Israelis flock to the slopes as Hermon ski resort opens
Snow sport fans cause traffic jams on first day of new season; icy weather closes road north of Safed; lowest temperatures at site for 65 years.
A record number of Israelis headed to the slopes of the Hermon Ski Resort on Monday, for the first day of the season. The large numbers of would-be skiers and snowboarders, numbering in their thousands, caused huge traffic jams on the Golan Heights.
The heavy traffic was exacerbated by the fact that the road north of Safed was closed due to ice on the road, after several vehicles skidded there. Last week's winter storm was fiercer than that of 2014, bringing the temperatures at the site down. Temperatures at Merom Golan were registered at minus 14.2 degrees celcius, the lowest in some 65 years.
Workers managed to finish preparing the Israeli ski site after a week full of continuous snowfall – the slopes and parking lots were cleared and made ready for the many visitors likely to arrive in order to enjoy some Middle Eastern snow.
Workers at the site were unable to predict how long the snow will hold after skiers and snowboarders begin ripping down the mountain and explained that the snow's duration would also depend on the weather.
Snow began falling in the Hermon area last Sunday and even covered the base of the mountain where skiers jump on the ski lifts – 1.7 meters of snow piled up just at the base.
The manager of the Hermon Ski Resort, Shaul Ohana, said that snow at the top of the mountain piled up at around the same height as the base due to gusts of wind that blew away the snow.
Itay Blumenthal contributed to this report.
