Last hurrah at Schweitzer

High temperatures and low snowfall have cooked the slopes at Schweitzer Mountain Resort, where officials announced Thursday that this weekend will be the end of the ski season – the shortest in its 41 years of operation.

“We had some higher temperatures this week, and it pretty much did us in,” said Schweitzer spokeswoman Lisa Gerber.

Like Mt. Spokane Ski & Snowboard Park, which has been closed since January, Schweitzer will consider reopening if a large snowstorm shows up later in the month.

But the short-term forecast isn’t promising. The National Weather Service is predicting mild temperatures and no precipitation through Thursday.

Two other area ski hills have shortened operations. Silver Mountain in Kellogg, Idaho, will be closed Mondays through Wednesdays, and 49 Degrees North Mountain Resort near Chewelah, Wash., is only open Saturdays and Sundays.

Some skiers were looking at the sunny side.

“Skiing is always good, but sometimes it’s better than others,” said Al Voltz, who has six decades of skiing experience in the Inland Northwest. “Next year is going to be a dandy. It’s bound to be.”