By Bob Williams

CARABASSETT VALLEY, Maine. Dec. 29 (World Wide News) – Higher gasoline prices or not, autumn snowfalls, on the other hand, have delighted skiers from coast to coast, allowing many resorts to open earlier in the season than usual and fostering optimism in the industry for a busy season.

And so far, there’s no evidence that higher gasoline costs will keep skiers away. Some smaller resorts think they may even benefit from high prices at the pump by drawing local skiers who might otherwise drive to bigger mountains elsewhere.

Maine’s preseason sales of season lift tickets and lodging are ahead of last year’s, said Greg Sweetser of the Ski Maine Association.

“We don’t want to be in denial on this thing (fuel prices),” said Sweetser, “but now, all indications are good,”

This year, Maine’s ski season began before Halloween, when exuberant skiers trudged to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain to take advantage of an early 40-inch dumping. Next door in New Hampshire, four feet of snow enabled Wildcat Mountain to open several trails before Halloween.

Across the continent in Washington, Crystal Mountain opened Nov. 2 – the earliest since 1994 – thanks to snowfall of up to three feet in some areas. Loveland Ski Area in Colorado opened its season even earlier, on Oct. 14.

Bookings at major western ski resorts were up 6.6 percent from where they were Sept. 30 of last year, according to the Mountain Travel Research Project, which tracks the ski industry.

In some areas, such as Lake Tahoe, Calif., bookings are expected to rise sharply. The Lake Tahoe Visitor’s Authority predicts an 18 percent increase in the number of nights booked in local hotels this winter.

And nationally, the trend is positive, with records set in tickets sold by the ski industry in four out of the last five winter seasons in terms of numbers of tickets sold, says the National Ski Areas Association.

The outlook was similar elsewhere in New England as well as other regions of the country. Heather Atwell of the Vermont Ski Areas Association said that based on early bookings, “they’re still fairly certain people are still going to come.”

Just a month ago, the average retail price for regular gasoline nationally was $2.60 per gallon, 81 cents per gallon more than it was last year at the same time, according to the American Petroleum Institute.

Prices since then have dipped, but where they will be when the ski season hits its peak is anyone’s guess.

Cathi Jerome at Silver Mountain in Kellogg, in Idaho’s Bitterroot Range, said gas prices remain a concern. That’s why the resort in late October sent post cards to pass holders who hadn’t renewed this year to ease their worries about fuel prices.

“Save Money! Save Gas!” says the cards, which tout easy access from major highways and preseason discounts for the resort, which is about an hour’s drive from Spokane, Wash.

With higher energy prices in the picture, the national group’s Troy Hawks said ski areas will undoubtedly look for ways to economize on fuel used in operations.

American Skiing Company plans to use more than 500 low-energy snowguns, which consume up to 75 percent less energy than standard equipment at its resorts. Chip Carey said it also pre-purchased a significant portion of the eight-resort company’s energy needs, including diesel, propane and heating oil.

At Maine’s Sugarloaf, employees Troy Haskell and Chris Hull were busy installing snowmaking equipment in early November, including some that use less energy. But the natural snow provided plenty for skiers.

“It’s the best skiing I’ve ever had in my life,” said Haskell.

Other ski areas, Like Idaho’s Silver Mountain, have launched promotions that take price rises into account. But no one’s panicking, said Hawks.

Ski areas tend to worry more about snow droughts, bitter cold and Saturday blizzards that keep skiers off the mountains, said Sweetser.

And he noted that higher fuel prices may bring about a twist: added business for ski areas that are closer to big population centers.

Associated Press Writer Glenn Adams reported on this story from Maine.