An early Arctic blast has sparked hopes for a bumper ski season at Glenshee.
Bosses at the popular Perthshire resort have their fingers crossed for a reversal of fortunes after last year’s wash-out.
If snow continues to fall, the slopes could be open to skiers and boarders by early December, after a late start in February, last season.
Glenshee, on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park, was only able to open 18 times during late 2016 and early 2017. Normally, it aims for 100 days a year.
A spokeswoman said: “Conditions have been very good so far, certainly a lot better than they were this time last year.
“We’ve had a lot of light snow the past couple of days and it is forecast to continue early next week.
“If this keeps up, we are hoping to be able to open by early next month, although we can’t say anything for sure.”
The resort has also issued an appeal for volunteers to help cover lifts during lunch-time sessions. A registration and training session has been set for Sunday, December 10 from 9am, with participants told to bring along a passport photo.
“We want to have a strong team of volunteers in place before we open,” the spokeswoman said.
Snowfall and freezing temperatures in the Cairngorms have already created excellent sledging conditions at Glenshee.
Ski resorts across the country are reporting similarly healthy outlooks.
Malcolm Roughead, chief executive of VisitScotland, emphasised the importance of winter sports in Scotland: “Our ski centres are a huge draw to local residents, snowsport enthusiasts from around Scotland and also from further afield.
“The snowsports sector is very important for Scotland’s rural economy and is worth around £30 million per year, supporting over 600 jobs.”
He said: “It’s not just about the money spent on ski passes, ski hire and tuition, people come for the snow but stay for the restaurants and accommodation, which all provides a boost to Scotland’s visitor economy.
“This early snow will play its role in reducing seasonality in rural areas and ensuring the full economic benefits of snowsports are felt throughout the country.”
Glenshee is also hoping to get an extra visitor boost from its inclusion in a new driving route.
The North East 250 circuit takes people through Glenshee and the Cairngorms, via Royal Deeside, Aberdeen, Moray and Speyside.
The route, which launched earlier this month, aims to match the tourism success of the North Coast 500 in the Highlands, which brings about 29,000 people into the area.
Glenshee also features on the new Snow Road route devised by the Cairngorms Business Partnership which runs from Blairgowrie to Granton-On-Spey.
The ski centre recently won planning consent to install a new four-man chairlift, replacing the current Cairnwell T-bar tow. It means it will be able to transport three times the number of visitors to the top of the slopes.
The development is part of an ongoing programme to modernise equipment and infrastructure at the site, with the device expected to be up and running in 2019.
