Holiday Valley skiers hurtle down the snowy slopes. Photo submitted

Not everyone in Western New York is complaining about the recent snow and cold. For the ski resorts in the region, these conditions are ideal.

Holiday Valley in Ellicottville has been open since December 3 and was initially encouraged by the snowfall that arrived towards the end of November, but the relatively calm rest of the month forced them to test their snowmaking equipment.

“We are grateful to have a super powerful snowmaking system,” said Jane Eshbaugh, chief marketing officer of Holiday Valley ahead of last week’s storm. “Natural snow has been a bit rare this year.”

So far, Eshbaugh said there have been times when they’ve only been open on weekends, closing during the week to preserve whatever snow they have while making more snow. But as COVID-19 cases in the region continue to rise, the weather is not their only concern. Eshbaugh said they learned a lot from how the last year went and realized they were in a better position than some other companies.

“We realized that the outdoors is a good place to be,” she said. “We don’t have to force people to wear masks outside on lift lines or chairlifts, which was difficult to get done last year.”

Eshbaugh said Holiday Valley still requires masks in buildings and encourages people not to spend a lot of time indoors, which has been difficult for food services, but also noted that it’s going better than Last year.

A new challenge Holiday Valley is facing this year is that because they have over 100 employees, everyone has to be vaccinated or tested for COVID-19 once a week if not vaccinated. While that could cause problems for such a large place, Eshbaugh said they have a good system in place to handle the new guidelines.

“We have a lot of different departments and we have to keep track of who is vaccinated and who is not while being discreet about it,” Esbaugh said. “We have a good system in place and we warn everyone.”

Eshbaugh said the Tubing Park opened earlier this month and is accessible by pre-purchasing lift tickets, which is another change Holiday Valley adopted last year and is maintaining this year.

While Holiday Valley has many years of experience to draw on, the Cockaigne Ski Resort at Cherry Creek is still trying to find its footing. After 10 years of closure, Cockaigne has reopened under the control of Lynn Development and senior executive Jason Spain. Spain said reopening last year had focused on winning back a clientele.

“We are historically the oldest but with the restart we are the newest complex in the southern part”, said Spain. “We have been working to find our former skiers who are a bit local to us and to bring back the ski clubs. The clubs are what we are known for with the size of our hill.

Spain said the main feature of Cockaigne is their learning hill, which he says is the best. For this reason Spain believes Cockaigne is the best place for beginners before moving on to other courses like Holiday Valley.

“We have worked hard to speak to this type of skier and reintroduce learning products and courses for beginners”, said Spain.

Lack of snow has been more of an issue for Cockaigne, which opened earlier this month.

Spain said last year served as a script “no one would have wanted it”. As they tried to reopen for their first season, they did so amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Because the different requirements and guidelines were so fluid, Spain said last year it was a matter of navigating the tumultuous climate.

“Originally when we opened last year we had temperature screening so no one came in with symptoms, people had to wear masks unless they were eating, and we had the ‘barrier of not being able to serve alcohol without food’, said Spain. “This had an impact on delivery times. By the time you hit the runways it was like an airport check.

As the COVID-19 climate continues to change, Spain said it is grateful to have people like Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel and State Senator George Borrello looking to small enterprises. This year, conditions at Cockaigne will be friendlier to visitors.

“There will be no COVID hut, but everyone will have to distance themselves according to symptoms”, said Spain. “We always ask people to wear masks inside the building, but they can take them off for dinner. We have a new concessions area which is super fast, and it makes fast food that much better in the COVID environment, while still maintaining the sit down pub menu. It’s much better than the previous year. »

Not only overcoming COVID, Cockaigne also overcame every hurdle a freshman ski resort has to jump through, which includes certifications. With certification and recertification complete for this year, Spain said it was able to return to schools and advertise.

Although Mother Nature cannot be predicted, Spain believes Cockaigne will be open around mid-March, while Eshbaugh said Holiday Valley will be open for a few days in April. Additionally, Peek’n’Peak Resort near Clymer is also open for the season and offers passes which can be purchased on their website.