Ohiopyle State Park Forced To Cancel Winterfest Due To Lack Of Winter
OHIOPYLE, Pa. (KDKA/AP) -- Ohiopyle State Park has canceled Winterfest due to a lack of, well, winter.
Officials at the park specifically cited a lack of snow in canceling Saturday's event.
"Up on the mountain, where we were going to have our Winterfest, we have grass," says Ohiopyle's Assistant Manager Ben Monk.
Winterfest was supposed to offer sledding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and rides on a horse-drawn sleigh. But warmer temperatures and rainfall melted the park's snow over the weekend.
Officials aren't postponing the event, but simply canceling it and trying again next year.
"We can't bank on the snow. We have no idea if it's going to come," says Monk. "We have 30 volunteers and it's unfair to ask them to take another day for something that may or not happen."
The park has canceled the event at least one other time, due to a snowstorm a few years ago that would have made it dangerous to get to the park.
Winterfest's downfall isn't good news for Ohioplye's Falls Market Restaurant and General Store. Thousand usually show up.
"We do a lot better business. Time is slow, it helps our business out," says the business's Pam Hall. "It's a bummer, everybody looks forward to it. They enjoy it, the kids enjoy it."
The park is hosting a Volunteer Trail Day on Saturday instead. Workers will clear the park's paths of downed trees and other obstacles.
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Over at Seven Springs, some activities have had to be canceled there also due to lack of snow.
In a statement, they say, "Because our snowmobile and snowshoe tours are dependent upon natural snow, they are temporarily unavailable. As soon as we receive sufficient natural snowfall, those activities will be reopened without delay."
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