Slopes Open on the Parkway

    "First place I stopped was the Parkway to bring back to old memories" says Jesse Dewey of Utica. For many area skiers and snowboarders, it seems like a distant memory since the last time they were able to fly down slopes at the Val Bialas Ski Center. And given the green winter we had last year it's true for many, so many are glad to see the mountain full of snow.

Isabel Paulik of Utica says, "It was bad really last year so it's nice to have it back. I mean it's only the first day here, so we're not really used to it yet. But it's nice to have somewhere in our city where we can just snowboard or ski or just go after school or on the weekends."

            The ski center was only open a handful of days last season and skiers were limited to only one trail. So when Mother Nature decided to restore order for Central New York winters, many welcome the snow.

Santo Garro of Utica says, "It's great, it takes me back like 50 years ago when I was a kid we used to do the same thing and now I'm doing it with my great grandson Joseph."

Jesse Dewey says, "It's nice, especially being that we haven't had this place open in December in years. So, being this early it's pretty promising."

            It's funny to think but many Central New Yorkers were just flat out glad to have normal winter weather. Paulik added, "I mean last winter it was terrible, so it's nice to have snow and actually...because the here the winter changes a lot but it's nice to have the snow."

            Dewey added, "I mean it was gone last year so I didn't know what to think about it. Getting a storm this year is definitely a plus."