Whilst European ski resorts have seen record snowfall this winter and with many proclaiming this to be one of the best winters they’ve seen, it hasn’t quite been the same story for many US ski resorts.
Skiers stripped down to shorts and bikini tops to keep cool on Wednesday in Newry, Maine as they got in a few final sun-drenched, slushy runs, bidding what could be an early goodbye to a season that has disappointed all around.
Image source: Portland Press Herald [1]
An unprecedented spell of record temperatures soaring into the 80s (around 26-27 degree centigrade) had New England skiers dodging dirt patches and exposed rocks as melting snow spelled potentially millions in losses for those who make their living off winter tourism and sports.
“It’s like ‘swinter’ â€" summer and winter combined,†said 15-year-old Allie Ward, who wore only a bikini and boots during a break from skiing at Sunday River. She was joined by a sunburned friend, both of North Shore in Canada’s Prince Edward Island.
A year after ski resorts reported a record 60.5 million visits, the season opened last year with early snow and high expectations. But optimism was short-lived as Christmas arrived with little or none in many parts of the country. And the trend carried through the winter, with a few notable exceptions, like parts of Alaska.
Only a few of Maine’s 22 ski areas were open Wednesday. Sugarloaf, the state’s tallest ski mountain, tried to put a good face on the warm temperatures, tweeting this week about sun-drenched “slushy goodness†on its slopes.
The December-to-February period was the fourth-warmest in the continental U.S., and was one of the three warmest on record from Washington, D.C., to Caribou, Maine, said Jessica Rennells, of the Northeast Regional Climate Center at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.
Image source: Portland Press Herald [2]
This week, the warmth reached epic proportions. In Bangor in central Maine, the temperature surged to 83 degrees on Wednesday, smashing the old record of 64. In neighbouring New Hampshire, the capital, Concord, enjoyed a summer-like spell the likes of which has never been seen in 144 years of record-keeping.
“There’s only five days in March where the record was 80 or higher in Concord. And we’re going to do that five times in a row this week. That’s unprecedentedâ€
said John Cannon of the National Weather Service.
In Seattle, Larry Waldman said he’d been skiing at Smuggler’s Notch in Vermont since he was 6 years old. He had already bought his plane tickets for a time-share next week and acknowledged it would be too expensive to cancel.
“It is what it is. There’s nothing you can do about the weather. You just roll with it,†he said. “It’s just a pain in the butt.â€
Skiers have to be wary because of the changing conditions.
“The biggest challenge is there’s a lot of dirt and exposed rocks. You have to pick your way down the mountain and avoid the obstaclesâ€
Kevin Gray of Eliot, Maine, said after skiing a few runs at Sunday River.
To the west, some resorts are in better shape, thanks to some late-season snowfall in Utah and California’s Sierra Nevada, allowing them to stay open longer.
In the Northeast, larger resorts like Maine’s Sunday River and Sugarloaf and Vermont’s Killington usually stay open well into April, and sometimes even May. And they remain optimistic that they can hold out for several more weeks, pointing to a cooler forecast this weekend that gives a glimmer of hope that the little snow that’s left won’t melt.
“I don’t know that any one of us have seen a week of 70- to 80-degree heat in March, but I wouldn’t say it’s a killer,†said Sugarloaf spokesman Ethan Austin. “We’re definitely not packing it in yet.â€
Not so great news for US skiers and snowboarders, lets hope over here in Europe we will see the right weather to see us through until the end of April and the ski season.
Featured image source: New England Magazine [4]
Tagged america skiing , maine , newry maine , ski season cut short , warm weather
Links
- ^ Portland Press Herald (www.pressherald.com)
- ^ Portland Press Herald (www.pressherald.com)
- ^ USA Today (travel.usatoday.com)
- ^ New England Magazine (www.newenglandmagazine.com)
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