"When they said there's snow up here, I'm like oh, we got to go, we got to go," said Edward Roybal of Clovis. Roybal drove his two kids up to Shaver Lake on their day off from school so they could experience snow for the first time this year.
Tire chains were required but before Roybal put his on, he assisted others. "I don't mind. If they look confused, you just kind of feel guilty going away. Well something might happen to their car," said Roybal.
We caught up with his family as they played in the snow overlooking the scenic view of the lake that began getting filled up last week. "It's gorgeous, it's nice and clean. It's kind of nice to get out of the Valley air and get some good fresh air and make some fresh snowballs," said Roybal.
And the winter-like conditions are exactly what skiers and snowboarders at China Peak have been waiting for -- many of them making the drive to play in fresh snow. "We love the new snow, we absolutely love the new snow," said Jeffrey Moen of Sanger.
"We'll take it now. It would have been nice back during Christmas, but we're looking good," said Rich Bailey with China Peak Resort. The amount of fresh powder came as a surprise to many. China Peak Resort has been hit hard because of the poor snow season. But officials say they are now back in business after the snowstorm. "We're set. This weekend we're looking to have all of our chairlifts open and most all of our drains open so we couldn't ask for more. This will carry us through for the next two and a half months," said Bailey.
China Peak will continue to make snow but the owners are hopeful more powder will fall this week, stretching their season into the spring months.
