China Peak Ski Resort looks for ways to recover after another bad ski season

HUNTINGTON LAKE, Calif. (KFSN) -- China Peak Ski Resort is looking at ways to recover from a string of bad years. The resort was open for less than 60 days this season.

A few isolated patches of snow are all that's left at China Peak. Ski lifts are now soaking up the sun.

"There's no way to sugar coat a season like this," China Peak CEO Tim Cohee said. "It's a multi-million dollar loss."

China Peak has been a ghost town since Feb. 16. Three hundred employees at the resort were let go much sooner than expected.

"We thought 2014 was the worst thing we could see until we saw 2015," Cohee said.

Cohee figures just five ski resorts statewide will still be open on Easter.

"This is historic," he said. "I don't know if anyone has seen anything like this."

The higher you go, the lower the levels look at shrinking Shaver Lake.

The town has also felt the sting. Warm February storms brought rain, but not much snow.

But Cohee has a plan to make sure people get their money's worth out of the lifts this year.

"At least the chair lifts servicing upper mountain or mid-mountain skiing and riding next year for at least 100 days those people who buy the season pass this spring will get a 2017 pass for free," he explained.

The lifts re-open Memorial Day when mountain bikers begin their runs a month earlier than usual.