AREA SKI RESORTS THANKFUL.Byline: Brett Pauly Daily News Staff Writer If all goes as anticipated, Southland ski and snowboard resort operators will have plenty to be thankful for today . . . plenty of fallen frozen flakes, that is. Mountain High in Wrightwood is expected to reopen today after closing Tuesday to preserve its snowpack snow·pack n. An area of naturally formed, packed snow that usually melts during the warmer months. snowpack 1. for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. If Snow Valley officials are correct in assuming that Wednesday's storm blankets the San Bernardino Mountains San Bernardino Mountains, part of the Coast Range, S Calif., extending c.60 mi (100 km) NW and SE through San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Notable peaks are San Bernardino Mt. (10,630 ft/3,240 m) and Mt. San Gorgonio (11,485 ft/3,501 m). with a foot of snow, chair lifts will first swing into operation today. And at the Big Bear Lake region, Snow Summit and Bear Mountain have designs on opening Friday or Saturday. Preseason operations are usually hectic as each year's first major storm approaches, and Wednesday was a typical guessing game for personnel at area resorts. ``We're hoping for Friday, but we really don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. ,'' said Snow Summit spokeswoman Genevieve Paquet. ``We're really at the mercy of Mother Nature. We need natural snow and snowmaking snow·mak·ing n. Production of artificial snow in the form of granular ice particles for use on ski slopes. to open, and we don't have enough of either now.'' Paquet explained that a winter watch had been issued for the San Bernardino Mountains and the snow level was expected to be at 4,000 feet Wednesday evening. ``We're expecting a foot of snow,'' said Jay Reed, spokesman for Snow Valley, located east of Running Springs. ``If this storm goes well, we are going to open by 10 a.m. Thursday with up to four lifts and 10 to 12 runs.'' On Nov. 19, Mountain High became the season's first Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, resort to begin operating. However, it closed Tuesday to retain what little snow it had for holiday crowds. Mountain High spokesman Brad Wilson said the resort's West Mountain should reopen today with three lifts serving five runs over a snow base of 12 to 18 inches. ``Hurricane-force winds'' precluded management from any notions of reopening Wednesday. Meanwhile, the resort's East Mountain, which had only served customers 24 days during the last two seasons due to poor snow conditions, is expected to be open in early December - significantly sooner than in previous years, thanks largely to El Nino's anticipated winter punch. ``I think it's going to be a good year for all of us,'' Wilson said. ``The focus on the weather is going to be positive.'' Paquet echoed the sentiment, explaining that while Snow Summit operates an average of 140 days a season, during the last major El Nino, in the winter of 1982-83, the ski area was open 171 days. If history is a good indicator of the future in the Sierra Nevada Sierra Nevada, mountain range, Spain Sierra Nevada (syā`rä nāvä`thä), chief mountain range of S Spain, in Granada prov., running from east to west for c.60 mi (100 km), parallel to the Mediterranean Sea. mountain range, one- and two-plank boarders alike should have much more snow on which to perfect their skills at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area The Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is a large ski resort located in eastern California on the east side of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in the Inyo National Forest. The ski area, commonly called simply Mammoth , which opened Nov. 7. Mammoth Mountain Mammoth Mountain is a large lava dome complex[1] that lies to the west of the town of Mammoth Lakes, California in the Inyo National Forest. Mammoth Mountain is home to the Mammoth Mountain Ski Area which is notable in that it gets an unusually large amount of averages 353 inches of snow, but the El Nino of 1982-83 smothered smoth·er v. smoth·ered, smoth·er·ing, smoth·ers v.tr. 1. a. To suffocate (another). b. To deprive (a fire) of the oxygen necessary for combustion. 2. the resort with 567 inches. Managers at nearby June Mountain June Mountain is a winter resort in northern California, located near June Lake, southeast of Yosemite National Park. June Mountain hosted the 2006 Ski Mountaineering Race Series and the ski and snowboard portions of the 2006 California Winter Games in March of 2006. anticipate opening Dec. 17. SOUTHLAND SKI AND SNOWBOARD AREAS Where to strap on the boards, with telephones, anticipated opening dates and prices for all-day adult lift passes: Mount Waterman Mount Waterman is a ski area on Waterman Mountain in the San Gabriel Mountains (Angeles National Forest) of Los Angeles County, California. It is located on the State Route 2, the Angeles Crest Highway. It reaches a height of 8,030 feet, has an overall vertical drop of 1,030 feet. : (818) 440-1041, mid-Dec., $25. Ski Sunrise: (760) 249-6150, Dec. 15-25, $30. Mountain High: (760) 249-5808, opened Nov. 19, $35. Mount Baldy: (909) 982-0800, undecided, $40. Big Air Green Valley (x): (909) 867-2338, mid-Dec., $27. Snow Valley: (909) 867-5151, today, $40. Snow Summit: (909) 866-5766, Friday, $32 (xx). Bear Mountain: (909) 585-2517, Fri. or Sat., $42. (x) snowboarding only. (xx) $45 during holiday periods. No information available on Snowcrest at Kratka Ridge. CAPTION(S): Photo, Box PHOTO (color) After a short closure to preserve snowpack for holiday weekend crowds, Mountain High in Wrightwood is scheduled to reopen today. David R. Crane / Daily News BOX: SOUTHLAND SKI AND SNOWBOARD AREAS (see text) |
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