It really is the best ever - James Cove, Cairngorm
Saturday March 6, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

Ski Scotland has reported that the number of skier days now stands at over 250,000 which is the highest since 2001 and there are still around 8 weeks of the season to go.

It says the snowpsorts industry has brought an extra £25m to local economics with some hotels/bed and breakast establishments reporting business up by 500%.

Quite where it gets the figures from and how accurate they are we can't verify, but we can report there is a spring in the step of people here in the Scottish ski resorts.

"Quite frankly it is just like the hey day of Scottish skiing back in the 80's with record amounts of snow, huge numbers of people and a general buzz about the place," says Rudi Prochazka who used to run the Badanoch Ski school back in the 1970's and 80's. He taught on Cairngorm Mountain.

Bit like the old daysProchazka does though admitt it has been a hard winter for the people actually living here.

For a start there has been snow and ice on the ground since December. 

Good for skiers and snowboarders, but not quite so good for everyone else as they try to go about their daily business.

The pavements are slippery, roads often dangerous and heating bills have gone up.

"When will this wretched winter end?" one frustrated local told me as she struggled along an icy path with her shopping.

But for the ski industry here in Scotland it's a throwback to the good old days.

The snow has been epic.

Nowhere more so that Cairngorm, near Aviemore, where many people simply can't remember this much snow.

See below for a PlanetSKI interview with Ian Whitaker, the Chief Executive of the resort.

For news of the latest digging out see here and also for news of how the resort needed to use explosives to make the ski area safe.

Don't forget to check out the Photos of The Week on the home page featuring some images from Scotland.

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