China Peak still open despite warmer weather

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Thousands of people made the trek up to China Peak Mountain Resort this Presidents Day weekend.

The warmer temperatures did not scare skiers and snowboarders away.

Brian Kidd came up to the mountain with his friends.

"It's definitely worth the trip. It's still a lot of fun. I came with my friends on the party bus from sequoia," he said.

Kidd doesn't snowboard much but said hitting the slopes has been great.

"There is still enough snow to definitely do what you need to do...yes it could be powder. But you know the problem with the weather. It's not perfect," Kidd said.

It's been a few weeks since the mountain saw natural snow.

But most people said they didn't come across big dirt patches or rocks even if they wish it could be better.

"It's a little icy in the shade but it's definitely still good enough to keep going. It's definitely good out here," said Jeremiah Lopez, who is a snowboarder.

Lopez is no stranger to the mountain with about 10 years of experience. He has seen the good and the bad years.

"I wish it was still raining so we get a little more snow. It's okay, we can work with it. It's not the worst. But it's not the best," he said.

Troy Cohee with China Peak says about 90% of the mountain is open with the majority of those runs being groomed.

He credits cold overnight lows because they are able to make snow.

"We do get a few nights just about every week to make some snow and kind of cover the main runs and do some patchwork on the bare areas and high wear areas. So we can do this for a very long time," Cohee said.

Right now, chair 5 is the only one lift not turned on, but visitors don't seem to mind.