SAM Magazine-Mt. Hood, Ore., May 1, 2009-Not only are several North American resorts still operating, several others are reopening for the first weekend in May.

Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort resumes operations today through Sunday, May 1, 2 and 3 for a season encore. Similarly, Wolf Creek and Echo Mountain, Colo., Jay Peak, Vt., and Alpental, Wash., are also reopening this weekend.

Mt. Hood Meadows is offering a special $25 day ticket that can be purchased on the resort website, skihood.com; a day ticket at the resort is $54. A special $25 day ski or snowboard rental package can be purchased online as well. Bands are scheduled to perform on the Paradise Sun Deck (weather permitting).

At Jay Peak, $39 lift tickets for adults purchased on Saturday will also be honored Sunday. There will also be a BBQ, live music and a raffle for a free pass for next year.

In New England, Killington and Sugarloaf have been open continuously. May 2 is last day at Killington, while Sugarloaf is running through May 3. This is also the last weekend for Loveland Basin, Colo., which still has a 72-inch base, and where the forecast calls for snow on Saturday.

After this weekend, the ranks of open areas shrinks. Sunshine and Whistler in Canada will remain open. In the U.S., Snowbird, Mammoth, Arapahoe Basin, Timberline, Mt. Bachelor, and Squaw Valley are among those planning to operate further into May, and beyond in a few cases. Mt. Hood Skibowl is open weekends later into May as well.

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