The official opening of the 1976 ski season had been set to be a good one, with thousands of skiers having made their way to the three main NSW resorts of Thredbo, Perisher and Smiggin Holes. But on this day that year, The Canberra Times reported that one thing was missing - the snow.
Many people cancelled their bookings at the last minute, not wanting to waste their time if there was no snow. But some skiers managed to get in a few runs at the top of Mount Crackenback, and Perisher and Smiggins had managed to get some patchy slopes made by snow-making machines.
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Skiers complained it was the worst start of a season in many years, but there were a couple highlights. If one stopped paying attention to the ground and looked up at the sky, there were displays done by members of Australia's only professional hang-gliding team, the Skyriders. And the Reverend Roger Bush of Sydney made his way through the cold to an altar made of snow at the top of Mount Crackenback to do the traditional blessing of the snow.
