More than 1500 people turned out yesterday for the limited opening of Queenstown's Coronet Peak skifield, which will this weekend be followed by that of the Remarkables.
Snow machines - the saviours of the skifield, which opened almost entirely on man-made snow after an unseasonably warm start to winter - ran all day on the higher points of the mountain, with snow-making expected to carry on into the night.
Dozens of people who were lined up for the first runs on the mountain broke into applause and cheers when ski area manager Hamish McCrostie officially announced the skifield open at 9am, with celebratory glasses of bubbles handed around.
First among the eager masses, Cougar (8), Tim and Tallulah (6) Bryant, of Queenstown, had been waiting on the mountain since 5.45am, and joined Australian Rebecca O'Reilly (16) on the first ski-lift of the season.
Many of those making the most of the mountain were Australian holiday-makers, with all spoken to by the Otago Daily Times thrilled to get on to the snow.
On the gentler terrain, about 220 school pupils, most of them Australian, began their lessons.
The numbers steadily grew throughout the day, with one NZSki staff member remarking that it was "great to see the place alive again".
There was a cacophony of whistles, barks and yells during the 38th annual winter festival dog derby. Twenty-eight country entrants and 22 "townie" competitors took to the lifts carrying their dogs, racing a new "cross-country" course down the mountain, with the country competitors then attempting to whistle their companions back up the hill around the finish flags.
Many gathered to watch the ensuing chaos as confused dogs ran in circles, chased after snowballs, turned ice yellow, and, just occasionally, ventured towards the finish flags.
Last year's reigning champion, Troy Macdonald, of Athol, took home the title once more, successfully whistling his heading dog, Max, to victory.
NZSki yesterday announced that Coronet Peak's sister skifield, the Remarkables, will also be having a limited opening this Saturday with beginner, novice and intermediate terrain available from 9am.
Ski area manager Ross Lawrence said it was the first time in the history of the Remarkables that it had been able to open solely as a result of snow-making, which reiterated "the value of snow-making to our business".
