Ski hills thankful for snow as region braces for warm weather

Here’s how ski hills are adjusting to the change in weather after a busy holiday break.

As warmer weather enters the region, skiers and snowboarders are taking advantage of ideal conditions at hills around the region.

Mount St. Louis Moonstone has a 75 to 100 centimetre base on the hills and Nicholas Huter, who does indoor operations at the ski hill is confident the snow will stick around and not slow down the business.

“We’re resilient with our snow making. The snow is going to stick around. We packed down all that fresh snow as well,” said Huter. “So, once you pack it, it sticks around for a long time. We’re expecting to stay open well into our normal operating season.”

Elsewhere in the region, the snow is not slowing down business for Horseshoe Valley.

Laura Kiley, director of marketing for Horseshoe, said numbers continue to trend upwards.

“We had an incredible holiday period. Last year we had a strong December and this year we have three times last year’s visits,” said Kiley. “So, it was insane because just day after day of fresh snowfall, I mean, the smiles at the bottom of the run say it. All the conditions have just been incredible.”

Both Horseshoe Valley and Snow Valley have similar snowpack between 85 and 100 centimetres meaning warmer conditions won’t affect the hills in the long term.

General Manager of Snow Valley John Ball said any snow is welcomed by the resort.

“Well, ideally, we would like to have snow every Wednesday and Thursday and then sunshine for the weekends, but really, what happens is in December we do get quite a big fluctuation in the weather and we really count on that to get people out,” said Ball.

With midseason conditions at Horseshoe Valley and Snow Valley, both say they will likely be open until March. Meanwhile, Mount St. Louis Moonstone has guaranteed they will be open for March Break.