Erie-area ski and snowboard resorts open this month, with some upgrades. Here are the details

Cold, snowy winters help make the Erie region a haven for winter sports.

From ski and snowboarding lessons to snow tubing and cross-country skiing, Erie isn't short on providing outdoor activities during the winter season for everyone. But as is often the case, local ski, tubing and snowboarding resorts will need a little help from machine-made snow to get the season started.

Here's a look at the status of local resorts:

Peek'n Peak Resort

Peek'n Peak Resort, located at 1405 Olde Road in Clymer, New York, is expected to open about a week earlier than usual.

The resort should open on Friday and Nick Scott Jr., vice president of Scott Enterprises, sees the early opening as a plus for the lodge.

"This gives people an opportunity to come up ... and get a jumpstart on the season," he said. "The last couple years we’ve sold more season passes than we have in years and I think part of that is the result of COVID and people wanting to get outside, which is creating a ton of skiers."

Scott said nearly $3.5 million was spent in preparation for this winter season. The Peak bought two new snowcats — which are trucks that help push around snow on the mountains — and replaced nearly 70% of its rental equipment with new equipment.

In addition, the Peak underwent several renovation projects.

"Where you rent the skis has been completely gutted and redone, it’s a much more efficient system," Scott said. "We also redid the deck outside the main ski lodge, so it’s expanded 12 feet, added fire pits, rope lighting and did some renovating at the other lodges as well, replacing the bar tops and flooring."

The Peak also made improvements to its Lunar Lights snow tubing attraction. Scott said they've enhanced the light show produced by thousands of LED lights and projection lights that pulse along with an immersive sound system. Scott said all that's coming to the Peak this season is meant to make the overall experience at the resort better.

"It’s great for the peak but it’s also great for the economy in the area," he said. "We hired about 450 people in the last couple months to get ready for ski season, so it’s a big economic driver, great family entertainment and it’s outdoorsy."

For more information, check out Peek'n Peak Resort's Facebook page, pknpk.com, call 716-355-4141 or email info@pknpk.com.

Mount Pleasant of Edinboro

Mount Pleasant of Edinboro, located at 14510 Mt. Pleasant Road in Washington Township, is introducing several new additions to this winter season.

Andrew Halmi, general manager of Mount Pleasant, said he expects the lodge will open by mid-December. The first noticeable addition customers can expect to see at Mount Pleasant is the 120-foot conveyor lift.

"It’s kind of like a people-mover you’d see at an airport and its specialty is young skiers and snowboarders, but everybody can use it," said Halmi, who said that the new lift allows for more space to teach skiing and snowboarding to young children.

The lodge also added three new snow-making guns as well as another 500 feet of snowmaking pipe into the ground, which expands the areas where snow can be made.

"We rely nearly 100% on man-made snow to get open for skiing, which — living in the snowbelt — everybody’s taken for shock that we’d need that much," Halmi said. "But we have over two miles of underground snowmaking line."

Another more noticeable change to the lodge is the renovation to the rental shop. Before, customers got their skis, snowboards, boots and helmets all in the same place. Now, those rental sections are spaced out.

"We more than quadrupled the size of the space where people put their boots on," Halmi said. "Now, you’ll get your boots on inside and then go outside and get your skis and snowboards. It’s going to make a big difference for us."

Halmi said the lodge also added nearly 200 pieces of new rental equipment to the shop, too.

"I expect a really good year," Halmi said. "Demand has been high, people are purchasing season passes, after-school programs ... We’re excited to show off all of our capital improvements (that) we’ve made."

For more information, check out the Mount Pleasant of Edinboro Facebook page, skimountpleasant.com, call 814-734-1641 or email info@skimountpleasant.com.

The Wilderness Lodge

The Wilderness Lodge, located at 13488 Weeks Valley Road in Wattsburg, likely will be the last to open of the three ski centers.

While the Wilderness Lodge received snow that came in late November, it didn't stick around. The lodge hopes to open for cross-country skiing by Christmas week.

Wilderness Lodge specializes in Nordic skiing, skate skiing and snowshoeing, with more than 25 miles of trails to explore. The lodge also offers classic cross-country skiing and skate skiing lessons by appointment.

For more information, check out The Wilderness Lodge Facebook page, thewildernesslodge.net or call 814-739-2946

Baylee DeMuth can be reached at 814-450-3425 or bdemuth@timesnews.com. Follow her on Twitter@BayleeDeMuth.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie-area ski and snowboard resorts ready to open, show off upgrades