One of Europe’s cheapest ski resorts has been dealt a huge blow after a lack of snow turned it into a pile of mud.
Mount Bjelasnica, on the outskirts of Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, saw its visitors lug their skis through the mud on their way to ski lifts, after the area saw spring-like weather with no snow falling.
The area is known as one of the continent’s cheapest ski resorts but the planet’s hottest January ever has left visitors feeling disappointed.
It comes after a number of European ski resorts were left abandoned due to rising temperatures.
One skier, Aida Dedic, who travelled from the Netherlands to the resort said she was caught out by the warm weather.
She told the Independent: “I was caught by surprise when I saw this mud, it’s different from the last year, it’s probably because of these climate changes.”
The resort also saw a warm December but hopes for an increase in business were raised when temperatures dropped in January, bringing snow back to the mountains. But by February all of the snow had begun to melt under warm weather.
Last week the Women’s Ski Super G European Cup should have been held at Mount Bjelasnica, but it had to be cancelled due to a lack of snow on the slopes which once hosted events in the 1984 Winter Olympic Games.
But even with artificial snow cannons turned off, some skiers say they have still been able to enjoy some action despite the temperatures.
One skier Armin Dedic told the Independent: “We came here last year and the season was a hundred times better.
“It’s much warmer now, it’s much less snow but still we can ski, it’s just a different quality.”
Just last month Italy’s Mount Terminillo switched off its ski lifts and stopped its snow machines due to warm weather, with shops and bars nearby also closed.
