The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
First snow of season falls on CairnGorm
‘Summer is over’,
Snow fell on Scotland’s main ski resort yesterday, covering Cairn Gorm mountain. Bosses at the centre near Aviemore ruefully posted on Facebook: “Looks like summer is over.
“Due to the continuing strong winds the Mountain Railway will not operate today. Wrap up warm if you are venturing out on the hill!”
The Scottish snow sports season only ended in May after one of its best in recent years.
Glencoe Mountain was the last of the country’s five winter sports resorts to close.
Ski Scotland chairman Andy Meldrum said last winter was one of the best for the five Scottish resorts in the past half-decade.
It came after one of the worst ever seasons for the Scottish centres.
Mr Meldrum said the season clocked around 250,000 skier days – compared to just over 54,000 the previous year.
The season had been so good that Glencoe Mountain – which he runs – is purchasing a snowmaking machine, which will guarantee skiing from December to May each year, even without natural snowfall.
Some £60,000 of the £400,000 cost of the machine has been raised with a crowdfunder and help from Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
“We will be the first resort in Scotland to have a snow-making machine permanently. It will make a massive difference and give people confidence to book their holidays, knowing they will be able to ski,” said Mr Meldrum.
“It will massively improve the customer experience.”
Across the five resorts, the number of skier days in 2015-16 was 207,770 compared to 230,634 for the previous winter and 235,191 in 2013-14.
The figures are still below 2009-2010 – one of the best on record – when almost 375,000 people hit the slopes.
Since then, Scotland’s five snowsports areas have hosted more than two million skier days which have generated almost £182 million for the national economy.
In 2010, CairnGorm mountain remained open until June with hundreds of skiers trekking to the snow.
“It will give people confidence to book”