A photo from the 80s of Ober Mountain, formerly known as Ober Gatlinburg Resort. Image: Rodhullandemu (Wikimedia Commons)

A photo from the 80s of Ober Mountain, formerly known as Ober Gatlinburg Resort. Image: Rodhullandemu (Wikimedia Commons)

While Coloradans have at least a couple months of ski season left, some slopesport destinations around the country are already throwing in the towel.

Tennessee's Ober Mountain and Indiana's Paoli Peaks each announced that Wednesday, February 22 would be their last day of skiing and snowboarding this season. Both spots noted that warm weather was a key factor in being unable to maintain an adaquate snow base.

The Paoli Peaks website, last updated on February 16, puts the season total at just 13 inches and their base at six inches. Meanwhile, the last undated update on the Ober Mountain website put their base at 10 to 20 inches.

According to OnTheSnow, Paoli Peaks typically gets 25 inches of snowfall each year and Ober Mountain gets 18. Due to low snowfall numbers, each resort makes snow to help cover runs, a process which is heavily reliant on ideal weather conditions being present. During warmer years, snowmaking is a challenge.

For the sake of comparison, Steamboat Resort reports a 72-inch base and 344 inches so far this season.

Generally, closing dates for Ober Mountain and Paoli Peaks fall in the first or second week of March.

While resorts in parts of the Midwest and the Smoky Mountain Region might be hurting for snow, Colorado resorts are doing just fine. With snowpack above the 30-year to-date median in most of the state, expect a normal or longer-than-normal season this spring in the Centennial State.

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