THE SKI resort in what is traditionally the coldest part of Slovakia, in the valley near the municipality of Oravská Lesná, has been forced to create artificial snow. In the lingering, unseasonably warm weather which has resulted in scant snow, the resort’s operators have managed to prepare a continuous artificial snow cover on the slopes.
“We have seen all kinds of winters in the three decades that this ski resort has existed, but I dare say that we don’t remember such an extreme when one could not ski at the beginning of January on natural snow,” operations manager Jozef Fajčák told the TASR newswire. “In December there was enough snow, but it has since melted,” he added.
He explained that the critical situation was resolved by covering the ski routes with artificial snow prior to Christmas.
On Christmas and New Year’s Day, the ski resort saw similar numbers of tourists as last year, and although there was a slump in early January, a bigger influx of tourists, especially from Poland, is expected by mid January.
