HispanicBusiness

Last winter, Camelback Mountain Resort in Pennsylvania distributed 1.5 million coupons for ski lift discounts.

What a difference a temperate winter makes.

"We have over 3 million coupons in the marketplace," said Megan McHugh, spokeswoman for Camelback, a recreation complex in Tannersville. "You kind of have to get it in peoples' minds that it's winter."

Only 5.4 inches of snow fell at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport during December and January, according to the National Weather Service. The two-month snowfall amount totals about one-quarter the average for the same period in recent years.

Daily temperatures at the airport averaged 36.1 degrees in December and 31.3 degrees in January, both 5.5 degrees higher than normal daily averages for the months, NWS data show. The period of Nov. 1 to Jan. 31 was the region's fourth-warmest on record, NWS meteorologist Joanne LaBounty said.

"A lot of ski resorts across the country are down about half the snow they usually get for this time of year," said James Chung, president of Reach Advisors, a recreation industry research and consulting firm near Albany, N.Y. "In most of the country, skier visits are down 15 to 20 percent versus the prior year."

Camelback's skier turnout is down about 15 percent, McHugh said. The downturn at Sno Mountain in Scranton is 25 to 30 percent, spokeswoman Nancy Kaminski said.

"If people don't see it falling from the sky, unfortunately, they are not thinking about it," Kaminski said. "There's nothing you can do about it."

Sno Mountain, which recently renegotiated a longer term on payments of a $4.5 million state loan it defaulted on and is in arrears on county and school district taxes, stepped up discounts this winter to increase turnout. Camelback boosted advertising. Camelback markets heavily in the New York and Philadelphia metro areas.

"On days when we are hitting 35 to 40 degrees and they are hitting 50, guys are putting on their windbreakers and going golfing," McHugh said.

Snowmaking technology compensates for a lack of snowfall. The base at Camelback, for example, is 24 to 36 inches, down from 36 to 48 normally.

"Ski conditions are actually pretty good," said Troy Hawks, spokesman for the National Ski Areas Association, a Denver-area trade group. "One of the greater challenges is getting the word out to consumers."

But mild temperatures make it hard for ski areas to generate traffic, Chung said.

"When there's no natural snowfall where the customers live, there's definitely a battle of perception," he said. "When temperatures are high, there's a battle of reality."

Steady cold weather and regular snowfalls created long and thriving conditions last winter at regional ski resorts.

This winter will be remembered for something else.

"It's been the best spring skiing all season long in some areas," Hawks said.