Vail to open Friday with access to both Lionshead, Vail Village

Vail officials confirmed on Tuesday that the resort will open for the 2014-2015 season on Friday, Nov. 21, with access out of both Vail Village and Lionshead as well as return routes to both base areas. Vail on Wednesday will announce the exact terrain and lifts available beginning Friday.

What a difference a week makes. The snowy front side of Vail on Tuesday (Vail Resorts photo).

“We know that we’ll be opening both base areas, but we’re going to give our snowmakers, groomers and patrollers one more night to confirm exactly what we’ll be able to open on Friday morning for Vail’s opening day,” said Chris Jarnot, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Vail Mountain. “Stay tuned for an update tomorrow.”

Vail Mountain lifts will open at 9 a.m. beginning Friday, Nov. 21 throughout the early season to accommodate early-morning operations. Skiers and snowboarders are asked to observe all posted signs and closures, especially during the early season.

Opensnow.com is calling for light snow on Thursday and Friday with a more significant storm depositing 4-7 inches Saturday night into Sunday.

Eldora ski area on the Front Range is also opening Friday, and Aspen moved up its opening to Saturday. At that point there will be 10 operating ski resorts in the state.

The deadline for purchasing the unrestricted $769 Epic Pass, with access to Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin in Colorado, Park City and Canyons in Utah, and Heavenly, Northstar, and Kirkwood in Lake Tahoe, is Sunday, Nov. 23. For details, visit www.epicpass.com.

For more information about Vail Mountain visit www.vail.com, stop by the Mountain Information Center, or call (970) SKI-VAIL (754-8245).