RED LODGE — Red Lodge Mountain held an inaugural event Friday for its first summer season, meaning people can now enjoy the resort year round.
The summer additions include an 18-hole disc golf course that runs down the mountain and new walking and biking trails. The Bierstube restaurant located at the bottom of the lift will be open during the summer months as well.
“So people can come up and go for a walk, go to disc golfing, or just ride the lift to come down and have a bite and a beverage. And it'll be fun,” said Jeff Schmidt, Red Lodge Mountain general manager.
The opening was a project years in the making and was finally possible after the construction of their newest lift, The Stache Express, last year.
“This lift, The Stashe, can download people. That means if you don't want to hike down, you can ride the lift down. Our other lifts don't do that. And this lift has engineered restraint bars that is required by code for summer operations,” said Schmidt.
The project is not completely finished. The resort is working on adding more trails and racks on the ski lift to take up bikes. However, they hope that the new additions will give better access to the beautiful area.
“It just helps us round out our business. The winter is about a five-month season or what have you, and we've got this beautiful mountain to enjoy. There's so many other ways to enjoy it in the summer, so it just makes sense,” said Troy Hawks, the resort's director of marketing and sales.
For many, Red Lodge Mountain is the perfect place to spend time outdoors and see a side of Red Lodge that many from out of town are not used to seeing.
"It's like a living canvas, if you will," said Hawks. "You can start the day with really bright sunshine, and then you might get some pretty clouds that roll in, so about every couple of minutes, you've got a new scene to look at."
While the sun did not stick around too long on Friday, the fog did not stop patrons from exploring the area.
“We came to ride the lift on opening day,” said Brandy Mettes, who came with her family.
"It was really pretty. It was awesome,” added her daughter, Teagan.
Denise Kinsfather is the ticket and product manager for the resort and is glad that now more people can come to enjoy the mountain.
"We are a friendly little mountain, and we're proud of that," said Kinsfather. “So we're just really excited to be able to share this place with everyone."
The Stache Express will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday through Sunday throughout the summer. Day tickets cost $10 and a summer lift pass cost $70.
