While Whistler’s ski season has gotten off to an excellent start, the same can’t be said for resorts in Colorado. Just a week before Christmas many Colorado ski areas, including Aspen and Vail, were relying heavily on snowmaking equipment as storms had skirted the northern and central mountains since mid-November. Southern Colorado resorts such as Telluride and Purgatory had received plenty of snow through successive storms, but some businesses in the northern part of the state were beginning to worry about people cancelling vacations over the holidays. Chamber officials in the Summit County area, home to Breckenridge, Keystone and Copper Mountain, said there had been some holiday cancellations, but added that is not unusual once vacationers realize how much money they have spent on gifts. However some business owners said they are concerned about meeting revenue goals if the dry weather continues. Some hotels and restaurants were running specials to attract customers. Colorado received more snow than usual in November but most of the state has been dry since then. At the same time, California resorts have received large dumps of snow. As of last week most northern and central Colorado resorts were reporting mid-mountain snow bases of between 15 and 23 inches. At the same time last year the bases for those resorts ranged from the low 20s to the mid-30s.
