Photo: Big White Ski Resort

Big White is opening yet another chair lift on Thursday.

The local ski resort has announced Gem Lake chair will start spinning Thursday morning, opening up a large portion of the ski hill.

“Limited terrain will be available, with Blue Sapphire, Village Way, and Ogo Slow runs opening initially under marginal conditions,” Big White posted to Facebook. “More runs will open as snow conditions improve. Please stick to the designated open runs for your safety.”

After significant snow fell in November, Big White has a reported alpine snow base of 104 cm, with more snow expected Friday and Saturday.

With the early start to this season, Gem Lake is one of the last chairs to open at Big White. After Thursday's opening, only the Falcon Chair will have yet to open.

This year's early season is in stark contrast to last year's, when the lifts didn't start spinning until Dec. 8 due to a lack of snow.