People who were counting down the days to opening day of the 2023-24 ski season at Big White will have to add seven to their tally.
The mountain was scheduled to open on Thursday, Nov. 23, but that has now been pushed back to Thursday, Nov. 30, due to a lack of snow.
Michael J. Ballingall, senior VP of Big White Ski Resort, said the outdoor operations team was on the mountain most of the morning to inspect runs.
“With the snow that we received over the weekend, we were hopeful that we would have enough to push around and open a few runs for our scheduled opening day,” he said. “This unfortunately is not the case.”
Ballingall noted that there’s still the potential for the mountain to open before Nov. 30, but admitted that “Mother Nature is truly in charge at this time of year.”
Most services will still open as scheduled on Thursday, including Lara’s Gondola, but Ballingall said it will be for pedestrians only and no sliding of any kind will be permitted.
Food and beverage options, retail, rentals and more will be available for those who want to spend some time exploring the village and other amenities at Big White over the coming days.
Ballingall advised people to check with their accommodation provider regarding refunds or rebooking given this unfortunate news.
For those who still want to spend a bit of time at Big White this weekend and check out what the village area has to offer, here’s a look at hours of service for various amenities: