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularit ...

, which was relocated.
Tri-City Herald
' - Work on Ski Bluewood lift beginning July 1 - 1986-04-04 p.D2

Alpine skiing

Of its 24 runs, Bluewood has 4 green circles (easiest), 12 blue squares (more difficult), and 8 black diamonds (most difficult). Additionally, there is one terrain park and six backcountry runs. The area is open five days per week, Wednesday through Sunday, plus holidays. Bluewood has a reputation for dry powder snow, tree skiing, and a family-friendly atmosphere. Will Brandenburg, a

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

racer with the U.S. Ski Team, learned to ski and race at Bluewood in the 1990s.

Base Facilities

Ski Bluewood facilities include a full-service ski/snowboard rental department, retail shop, patrol services, ski and snowboard learning center, cafe, and pub. Bluewood is one of the few resorts in the country that is 100% self-sufficient, generating all of its own electric power via

diesel generator A diesel generator (DG) (also known as a diesel genset) is the combination of a diesel engine with an electric generator (often an alternator) to generate electrical energy. This is a specific case of an engine generator. A diesel compress ...

s. There are two diesel generators in the basement, one that runs the lodge at night and the other that runs the lodge and the two electric chair lifts during the day. The main chairlift (''Skyline Express'') has its own separate diesel powered generator, connected via a clutch and fluid coupler. The ''Triple Nickel'' and pama lifts are electric and uses power from the main diesel generators, located in the basement of the lodge.

References

External links

*
Ski Bluewood Alpine Race Team

Ski Map.org
– trail maps – Ski Bluewood {{Washington Ski areas navbox Ski areas and resorts in Washington (state) Buildings and structures in Columbia County, Washington Tourist attractions in Columbia County, Washington Umatilla National Forest