Mt Hutt Skifield scheduled opening today has been scuttled by too much snow – and rain.
“Overnight we picked up 15cm of fresh snow (yes!), but early this morning the rain rolled in with warmer temps (nooo!),” they reported on their social media platform.
“This shift caused our snowpack to become unstable, especially along our access road through the Bluffs.
“After a thorough assessment, our patrol teams flagged a high-risk zone, and we’ve made the tough call to close for the day.
“Keep the hype up, our superhero patrol crew are up the mountain and working hard to get this risk mitigated for a sunny open day tomorrow!”
Mt Hutt had planned to open – on its scheduled opening date today – following the biggest pre-season snowfalls in 19 years.
It comes after an early opening was scuttled by snow in May melting.
Manager James McKenzie said on Tuesday the skifield had received 97cm in the last five days, and 246cm so far this winter period.
An opening with so much snow was an ‘‘extraordinary event’’.
It was the most since he started working on the mountain 19 years ago.
Another 20 to 30cm had been expected ahead of today.
At the same time, the skifield was making snow, wanting to build its base for the season ahead.
‘‘We couldn’t have asked for a better start to the season,’’ McKenzie said. He expected that all lifts would be operational and all terrain would be open.
It would be the first time in 10 years this had been the case on opening day.
And to top it all off, forecasts showed the sun would shine for at least the first week.
A high-pressure system would bring settled weather.
Meanwhile, the ski area is promoting Locals’ Day on June 27.
It would be just $50 for a ski pass for Mid Cantabrians.
And Matariki Day on June 20 would feature a dawn Summit Six sight-seeing experience and karakia.
For more information on these events, see mthutt.co.nz/events/
