According to Cricket on Ice, the two most popular sports in winter in the United States are snowboarding and skiing. Seventeen out of the nineteen ski resorts in Pennsylvania are open. Resorts everywhere around the east coast have been facing a problem of having a shortage of snow this year. 

“Skiers and snowboarders are disappointed by the limited terrain available, not just at Blue Knob, but at many ski areas in the Northeast this winter,” Blue Knob employee Donna Himes said.

“My first time snowboarding since middle school was hard for me. I was punching the ground in rage. The snow up there is very icy and not very much powder, which makes it easier,” junior Ethan Strawmire said.

Junior Aydan Miller has been snowboarding for four consecutive years and feels like this season is different from the rest. 

“This season could be better. There’s not enough powder up at Blue Knob, which makes it harder. The temperature is warmer this year, so it feels different. Even though Blue Knob is at a high point and should be colder, it’s still very warm,” Miller said. 

Blue Knob is one of the best-known ski resorts in Pennsylvania as it is the highest ski mountain in Pennsylvania and because of their range of terrain.

In order for the ski resort to still have a season for skiers and snowboarders, they have snow making machines helping make powdery snow. Snow making requires temperatures below 28 degrees Fahrenheit.

With snow making being difficult because of the higher temperatures in Pennsylvania, only six out of the 34 trails are open.

“It has been a struggle for many resorts to open additional terrain, due to warm, rainy weather. Many ski areas, Blue Knob included, do not have snow making over 100 percent of their terrain, and, unless there is enough natural snow, those parts of the mountain remain closed. Snow making efforts have mostly been to replenish the snowpack that we currently have instead of making snow on additional terrain,” Himes said.

Junior Lila Benjamin has been skiing ever since she was little and feels as if the temperatures this year have been affecting the time she spends on the slopes.

“I’ve only been up at Blue Knob three times this year. I usually go up every weekend but, because of the snow, I haven’t been able to go up. I’ve been skiing for about 11 years, and this year feels different. When it’s too icy, it isn’t as easy to ski. When they make snow, it isn’t as good as the real snow. I have a house on jack rabbit, and jack rabbit hasn’t opened yet. I haven’t been able to ski down from the house,” Benjamin said..