No plans for the holiday weekend? You could always go skiing

SEATTLE -- Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. And snow it did -- Crystal Mountain Resort reported eight inches of fresh flakes that fell overnight on May 22. Certainly an unusual weather event for this time of year, even here in the Pacific Northwest, but certainly good news for skiers and snowboarders.

The resort announced they will be open for skiing and snowboarding Memorial Day weekend, May 25-27. The resort said they will remain open weekends until the season ends June 16 and the Mount Rainier Gondola and Green Valley lifts will run from 8:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m. and lift tickets will be reduced to $35.

"The snow has been melting pretty rapidly over the past few weeks so it was a nice surprise to see a new layer of snow on the ground this morning," Tiana Enger with Crystal Mountain said. "It's not unusual to receive snow this time of year, but we typically only see a trace to a couple of inches fall during a 24-hour period in May."

The amount of snow that fell is more typical of a winter storm, she said.

Crystal Mountain Resort is the only ski area in Washington that remains open for skiing and snowboarding.