 |
 |
 |
|
| Happy days are here again in ski country | |||
| Tuesday, January 17, 2012 17:28 |
|
Photo by Mark Reis, The Gazette
BY R. SCOTT RAPPOLD MONARCH MOUNTAIN • Cliff Collins was so optimistic about good snow for ski season, he bought two season passes – one for Vail Resorts and one for Monarch Mountain. So how is that working out for him? “We went all the way to Wyoming new year’s weekend just to get some good snow,” said Collins, of Colorado Springs, gearing up Tuesday for a day on the slopes at Monarch in southern Colorado. “You’re afraid to come up. If you get new gear, you’re afraid you’re going to tear it up on the rocks.” Such are the trials of Colorado skiers as the state suffers through the driest winter in three decades. Statewide snowpack is 66 percent of the mid-January average. But the meteorological malaise that has kept Colorado dry while snowstorms batter New Mexico and the northern Rockies could be lifting. Skiers awoke Tuesday to the biggest snowfall totals of the season for many areas, and forecasters say snow is likely in the mountains Wednesday through Friday. Some Western Slope ski areas picked up 12 to 19 inches, with 4 to 7 for the Front Range areas. Monarch, about 20 miles west of Salida, reported 7 inches, the biggest dump since the area opened. For one day, as the clouds parted and the sun illuminated the Sawatch Mountains, happy days were here again. Click here for a photo gallery from the day. “What took so long?” said snowboarder Maretta Characky, of Cañon City. It’s painful for the ski areas. Monarch’s visitation is down 35 percent compared to this point last season, and the area’s 91 inches of snow is far below last year’s 160 inches by this time, said Monarch spokesman Greg Ralph. Monarch doesn’t make snow and had to delay opening by nearly two weeks. Other areas have survived with machine-made snow, with many larger resorts making more snow than ever before, but skiers have grumbled about the thin and icy conditions, leading to a drop in visitation across the state. As tough as it’s been on the ski areas, it’s been just as tough on skiers, from Front Range weekend warriors to locals who live in the mountains for the skiing. “We’ve been waiting for this 34-inch base for a long time,” said Jana Rico-Silver, of Salida. “I had two weeks of skiing and it’s not worth it. Lately I’ve been running,” said Salida skier Georgie Craig. “We’ve been making the most of it. It is what it is,” said skier Patrick Craig, also of Salida. “I think we’re getting into a favorable storm pattern.” In a state where powder skiers are amateur meteorologists, endlessly discussing the reason for the lack of snow, many are hoping the snowiness of this week means a change to the weather, that whatever has caused the storms to split and miss Colorado is done trying to ruin winter. So in a sport where the best day of your life could be only a snowstorm away, there’s a lot of optimism to go around. Gunnison skier Chris Noah acknowledged frustration with the lack of snow, but he said ski conditions Tuesday were the best he has seen all season. “It’s here now, enough to cover up the logs and some rocks,” he said. Many skiers still toted their older gear, and 17 percent of the mountain remained closed because of rocks and trees, but there was deep powder everywhere, a blank canvas of sparkling sugar just waiting to be shaped by the skiers who woke up early and braved icy roads. The hoots and hollers echoing through the trees told the story of how long it had been since some had it so good. Collins, the Colorado Springs skier, believes the hype about a return to normal winter weather.
“I don’t want to challenge Mother Nature. I’ll let her do what she’ll do, but hopefully, yes.” |
