Northwoods Adventure: Artificial Snow at Mount Ski Gull Critical as Mild Winter Continues

While the mild winter has its pros, it also has its cons.

“We had that tiny cold streak in October, and then November was one of the warmest Novembers on record,” said Mount Ski Gull General Manager Mata Agre. “Our snowmakers who have been here for 10 years said they’ve never had a November that warm.”

Mount Ski Gull opened on schedule and has seen a constant flow of customers, but the days that the mountain is not open are critical.

“It’s been non-stop since we opened,” said Agre. “All of our runs have a one-and-a-half to a three-foot base of snow, so we are really almost 100% man-made snow.”

The biggest thing that helps Mount Ski Gull run is the snow guns and the main ingredient that helps the snow guns do their job.

“It takes about 1 million gallons [of water] per acre in order to get that three-foot snow depth there,” said Agre. “It all comes from our own source and that water source is what dictates how long those snow guns run for.”