Soft but still skiable. Photo provided by Snowshoe Mountain Resort.

That summarizes Snowshoe Mountain Resort’s attitude towards the recent stretch of warm temperatures. Snowshoe managed to open several trails for top-to-bottom skiing last Wednesday, but has been unable to resume snowmaking due to unseasonably mild temperatures. So, Snowshoe has decided to take advantage of the warm temperatures by re-opening golf and mountain biking for the weekend. This represents the first time the resort has offered skiing and golf on the same day.

“[The warm weather] has been a tremendous challenge in getting trails open for the season,” said Snowshoe’s President, Steve Rice. “By opening the golf course and mountain biking trails, we figured somebody could pack everything into their vehicle and head this way.”

The Hawthorne Valley golf course will re-open on Thursday, December 3, offering a round of golf for $30. After spending time on the greens, golfers can don their skis and head for the slopes; lift tickets will cost $12. On Saturday and Sunday, the Mountain Biking Center at the Inn at Snowshoe will also re-open, offering discounted trail tickets. Saturday night, New York’s “Big Tubba Mista” swing-style band will perform.

Mountain biking and golf may not last long after this weekend; the resort is hoping for colder temperatures next week and will concentrate on aggressive snowmaking.

“We will focus our efforts on preparing the trails for our holiday visitors. At least we know our new snowmaking system works great with marginal temperatures. Our snowmakers can’t wait to see what it can do with real winter conditions,” said Rice.