Grouse Mountain joins Cypress ski hill in opening this weekend

It’s beginning to look a lot like winter snow season on the North Shore.

On Saturday, North Vancouver’s Grouse Mountain will open with open with limited terrain in the afternoon, joining Cypress Mountain Resort, which opened its beginner hill on Friday.

Recent snowfall on both mountains plus cooler overnight temperatures which cranked snowmaking capabilities into high gear have allowed for the early openings on both mountains.

At Grouse, the opening on Saturday will start with the Paradise Bowl and Paradise Terrain Park via the Greenway Chair. Additional runs will be opened when conditions allow.

Those hoping to ski at Grouse will have to get their shot first, however.

This year, Grouse Mountain became one of the first ski hills in the province to make vaccinations mandatory for anyone 12 and older for all mountaintop activities.

So far, Grouse – which unlike other North Shore ski hills, is accessed by a gondola – is the only local ski hill to announce a mandatory vaccine passport program.

Both Grouse and Seymour are hoping to operate at close to regular capacity this year.

The North Shore’s other ski hill, Mt. Seymour, has not yet announced an opening date. The mountain has announced it intends to continue to require skiers to sign up for four-hour reservable time slots on weekends and holidays.