HIGHMOUNT, New York — Ski areas throughout the Northeast have been waiting for the arrival of winter for about a month. Although the calendar says winter doesn’t officially begin until December 21st, most mountains would have been open for business weeks ago. Unfortunately, Mother Nature has not been cooperating although things are finally beginning to look up.

A few inches of snow fell on the Belleayre Ski Center over Thanksgiving weekend and the weather forecast calls for the arrival of cold weather during the coming week. That will enable the snowmakers to start adding to the natural snow for a planned opening this Saturday, December 5th. But the weather can be unpredictable so the final call will not be made until 5 a.m. Saturday morning. Stay tuned by logging on to www.Belleayre.com or by calling (800) 942-690 for the latest conditions and information.

If you haven’t purchased your season passes, now is the time to do so. And lift tickets make great holiday gifts. Gearing up for the holiday traveling and shopping season, Belleayre is again offering its Holiday 4-pack, which is now on sale offering visitors a great deal on holiday lift passes with an additional 20 percent discount at the Blue Sky Sports retail shop in Overlook Lodge. Present your holiday lift ticket to Blue Sky Sports on the day it was issued and receive an added 20 percent off of your purchases. And for every $200 spent on a single purchase at Blue Sky Retail Sports Belleayre will give consumers a free anytime lift ticket. Visit www.belleayre.com to purchase your passes and tickets from our Belleayre online store.

Starting today December 1st, the newly announced Catskill Region frequent skier card goes on sale, giving people discounts off of lift tickets at Belleayre, Hunter, Windham, Plattekill and Holiday Mountain. The Catskill Association for Tourism Services, in collaboration with the five participating resorts, has launched a new CATS Card offering skiers 20 percent off lift tickets throughout the 2009-10 season. The card will cost $25 and can be used an unlimited number of times at any and all of the five resorts to purchase full-day tickets.

The card will be available for purchase starting Dec. 1 online at www.mycatscard.com or by calling (800) NYS-CATS (697-2287). The CATS Card, which will be personalized, must be presented with photo identification at the ski areas to purchase tickets at the discounted rate. The card is not valid on holidays, cannot be combined with other offers and is non-transferable.

So plan to visit Belleayre this coming weekend as we kick-off another season of some of the best skiing and riding anywhere.

Belleayre is a year-round outdoor recreation center in the Catskill Mountains operated by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.