North Rhine-Westphalia: 50 lifts open: First big ski weekend in the Sauerland

The Christmas holidays are the first highlight of the season for the lift operators in the Sauerland.

North Rhine-Westphalia: 50 lifts open: First big ski weekend in the Sauerland

The Christmas holidays are the first highlight of the season for the lift operators in the Sauerland. This time they are optimistic: they will be able to operate more lifts in mid-December than they have in years.

Winterberg (dpa/lnw) - A few lifts are already running, and skiers can really get going in the Sauerland at the weekend: around 50 lifts should then go into operation in the ski areas. A spokeswoman for the Wintersport Arena Sauerland said there hadn't been such an extensive offer since 2017 in mid-December. In view of the weather in recent weeks, the lift operators are optimistic about the first highlight of the season. The Christmas holidays also start next Friday.

According to the spokeswoman for the ski areas, the snow cover is only a good ten centimeters thick. However, the dry cold has made it possible to produce artificial snow effectively. "The system always needs the same amount of electricity, but more comes out when it's cold," she said. After two winters with restrictions due to the corona pandemic, the mild winter of 2019/2020 and the uncertain electricity price situation, the weather favorable for snow production is just right.