Thanks to recent snowfall, the Mount Washington Alpine Resort will open Thursday as scheduled. 

The resort says it plans to open over 70 per cent of its alpine terrain for skiing and snowboarding. 

After heavy mid-November snowstorms and continued snowfall mixed with cold temperatures over the last couple of weeks, the resort is ready for opening day.

“We’ve received ideal weather over the last couple of weeks,” explains resort spokesperson Brent Curtain.  “The cold temperatures have set up a solid base of snow.  The forecast for the next week looks perfect for conditions on the mountain.”

The mountain’s patrollers delivered the first snowfall totals of the season and the news was good. 

“We have a current upper mountain snowbase of 115 centimetres and it’s still snowing,” adds Curtain.  “With the forecasted snowfall, the mountain will be in great shape from top to bottom on opening day.”

In late September, Environment Canada forecasters were predicting a La Nina weather pattern for Vancouver Island and the South Coast this winter.  This pattern is typically associated with increased precipitation and lower temperatures over the winter months. 

“The weather patterns strongly favour this region for the season ahead,” explains Rob Davies of the popular website Snow-Forecast.com. 

“This is typical La Nina weather — coastal B.C. tends to see the heaviest snowfall.”

Nordic skiers can expect the same conditions as alpine enthusiasts on opening day.  The Raven Lodge and Mount Washington’s world-class Nordic trails will be ready to host skate and classic skiers looking for pristine snow conditions.  The mountain’s popular Ozone Tubing Park will also swing into action Dec. 6.

Mount Washington announced what it calls exciting new developments for the 2007/08 winter season. 

At the top of the list is a significant night expansion, in which new lights welcome the Stomping Ground Terrain Park and Coaster run to the mountain’s existing night program. 

Night skiing begins Dec. 13 and runs Thursdays to Saturdays throughout the season and daily over the Christmas and spring break holiday periods.

After two successful winters in a row with more than 12 metres of natural snowfall per season, Curtain says the resort is excited at the prospects of winter 2007/08. 

“The last time we had a La Nina season, we had over 18 metres of snow.  It will be very interesting to see if something like that happens again,” says Curtain.

Surf to www.mountwashington.ca for additional information including the live snowcam.

— Mount Washington Alpine Resort