Timberline Plans to Stay Open Into August

There are two lifts open right now – Magic Mile and Palmer 0 - and they run from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Riders are dropped off at the Palmer Snowfield, which contains snow curated over the course of the spring by the mountain operations team. Burton said that the preparation for summer skiing starts in the winter.

The ski area is typically operational for 10 months out of the year. The only available terrain is for intermediate and advanced riders. There are two terrain parks open now, and a freestyle training center, which features a 22-foot halfpipe, rails, and some jumps. The entire training center is serviced by handle tows. A day at the freestyle training center costs $135. Below that is the terrain park, which is accessible to anyone who has purchased a day ticket or season pass. That’s a more relaxed environment, Burton said.

The news comes as a bill in the Oregon legislature that aimed at protecting Oregon areas and outfitters from lawsuits failed to pass during that final days in session.

The bill – dubbed Senate Bill 1196 – would protect the ski areas at a time when insurance costs are skyrocketing. The bill never got the vote in the Senate it needed despite a late-session push, according to the Salem Statesman Journal. Liability waivers have become unenforceable since a 2014 Oregon Supreme Court decision. As a result, there have been more lawsuits, and the company that was insuring Timberline Lodge and Mount Hood Meadows revoked coverage in May.

The only other place you can ride a snowboard outside on July 4 is Copper Mountain in Summit County, Colorado. Woodward has set up a hike park for park rats to slide some rails on. At just $25 a day, it’s certainly one of the cheapest ways to get your turns in.

Not even the Liberty Snowflex Center, a dryslope located in Lynchburg, Virginia, will be open for Independence Day. If you're OK with riding indoors and taking a trip to the tri-state area, Big Snow American Dream, the ski hill inside a shopping mall, is scheduled to open.