Ski lodges, encouraged by Northeast snow snowmobilers

Joel page / ReutersJason Gallant rackets to work after a snowstorm in Portland, Maine, on 15 December.By Dave Collins, The Associated PressHARTFORD, Conn.--a storm of the weekend that left a foot or more of snow in parts of the Northeast made operators in the area of ski and snow removal workers happy, but travelers were forced to deal with slippery roads and flight cancellations on Sunday.Molly Taaffe, 23, was on the slopes of mountain Loon in Lincoln, N.H., by 8 for its tenth day of skiing this season. He said was his best way out yet."There's nothing like dust," he said. "It's amazing. It is very busy, everyone is very excited. You don't have many days like this on the East Coast, so when you do everyone is excited."Heavy snow in the region varied from 2 to 8 inches in Connecticut and Rhode Island to almost 11 inches in Northern Massachusetts and almost a 17-inch on the South coast of the State of Maine, according to the national weather service."Us the term a sort of low-end of the Northeast," said Bill Simpson, a meteorologist for the weather service. "It's a fairly typical winter storm".Some Christmas shoppers saw the storm as an opportunity to avoid crowds on Sunday morning."It's slippery and isn't," said Bruce Long of Boston, who was shopping in Newton, Massachusetts, West of Boston "are warning people that if you have to leave, do it now because later it will be cold. Everything is going to turn into ice and will be a disaster."Accidents were recorded in the region, including a crash in central Pennsylvania that killed two people on Saturday afternoon. Police say the Altoona Mirror a van traveling too fast for conditions when he lost control and slid into the path of a pickup truck that approaching. The two people in the van were killed, and the driver of the truck was seriously injured.Airports were working to return to normal after hundreds of cancellations of flights. Many flights Sunday morning at the Logan International Airport in Boston and other airports in the region were canceled, but later flights were listed as on time."No line, and flow of passengers at terminals was light to moderate," said Miraj Berry, a spokesman for the Massachusetts port authority, which extends to Logan. "We are open, but it is very important that passengers with their airlines control before arriving at the airport."Flights in the area of the city of New York, which received significant snowfall totals, were taking off on schedule on Sunday.Central Park of New York Zoo recorded 6 inches of snow on Saturday, while Westchester County suburbs of New York scored 7.5 inches. The snow turned to rain in the metropolitan area of the night and left a layer of ice, resulting in roads and sidewalks slippery.In Connecticut, Angel DeJesus and John Rosario began to clear snow in apartment complexes in the extreme south of Hartford in envelope 5 Sunday. Freezing rain fell early in the morning, hampering the use of snow blowers, said DeJesus, a manager of management Carabetta."We love the snow," said DeJesus. "Hours extra for us." And we like to take care of our tenants.Others were not so happy about having to clean. Evan Weststrate, an engineer who lives in Newton, Massachusetts, had been shoveling his property for about 90 minutes on Sunday morning and had not finished."It's getting heavier as it is cold", he said about the weight of the snow. "The ice slush is becoming and is getting heavy."Skiers and snowboarders throughout New England also rejoiced in the cold weather, snow and a chance to get out on the slopes.Ski area Mount Sunapee in Newbury, N.H., a fresco by 13 inches of snow and a great skier on Sunday morning turnout, said marketing director Bruce McCloy."Cars are pouring in the parking lot as I look out the window," he said. "People are excited."Utility companies registered only scattered power outages in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island and about a hundred total in New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.Related:Snow, sleet and commuter chaos as Northeast winter storm pounds© 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material does not may be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.