SAM Magazine-Maggie Valley, N.C., Oct. 27, 2008-Colder temperatures in the Southeast have sparked snowmaking at both Snowshoe and Cataloochee ski areas, with the latter announcing an Oct. 28 opening day. That will make Cataloochee Ski Area, located in the Great Smoky Mountains of western North Carolina, the first ski resort in the Mid-Atlantic region to make snow and open for the season.

Guns are firing at Cataloochee in preparation for Oct. 28 opening.

One of the southernmost resorts in the southeast, Cataloochee will provide the first skiing and riding of its 2008-09 season on Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2008, at 1:00 pm. Tuesday's opening marks the fourth straight year the North Carolina resort has been among the first resorts to open in the east.

"We expanded our automatic snowmaking system, which allows us to utilize these early colder temperatures and allows us to open for the first time ever in October," said Chris Bates, Cataloochee's vice president and GM. "We expect the temperatures to remain favorable the next few nights and we are expecting our snowmakers to be able to put over two feet of snow on the trails we will be skiing." According to the resort, only beginner terrain will be available, with no food or beverage service onsite.

West Virginia's Snowshoe, for its part, started snowmaking today, taking advantage of a cold front that has dropped trace amounts of natural snow on the resort. With a planned opening day of Nov. 26, the current cold temperatures could mean some of the best early season conditions in recent memory for the ski area. Last season Snowshoe began making snow on Nov. 2, and opened Nov. 21. The ski area added 15 tower-mounted, fully automated, Techno Alpine guns over the summer, bringing its arsenal to more than 400 for its 244 acres of skiable terrain.

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