The struggle to keep Chapman Hill Ski Area open continues despite Mother Nature’s onslaught of above-normal temperatures, but the skiable terrain and operating hours have been cut back.

The big tow rope no longer will run this season, unless “natural conditions change,” according to a city of Durango news release issued Wednesday. The little tow rope will continue to run, and lessons still will be offered.

“The equipment was getting pretty pounded,” Matt Morrissey, recreation supervisor at Chapman Hill, said in a phone interview Wednesday. “We’ve never operated under these kinds of conditions.”

The freeze-thaw cycle has turned the snow into razor-like ice crystals. The rope has become abraded by running along that snow, and it will have to be replaced.

“Ice is very similar to concrete or asphalt,” Morrissey said. “The rope was just getting eaten alive in those conditions.”

A different type of rope will be used in the future. It’s more durable, and it’s sheathed, Morrissey said.

“This is the way the world is now, and we’ll have to prepare for that,” Morrissey said of the warmer weather.

For the last three years, Chapman Hill has operated only because of the new snowmaking equipment. A cold snap last year allowed the Chapman Hill crew to make all the snow it needed in six days. This year, it took 11 days because temperatures didn’t dip low enough for very long each night.

“It was exhausting,” Morrissey said.

It’s much too warm to make snow now. Temperatures have to dip into the teens for several hours, Morrissey said.

Warm weather forced the Purgatory Freestyle Team to cancel a home meet set for Chapman Hill this weekend. Team director Kirk Rawles made the decision last week.

But the area remains open. The terrain park will be rebuilt on the area served by the little tow rope Monday.

Tickets will be reduced to $4 for all ages; children younger than 3 are free. The new operating hours are from 3 to 7 p.m. weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekends.

johnp@ durangoherald.com