Latest storm boosts C.O. snowpack, slightly

The latest storm to hit the Central Oregon Cascades brought the good and the bad: ski shops in Bend seeing more business, but Hoodoo Ski Area still not able to open.

“People coming in getting skis and snowboards, now that the snow is finally here,” PowerderHouse Ski and Snowboard employee Dave Alleman said Monday. “Everyone is in a rush to get up and have fun.”

Employees were busy Monday fixing scratches, sharpening edges and putting a new wax on skis and boards.

“A lot of folks, anticipating yesterday being a lot of fun, they thought they would go up again today, so we had a pretty steady stream of folks coming through the shops today,” Allman said.

It’s a much different story at Hoodoo Ski Area on the Santiam Pass.

“I’m devastated,” Office Manager Daidre Streeter said. “All weekend I was waiting for 26 inches of snow, and instead we got seven to eight inches.”

The latest automated Sno-Tel readings for the the Deschutes and Crooked River basin has jumped to 40 percent of normal. Last week at this time, many stations were reporting near record lows, only about 25 percent of normal for this time of year.

Skiers, boarders and businesses are now hoping more snow comes soon, to improve on an already bleak snow year.

“With the holiday coming up, we are trying to gear up for a lot of people coming through the shop and getting everything spruced and ready for snow,” Alleman said.