Ski resorts can have the most luxurious lodges, the fastest lifts and
most exciting terrain. But if they don’t have snow in the winter, none
of that matters much.
Many New England states declared a state of
emergency this weekend following the major coastal storm that dumped more than
two feet of snow in parts of the region, including southern Vermont. Road crews and state officials
saw it as just another winter day.
While the temperatures and overall
snowfall totals aren’t record breaking, many local businesses and snow sport
enthusiasts are struggling this winter. The fluctuating temperatures and
lack of snow are affecting everything from winter sports and local businesses to
birds and plants.
Your driveway may be shoveled well enough to get
your car in and out. But fuel truck drivers and others who go door
to door say the snow has been a huge headache.
Eleven dairy barns have collapsed under the
weight of successive snowstorms. At least a dozen cows have died and hundreds have
been trapped under caved-in roofs and timbers. For the farms involved, the snows of 2011 have been devastating.
It’s not just the ski industry that’s benefiting
from all the snow this winter. Both small- and
large-scale plow drivers that get rid of all the snow are enjoying a banner
year.
For the second time in less than a week, the region has been hit with a big
snowstorm. And once again the snow is heaviest in the southern part of the state.
Much of Vermont may be getting cold sleet or rain. But higher
elevations are getting their first snow storm of the season. Snow has been piling up on Killington, Mount Mansfield and other mountains.
This
week’s storm left up to a couple of feet of snow in the mountains, adding to an
already-substantial snowpack. Ski
resorts say the weather has been a gift from the sky that has helped them get
through the recession.