ANDALUSIA, Ill. — Weeks of temperatures that were both too warm and then too cold have transformed into ideal skiing weather, allowing Snowstar to finally open for the 2024 season.
The outdoor adventure business opened on Wednesday, January 17 for skiing, sledding, snow tubing and more.
"It's a great atmosphere! We have fun out here," Snowstar employee Rod Leatherman said.
And it's a long-awaited opening for Snowstar. The business had hoped to open its trails up before Christmas, but mild December temperatures kept any natural snow from falling. Those same temps were also too warm for Snowstar's snow-making equipment to work.
While skiing slopes opened last week on January 13, Snowstar quickly shut down again the next day thanks to those bitterly-cold temperatures that swept through our region. It was so cold, those same snow-making machines kept freezing up, preventing them from operating.
But now, a break in the bone-chilling cold is on the way, with temperatures in the 30s and possibly 40s forecasted for next week.
Snowstar officially opened for the 2024 season on Wednesday, January 17.
"We have a little bit of everything in terms of terrain, so our young people can learn-- and we've got a great instructional school our here. So you can take a lesson, learn how to ski or snowboard," Leatherman said. "We've got all the way up to the Black Diamond, which is a little more challenging for our other customers."
According to Leatherman, Snowstar currently has 16 runs listed and about 70 acres for outdoor enthusiasts to work with.
Visitors can now also use an online check-in to purchase tickets ahead of time, skipping the line.
Leatherman joined The Current on News 8 to discuss the challenging season Snowstar has already had, how many people have already flocked to the slopes since opening on Wednesday, and some new upgrades visitors can expect. You can watch the full interview in the above video.
Tune into The Current from 4 to 5 p.m. on weekdays to catch even more live interviews impacting you, your family and your hometown as well as all of the biggest headlines of the day.
Watch more news, weather and sports on News 8's YouTube channel