Castle Mountain Resort in mid-week shutdown over unseasonable weather
Warm, rainy conditions wreaking havoc on ski conditions
Warm, unpredictable winter weather is taking its toll on ski resorts in the Canadian Rockies, with one Alberta resort forced to close up shop for the week.
Castle Mountain Resort, located near Pincher Creek in southwest Alberta, has been forced to temporarily shut down operations because of unseasonable weather conditions. Lifts are set to re-open on Friday.
On Tuesday's Calgary Eyeopener, Castle spokesperson Donna Murray-Clark explained the decision behind the closure.
"We've seen, obviously, higher than average temperatures, and we've had some unfortunate rainfall on our lower mountain, which has resulted in a temporary closure from Monday through Thursday this week," she said.
Murray-Clark said it's a rare occurrence for the resort, with mid-season closures occurring roughly once every 10 years.
The resort will take the four-day break to try to restore some of the runs on the mountain that have been affected.
"It wasn't a lighthearted decision to make," said Murray-Clark. "But we took it for the safety and the [skiing] experience."
According to Murray-Clark, Castle staffers are making the best of the situation and spending their week at other resorts and ski hills in the Rockies.
With snow falling at Castle on Tuesday morning, Murray-Clark is hopeful conditions will improve significantly in the days and weeks to come.
"We're just hoping for a fantastic rest of the season."