Eastern ski resorts open early

— -- Three eastern ski resorts are opening their slopes this week after an early blast of winter weather.

• West Virginia's Snowshoe Mountain Resort announced Tuesday it will open six trails and two lifts for the season on Friday. That's five days earlier than planned. More than 2 feet of snow has fallen on the Pocahontas County resort since Saturday. The resort will offer discounted lift tickets that will be good through next Tuesday.

•Sugarloaf in Carabassett Valley, Maine, has begun snowmaking and the resort plans to open for the season on Friday. Rich Wilkinson, vice president of operations, says forecasts are looking favorable for a good window of snowmaking before Friday. Forecasts call for cold temperatures throughout the week, and snowmaking operations are expected to continue around the clock.

• After receiving 28 inches of snow since Sunday, New York's Holiday Valley ski resort said Tuesday it will open this Thursday, a week earlier than planned. It will be the third earliest opening in the Cattaraugus County resort's 51-year history.