North America's highest chairlift finally opens in Colorado, following relatively dry start to snow season

Snow has finally started to consistently hit Colorado in recent days and weeks, resulting in high-elevation coverage that has allowed for the state's highest ski lift to open.

Announced on Thursday via social media, Breckenridge has officially opened the Imperial Express Superchair, which climbs to an elevation of 12,840 feet. The February 18 opening is quite late, with the lift opening as early as November 22 in 2018. Generally, the lift opens in December, accounting for eight openings since 2005, including last season. The lift has opened in November three times and January twice, with no February openings until 2021.

While the announcement was made on the official Breckenridge Twitter page, the Breckenridge website seems to be lagging behind, continuing to list the lift as closed as of Friday afternoon.

The highest lift in North America, Imperial Express Superchair provides access to Breckenridge's most iconic mountain bowl terrain beneath Peak 8, including Imperial Bowl, Lake Chutes, and Whale's Tale – all double-black, expert-level terrain.

Lack of snow in Colorado during the start of the 2020-2021 ski season slowed opening of some terrain around the state. The statewide snowpack is currently at about 91 percent of the to-date median, though this is boosted by higher totals that have landed in Southern Colorado.

See official updates about what's open at Breckenridge here.