Quebec and Ontario ski hills suffer devastating season while West prospers

Ski conditions flipped this year in Canada with Western operators popping champagne and those in Central Canadabidding good riddance to one of the poorest seasons in memory.

While the amount of snowfall at Western Canadian resorts nearly doubled from last year, warm weather melted away revenues and profits from Ontario and Quebec's most frequented ski regions.

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"It's one of the worst ones I've seen since we've been inoperation," said Fred Korman, owner of Owl's Head, a mountain inQuebec's Eastern Townships.

A lack of snow early in the winter forced it to miss theChristmas season, which can generate up to a quarter of the hill'sannual revenues. It then contended with inconsistent weather,including rain, that made snow-making a challenge.

Poor conditions left some trails closed as overall ski trafficwas slashed in half during the hill's 50th year.

'It's kind of turned people off'

The season brought back painful memories for Louis-PhilippeHbert, CEO of six mountains including Mont St. Sauveur, one of themost popular ski destinations near Montreal.

He remembers the pouring rain on Christmas Day a quarter centuryago that devastated his father, who had purchased the main ski hillwith partners.

Hbert experienced his own anxiety last Christmas Eve whentemperatures climbed to a balmy 22 C.

"It kind of turned off people from skiing for the rest of thewinter," he said.

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Attendance was 14 per cent below what it was last season, whichwas already weak due to temperatures that were too cold. Despiteefforts to control costs, he estimates profits this season will be30 per cent lower than 2014-15 and 45 per cent down from a normalseason.

The head of Quebec's ski association said the year was among thethree worst for the province, with hills closing for a record numberof days and many shortening their season.

"It was definitely a year of a lot of Mother Nature hiccups,"said Yves Juneau.

Juneau said it forced operators to cut costs and curtail hours ofwork. Nearby communities also felt the pain as hotel reservationswere cancelled, restaurants had fewer customers and some sportsretailers closed.

The skiing industry has been adapting to climate change byspending more money on snow-making, he said, though he worries thatowners will have less money to invest in further infrastructureupgrades and stay afloat.

"This industry has shown resilience over the years," he said."I'm hopeful that everyone is going to be able to be back nextyear."

Poor conditions hurtOntario

In Ontario, weather woes delayed the opening of Blue Mountainnorth of Toronto by a couple of weeks, marking the latest start forthe hill. A shortage of snow forced the Intrawest-owned resort toreopen some summer activities like zip lines and mini-putt.

Spokeswoman Tara Lovell said the ski hill experiences similarchallenges about every decade. She said snow-making investments in2007 helped it respond to environmental changes and allowed it toremain open until this past Sunday six days longer than itsshortest season.

Despite poor conditions surrounding Toronto and Montreal, areasnear Quebec City, Saguenay and Eastern Quebec enjoyed ample snowcoverage.

After a slow start, Mont Tremblant said it had a good season asit was spared most of the rain that drenched other regions.

Itattracted U.S. skiers, particularly from Vermont, which sufferedfrom snow challenges of its own, and was helped by a low Canadiandollar.

"When you work in this business you're always hoping for aperfect winter, but you come to know that it's always going to bedependent on Mother Nature," said Annique Aird, vice-president ofsales and marketing for Mont Tremblant.

Eastern Canadians headed out West

Out west, Sun Peaks Resort and Whistler Blackcomb said they wereon track for record-setting winter seasons due to the low loonie anda high amount of snowfall.

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The region saw more visitors from Eastern Canada, the UnitedStates and the Southern Hemisphere, said Christopher Nicholson, headof the Canada West Ski Areas Association, though he added finalfigures won't be available until May.

"From an overall perspective, it's definitely been a solid yearfor the industry," he said.

"With the East having a challenging year with snow, it attractedEastern Canadian skiers to the West. What it also did was EasternCanadian skiers that may have considered going to the States, thedollar kept them north."