Even with a shortage of snow, there is a sense of optimism for the ski season at Whitefish Mountain Resort, largely built on last year’s big business.

And less than 40 miles to the south, Blacktail Mountain got off to a strong snowy start.

Blacktail General Manager Steve Spencer said people are surprised to find out that the ski area west of Lakeside has received more than 60 inches of snow and has a settled base of 32 inches.

“Our conditions are really good right now and nobody can believe it until they come up and realize how good things are,” he said.

With its north-facing slopes, Blacktail received and retained enough snow to open all of its lifts on Dec. 10.  Blacktail caught the brunt of the northernmost edge of a storm that delivered 28 inches, which set the stage for the opener.

Spencer said he hopes the ski area can exceed last year’s visitor numbers.

“Last year wasn’t quite a record but it was close. We had really good snow and pass sales were up from the year before,” he said. “This year’s preseason pass sales were dead even with last year.”

Blacktail has been getting more business from Canadians and other out-of-area skiers.

“The Canadians are starting to find us,” Spencer said, adding that overnight visitors typically stay in Kalispell and ski at both Blacktail and Whitefish Mountain Resort. “We’re seeing a lot of that. They’re staying in Kalispell and skiing at both places.”

While snow conditions have allowed for only a partial opening on Big Mountain, it’s only a matter of time before all terrain is open, said Rlley Polumbus, the public relations manager at Whitefish Mountain Resort.

“We are definitely looking good at Christmas,” Polumbus said, referring to overnight reservations. “The phones are still ringing in spite of the fact that snow is minimal ... At some point, the snow is going to come and people are going to be looking at that.”

The resort now has a settled base of 27 inches at the summit, 10 inches at mid-mountain and 7 inches at the Village area, allowing for five chairlifts to be open.

Last season was one of resort’s most successful, Polumbus said.

“Snow had a lot to do with it, but we also had more season pass holders than ever,” she said. “We did go over 300,000 skier visits for only the second time ever.”

This year’s season pass sales already have surpassed last year’s, indicating a promising year for skier visits as snow conditions improve.

Canadian skiers have become a big part of the resort’s destination skiers, but there also is strong business from Seattle, Spokane and Minneapolis.

“They can get here by train, so that’s helpful,” Polumbus said.

The resort has continued a trend of investing in improvements during the off-season.

Most significantly this year, the resort installed the new Bad Rock Lift, a 1,627-foot span that can carry 1,000 passengers an hour. It is designed as an overflow or alternate lift to Chair Six, which also serves the base lodge area.

The lift hasn’t been operating yet this season because there isn’t enough snow in that area.

Other changes at the resort include a new bar inside the Base Lodge and changes in the lodge’s dining room that will allow it to accommodate about 100 more people than it used to.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by email at jmann@dailyinterlake.com.