ASSOCIATED PRESS • January 18, 2022
The snow hasn’t stopped falling but it is certainly not piling up as much or as far as it used to amid climate change and it is hitting a sport that saw wild growth when COVID-19 hit in the winter of 2020. Many escaped cabin fever by hitting cross country ski trails for the exercise, the fresh air and the serenity. Climate change makes the future of all skiing uncertain, from the elite World Cup circuits and sprawling resorts to the mom-and-pop operations that bustle on weekends with recreational skiers. For cross country centers, warmer temperatures mean more precipitation is falling in the form of rain instead of snow, forcing them to look to snow-making equipment to cover their trails.