Resorts Delay Opening in South America
Resorts Delay Opening in South America
Published : 24-Jun-2015 08:58
Whilst ski areas in New Zealand opening this week are reporting their best start in a decade, across the Pacific in Argentina and Chile it's a less rosy picture with many big known resorts facing bare slopes and being forced to delay opening.
Portillo in Chile, perhaps the continent's best known resort, has put a two week hold on their opening day, due last Saturday but now scheduled for July 4th.
Another leading resort, Valle Nevado, did manage to open but with a piste of machine made snow on a barren brown landscape.
The western South American coast seems to be currently suffering from the same warm dry conditions that have affected ski areas on the western North American coast for the past four seasons, with the last one being particularly bad for snowfall (lack of).
This is going against predictions that this southern hemisphere winter would be a good one for snow according to the Pacific's La Niña and El Niño weather cycles which tend to bring feast or famine for snow addicts, depending on which is in the ascendance.
Some South American ski areas are facing a triple whammy of bad luck as there have also been volcanic eruptions and mud slides in recent weeks and months affecting several resorts too.
But not every South American ski area is suffering, towards the south of the continent conditions are nearer to normality and Corralco in southern Chile, pictured above on Monday, is one of several that are fully operational.
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