The snow in Nelson may have been washed away by rain, but in the downtown Whitewater Ski Resort office, staff are watching the snow fall.
“Things are looking pretty blowy, snowy and wintery right at this moment,” said Anne Pigeon of Whitewater.
On Wednesday night 15 centimetres were added to the 35 that fell the night before and Pigeon said because of the high water content of the snow, it’s a perfect base builder.
Even though locals may feel it’s colder than usual, Pigeon said snow at this time of year isn’t unusual for the ski hill.
“We’ve seen snow this early — late November, early December. It’s not unusual, but I think we have a little bit more than we did at this time last year, which was a good thing because we were in construction mode,” she said.
The resort is planning on letting powder junkies on the hill for a sneak peak on December 3 and 4 before the hill officially opens.
“If things continue to go the way they are, we will offer both the Silver King and Summit chairs,” said Pigeon. “This is still weather permitting because Ullr can do some crazy things, and you just never really know until a few days before, but we’re certainly aiming for that right now. Then we’ll go into full daily operation on December 9.”
Skiers and boarders have been busy around town getting their boards and skis waxed, and Pigeon said they have also been making sure to pick up their season passes too.
“We will be opening the office this Saturday,” she said. “We’ll start in to a seven day rotation to get people through and get their passes organized before they get up to the mountain, but of course they can do it here in town or up at Whitewater.”
The hard work from Whitewater’s owner Knee Deep to open new parts of the mountain has also been appreciated by locals who are showing up at the downtown office.
“The season’s pass support has been absolutely fabulous,” said Pigeon. “It was a huge commitment from Knee Deep when they put that investment into the new Glory Ridge area and locals have definitely shown their appreciation and we thank them very much.”
Whitewater staff have also been busy doing a bit of quality control.
“It just seems that a huge percentage have been up there to test it out. I know that I’ve had my few turns in and that felt pretty good,” she said.