While most Mainers are lamenting the cold, heavy rains this spring, ski areas across the state are embracing the snow falling on their summits, where spring skiers are flocking to make up for a disappointing December.

“Everybody’s been treated to just awesome conditions,” said Greg Sweetser, executive director of Portland-based Ski Maine Association in an interview Tuesday. “February and March are the biggest months for the ski industry in Maine. Hopefully it [the weather] will stimulate some skiers because we always run out of skiers before we run out of snow.”

Sugarloaf/USA communications director Bill Swain said Tuesday that recent storms have dumped 47 inches of snow in the past five days. Swain said warm temperatures in December and January delayed the start of the ski season for some visitors, but “outstanding conditions” from mid-January through April have brought skiers to Carrabassett Valley in droves.

“As of Friday we had the mountain 100 percent open. It isn’t unheard of to be 100 percent open this time of year, but it is a little out of the ordinary and the skiers are loving it,” Swain said.

Last weekend’s 19th annual Bud Light Reggae Festival sold out every room of the mountain’s lodging facilities and increased concert revenues, said Scott Lee, Sugarloaf/USA’s director of sales, on Tuesday. Groomers are out plowing the parking lots, Lee said.

At Sunday River Ski Resort in Bethel, March’s melting snow was a brief concern until April brought along 50 inches of snow, according to Nick Lambert, brand manager.

“This will be the first year that we’re closing with this much snow out there. The last three weekends have been very busy both with day skiers and lodging,” Lambert said.

Sunday River’s snowmaking machines worked hard to make up for the lack of natural snow during November and December, Lambert said, adding that the current conditions are fantastic.

Saddleback Maine in Rangeley ended its season with a bang on Sunday, welcoming 1,100 visitors who took advantage of a day of free access to the slopes. Marketing manager JoAnne Taylor said the ski area saw a 33 percent increase in visits in 2006, and a 27 percent increase in visits in 2007, partly due to more than 5 feet of snow in April.

“People wanted us to stay open but we had made our plans to close on the 15th and we just stuck to that plan,” Taylor said.

Most Maine alpine, or downhill, ski areas closed in the past two weeks, but Sugarloaf/USA and Sunday River remain open through April 22.

Smaller, “community” ski areas such as Big Rock Ski Area in Mars Hill and Hermon Mountain in Hermon saw “incredibly great turnout” during February vacation week, Sweetser said. Often that nine-day period in February can account for more than 50 percent of business at community ski areas, Sweetser said.

Nordic, or cross-country, ski areas such as 10th Mountain Center in Fort Kent and Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle remain open indefinitely, because they are open to the public year-round.

“We’ll slow down grooming now and just groom a little bit, but they [the ski areas] never really close,” said Max Saenger, vice president of economic development for Maine Winter Sports Center, which owns both ski areas. Each area is managed by its own private ski club. As the weather warms up, ski trails are used for hiking and mountain biking.

Saenger said that although the recent weather has created the highest snowdrifts of the season, he still wishes it had arrived earlier, when people were more eager to ski.

“Had this weather come earlier, it would have had a huge economic impact on the region. Snow at this time of year isn’t worth anything. Snow earlier in the year is worth gold,” Saenger said. “People are looking for spring things to do now.”

The Ski Maine Association plans to release the number of skier visits at each ski area at the end of May.