WASHINGTON — After several years of below-average snowfall, last winter came close to setting records across the D.C. area. This year has brought another bevy of winter storms, causing delays and shutdowns while generally making a mess of local roads. But where some might lament the winter weather, area ski resorts find reason to celebrate.
At the time of year when attention often turns to spring sports such as Little League Baseball, a winter storm like Thursday’s reminds everyone that it’s still very much winter, and that means snow-covered peaks in the nearby mountains.
“It’s good for us when it’s snowing in markets like yours,” says Dave Dekema, director of marketing at Snowshoe Mountain Ski Resort, in West Virginia. “(Local skiers) know, ‘If it’s snowing here, it must be dumping in the mountains.’ It might get them to get the skis out one more time.”
Things didn’t look so promising at the beginning of the season. It may seem hard to believe now, but in December and into early January, snowfall wasn’t actually that good. Thankfully for the mountains of the East Coast, though, the temperature cooperated by staying cool enough for resorts to make snow to create a base.
In all, Snowshoe has received a total of 152 inches this year before Thursday’s storm, about 30 inches shy of average. But the snowpack is holding in the 40-to-80-inch range, similar to base totals at Whitetail Resort in Pennsylvania (44-48 inches). With an extra 6-10 inches expected this week, that should grow once more before the final stretch of the season.
“We actually almost had too much snow the other weekend,” recalls Dekema, who says that roughly 30 percent of Snowshoe’s clientele comes from the D.C. area. “We had to relocate snow to open up the village and parking lots.”
It’s a problem he’s happy to have, and great news for local skiers as well. They’ll have the opportunity to take advantage of late-season rates for a longer period of time, all while enjoying spring ski weather. Snowshoe has already made the decision to stay open until April 5, a couple of weeks later than their usual closing date. That means five more weekends to enjoy the snow.
Meanwhile, even at Massanutten, where the peak elevation is half that of Snowshoe, the slopes are slated to remain open through Sunday, March 22. Just as at Snowshoe and Whitetail, the mountain at the closest resort to the District is 100 percent open, with all eight lifts and 14 trails still accessible.
But if you want to squeeze every last day out of this year’s ski season, you can always drive a little further. Value season begins March 16 at Snowshoe, where adult lift tickets will drop from their regular price of $89 to $59. And once this current storm clears, travel to and from the resorts should be easier. Factor that in with the more mild, sunny conditions spring skiing offers, and the next few weeks are shaping up to be ideal.
You just have to put up with one more storm first.
“Some people are done with winter, but we keep getting hammered,” says Dekema. “But a little bit of snow in Ashburn is good as far as we’re concerned.”
