Bridger Bowl opened its summer scenic chairlift operations last weekend, allowing hikers to ride Sunnyside up and walk down the same runs they skin up in January. The resort calls it “gravity-assisted elevation management.” Locals call it Tuesday.

The lift runs Friday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., $25 round trip or $15 for pass holders who already paid for winter. Dogs ride free if they fit on your lap. The waiver now includes a clause about “voluntary descent via alpine terrain.”

“I’ve been hiking up Bridger for twelve years,” said Dale Henderickson, 42, adjusting his trekking poles at the base lodge. “Last year I rode the lift down because my knees said enough. This year I’m riding up. Next year I’m taking the gondola they haven’t built yet. I’m just getting ahead of the curve.”

The ridge line was busy by 10:30. Mountain bikers yelled “on your left” to trail runners who yelled “on your left” to families with strollers who yelled nothing, just breathed. A marmot watched from a boulder near the top of Powder Park. It did not pay $25.

At the summit, a group in matching Patagonia snap-Ts ate cliff bars and discussed the snowpack they remembered from March. One checked the NOAA forecast on a watch that cost more than a 1998 Subaru. Another filmed a reel captioned “earned it.”

The walk down takes forty minutes if you stop for photos. Twenty if you don’t. Five if you fall. Ski patrol posted a sign at the mid-station: “Descending is still exercise. Your quads don’t know the difference.”

By 2 p.m. the line for the return ride stretched past the ticket window. A family from Minneapolis asked if the mountain was always this steep. A local told them “only in summer.” They bought tickets for tomorrow.

The marmot was still there when the last chair came down. It had moved three feet.