Ski resorts within driving distance of Chattanooga enjoy week of natural powder

Tabatha Higginbotham, 19, of Birmingham, makes her second attempt at snowboarding at Cloudmont Ski Resort in Mentone, Ala. Employee Chris Rogers gives verbal assistance on using the cable lift.

Seeing snow on the doorstep has a way of getting folks into the wintry activity spirit, and ski resort operators within a couple of hours' drive of Chattanooga are thankful for that.

Janis Carter, one of the siblings running Cloudmont Ski and Golf Resort in Mentone, Ala., peeked out the ski lodge window Friday afternoon at the 15 cars or so out in the parking lot, pretty good for a late February weekday, she said.

"Today, we're pretty busy," she said. "And there's still lots of natural snow around."

Mentone lies just north of Fort Payne, off Interstate 59 about 40 miles from the Tennessee-Alabama line. And the small town, like much of northern Alabama and Georgia, got even more snow this week than Chattanooga and cities farther north.

According to the National Weather Service's Huntsville station, Wednesday was record-breaking in terms of snowfall, both in a single day and for the month of February.

Huntsville -- 70 miles west of Mentone -- got 8.1 inches of snow on Wednesday, the second-most snow to fall in a single day there since 1894, when records start.

And taking into account Thursday's minor snow, this February is the most snowy in the Huntsville area's history, with a total 8.1 inches over the course of the month.

The roughly eight inches that fell on Mentone Wednesday night into Thursday morning actually kept Cater home. Mountain roads were impassable, she said, which probably also kept some customers from risking a trip to the ski resort.

Carter said Friday that she hoped the week's snow would have a positive impact on the weekend's business. The natural snow is a little harder to pack than the man-made variety Cloudmont pushes out, but it provides a good base when skiiers get out on it, she said.

And Carter said given the slow, warm start to the skiing season, Cloudmont hopes for a strong finish.

The slopes normally open around the holidays, but this year was just too warm, minus a brief cold stint in November.

"Last year, we had 76 days of skiing, so we had a pretty cold winter," she said. "This year, we've had 38 days of skiing."

And the season ends in roughly two weeks, unless cold weather moves in and allows for skiing into early spring.

Meanwhile, Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort and Amusement Area is also cherishing the cold, snowy weather February has brought.

Kate Barido, director of sales and marketing, said Friday that a good, natural snow is "generally, definitely a bonus."

Tim Hendrix, left, listens as Cloudmont Ski Resort instructor Joe Wenderski, right, conducts a ski school class in early January.

"When it's sunny out, sunny and warm weather, people don't generally don't think about snow sports," she said.

Ober Gatlinburg, like Cloudmont, opens its slopes from late fall through early spring.

But like northeast Alabama, Barido said things remained dry and green far into the start of the season this year. Last year, people were skiing right at Thanksgiving. This year, "there was green grass" on the slopes into December, she said.

So Barido said this week's 6- to 10-inch snow was more than welcome.

"It's what we live for, is snow and skiing, and we love it," she said.

Ober Gatlinburg relies on this time of year for business. And despite the complications a real snow can bring -- like slick mountain roads and fear of going out -- it's more of a boon than a burden.

"There's definitely a little bit of fear that comes with driving on the roads and everything, especially in this are where people are not accustomed to driving in the snow," said Barido.

But a lot of people are "excited that it finally snowed," she said. "It's so much better to greet the guests. When conditions are good, people are generally in good spirits."

Contact staff writer Alex Green at agreen@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6480.