Good weather and bad economy keep skiers at local slopes

CORNWALL — There are all sorts of coping mechanisms people have found for dealing with snowstorm after snowstorm (such as saying optimistically, “Spring is just around the corner!�). In Cornwall, residents generally remark on the silver lining, as in, “It’s a good year for Mohawk!�

The ski area’s management started  this season worrying as much about the economy as about the weather. A ski slope always needs to worry about those weekends when nature doesn’t provide the stuff of happy schussing.

This is the 60th year that Mohawk has been  making snow, using a process invented by the mountain’s founder, Walter Schoenknecht.

Mohawk began this season right after Thanksgiving with dry weather — but steady cold temperatures allowed for constant snowmaking. Three trails were open that weekend.

This past Monday, schools, government offices and some businesses were closed for Martin Luther King Day, traditionally one of the busiest single days in the industry. The temperature at the base of the mountain edged up to 30 degrees, relatively warm weather after the recent cold snap. The skies were clear.

Mohawk owner Carol Lugar reported a busy day on the slopes.  All seven lifts and all but one of 24 trails were open. One of the more difficult trails, Wildwood, for black diamond skiers, is now open.

Lugar said she doesn’t know how much snow has fallen on the mountain so far this season.

“It’s not something we have a need to keep track of,� Lugar said. “We use an average depth when we talk about snow base. Right now we have up to about 3-1�2 feet, but it could be more or less depending on where snow was made and how it’s pushed around when the trails are groomed.�

Most important to skiers, Lugar said, is the type of snow — and that can change on an hourly basis. Some skiers like big, intermittent snowfalls that leave a well-packed surface. Others prefer the fresh layers we’ve been getting regularly in recent weeks.

“The true powder skiers are out in the early morning, enjoying the lighter fluffier snow from overnight snowfalls and very cold temperatures,� Lugar said. “We groom to create different conditions for every skier.�

Right after the new year, Mohawk opened its new triple-chair lift, which replaced a double lift that was installed in 1961. Despite the excitement and anticipation it provided for Mohawk staffers during the dramatic, off-season build, skiers and snowboarders are taking the new state-of-the-art lift in stride.

“They really are not reacting to it,� Lugar said. “But the lift lines are much shorter and they are obviously happy with it. We’d hear about it if they weren’t.�

A second Magic Carpet lift has been  installed on the beginner slope, making for faster rotations there as well.

“Beginners and parents with their kids love it,� Lugar said.

Mohawk is feeling the pinch of the economy, but it hasn’t been nearly bad enough to overshadow routine weather concerns, Lugar said. Not enough snow is a problem. Too much snow can also keep people away.

Lugar said that beyond a loyal local clientele, the ski area also draws skiers from this side of the state; from all the way south and into New York City; and from northern New Jersey.

“We are the day ski trip for those people. A lot of them would typically head farther north for a long weekend, but they are cutting back by sticking with day trips to Mohawk.

“We have sold a lot of season passes, especially for kids, because a pass for the whole season here costs less than one vacation trip to a ski resort. People are trying to get the most for their money.�

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