Winter activities in Quebec struggling due to lack of snow on spring break

Operators of many winter activities in Quebec are struggling this spring break due to a lack of snow.

A massive snow-making operation this winter has helped keep almost all the trails at the Ski Saint-Bruno hill open to skiers and snowboarders but the conditions aren’t ideal.

Business is anticipated to be down 30 per cent during spring break.

“We’re concerned with what’s going on,” Michel Couture, owner of Ski Saint-Bruno, told Global News.

Spring break is normally a very profitable period for the ski hill, but not this year.

“The costs are higher because we’re doing more snow, doing more maintenance,” he said.

At the provincial park in Saint-Bruno, conditions are even worse. All the cross-country ski trails are closed and the sled run and snowshoeing activities are shuttered.

The unseasonable warm weather has also closed all outdoor ice rinks with the exception of those that are refrigerated. Even some of those that are operating may have to close if temperatures remain well above freezing.

“It’s OK above zero but not for day after day. So it is a big impact,” Westmount Mayor Christina Smith told Global News on Feb. 27 during a record-breaking day with the mercury reaching 15 C.

Operators at Ski Saint Bruno have installed high-definition webcams to give skiers and snowboarders a peek at real-time conditions.

People who hit the trails had plenty of room for their ski and snowboarding manoeuvres.

“Of course, it’s really different from the other years, but it’s still really great. I still like skiing here, it’s still really cool and I was really excited to come skiing,” Étienne Da Costa Hall, a skier who is on spring break, told Global News.

But those winter options are few as mild temperatures continue.