WATCH ABOVE: The week between Christmas and New Year’s is normally the busiest for ski hills but with the warm temps and rain we have had in the last week, traffic is down at the hills. Rachel Lau reports.
BROMONT – It’s supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year for skiers. Ski hills are usually overflowing the week after Christmas, but this season, there’s almost no one.
“You look at the lift lines, it’s empty, the cafeteria is empty,” said Charles Desourdy, owner of Ski Bromont.
“But the weather is great, people are smiling, but unfortunately the mood is not there so people must be doing something else.”
The warmth is overwhelming for Quebec’s ski resorts. Their numbers are lower than ever because of the measly snowfall and persistent rain.
“Because of the rain, the snow left on the ground is maybe low for the hills on the Laurentides and the Eastern Townships,” explained Simon Legault, a meteorologist with Environment Canada.
At Ski Bromont, they’re staying optimistic despite the fact that the trails used by their usual 15,000 visitors are only being used by a few hundred.
“Every year there’s always something happening with the weather in Quebec so you can’t expect perfect weather all the time,” said Desourdy.
“We’ve just got to be ready and make snow when the weather comes back and hopefully we’ll have a bit of snow to spray the white everywhere and get the spirit back.”
Though snow can be made, Quebec’s ski hill association says it also has to change the way people think.
“Our biggest challenge right now is to counterattack the perception that people have when they are looking through their windows at home and they’re seeing grass or little snow,” said Yves Juneau, the organization’s president.
“It’s actually not the case at the ski hills.”
That’s something some enthusiastic skiers now know.
“Some people say it’s not good conditions because it rains a lot, but it’s not that bad,” said Felix-Antoine Lacoste.
“We were a little worried that maybe there would be a lot of bare spots, but there isn’t,” added Paul Norris.
In fact, some skiers prefer it when there’s less people.
“It’s nice because the lineups aren’t bad and we’ve got lots of room on the hill. They’re not crowded at all,” said Brenda Norris.
Desourdy is simply crossing his fingers for better weather.
“We’ve got to stay positive and get the snow guns ready the minute the cold comes back and just let people know the conditions are great,” he said.
According to Environment Canada, there is some snow expected at the end of December and into the beginning of January, so there will be a little something for skiers to look forward to in the new year.
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