After a brief pause, ski resorts across the region going strong

Skiers are shown going down the hill. (CTV News/Rob Cooper)

What has turned out to be one of the best outdoor recreation winters in recent memory is still going strong across the county despite recent warm spells and rainfall.

Ski hills have been blessed with more than enough snow and skiers are taking advantage.

Several hills were forced to close Wednesday because of the rain but were back open Thursday and are gearing up for what is expected to be a busy March Break.

Mount St. Louis Moonstone is ready.

“It looks like we’re getting into what I like to call a second winter here coming up ahead,” said Nick Huter, one of the owners of Mount St. Louis Moonstone. “We have some snow coming up so conditions, I think, might actually be really, really good.”

Over at Horseshoe Valley Resort, the groomers were out in the morning shaping the runs. With a base of 90 centimetres of snow, the season is far from over.

“It’s been amazing. We’re coming out of a record February and March is shaping up to be just the same and we’re expecting it to be probably the longest season season in the last decade,” said Ben Rugman of Horseshoe Valley Resort. “Yeah, we’re calling it ‘skister’ - we’re going to April 5 this year.”

The slopes and tubing runs are in full swing over at Snow Valley Resort. Lots of school kids are having fun on the slopes and many will be back Monday for March Break.

“It’s been a great year. There’s no complaints from us, that’s for sure,” said Jonathan Palmer of Snow Valley Resort. “The snow has been good, the temperatures have been decent, I mean, we’ve had some ups and downs, no doubt about it, but the two parks have been busy, the ziplines have been good, skiing and snowboarding has been fantastic, so no complaints here at Snow Valley.”

Blue Mountain says it too has a solid base and is ready for big numbers in the coming weeks.

These ski hills are hoping to run all the way to Easter if Mother Nature cooperates.

One thing that is for certain - they all have enough of a snow base to make the upcoming March Break an epic one.