Snowmaking season is underway
Mother Nature is still ramping up for winter. But, the folks at Marquette Mountain are attempting to beat her to the punch with some flurries of their own.
Snowmaking season is officially underway on the ski hill. The staff at Marquette Mountain has started to fire up their stable of blowers, pumping water through some 30 thousand feet of pipe all the way to the top of the slopes.
“Last night was our first test night,” Marquette Mountain General Manager Vern Barber said. “It was very cold, so we ran our guns on their lowest volume, which is about 20 gallons a minute per gun.”
“We weren’t expecting big big piles from last night, we were just checking for leaks, making sure our electrical system was up and running, and the pumps ran well, so that when we do get a cold (night)–which we’re expecting this weekend–that we’ll be ready to make some big piles.”
Artificially produced snow is 40 times denser than the real stuff, so it helps create a solid base for skiers. But, in order to make any, conditions need to be around 25 degrees or colder. Given the moderate heat wave as of late, those guns could be out there for quite some time.
“We’ll make snow through mid-January to make sure there’s two to three to four feet of snow base all over our runs,” Barber said. “It’ll take anywhere from 20 to 45 days to lay down that two to four foot blanket.”
If the weather cooperates, Marquette Mountain will open up its runs December 1st.