Tyrol Basin Ski & Snowboard Area opened Wednesday, marking the earliest the hill has ever opened its slopes. It's also believed to be the first ski hill to open in the state and one of the first to open in the Midwest.

"Snow is a product that easily comes and goes, so we've got to use it while we've got it," said Don McKay, manager and part owner of the facility.

Crews at the 30-acre hill in the town of Vermont began making snow Monday night and continued Tuesday night and early Wednesday. About a one-acre section of the hill was opened with about six to 12 inches of snow, McKay said.

The open area is primarily for snowboarding and is set up as a terrain park with rails for snowboarders. The chairlifts will not be open, so snowboarders and skiers will have to walk up the hill.

The hill opened at 5 p.m. and was set to close at 9 p.m. As of about 8:30 p.m., the hill had hosted about 150 people, the vast majority of them snowboarders, McKay said.

"Everybody's real excited to be out here," he said. "They're all saying that the conditions are really great."

He added, "of course, compared to what? They are great for October."

McKay said he also plans to be open tonight and is considering this afternoon because most schools are off today and Friday for the state teachers convention. A wedding will close the hill Friday, but he said he will likely be open Saturday and Sunday afternoon. High temperatures through Sunday are scheduled to be in the upper 50s to low 60s with lows in the upper 30s to lower 40s.

"We will (open) if we can," McKay said. "If we can have decent conditions."

McKay said he expects most customers to be season-pass holders but others may buy a daily pass for $10.

To make snow, temperatures need to be below 28 degrees, McKay said.

Wild Mountain Ski & Snowboard Area near Minneapolis opened Tuesday, while Ski Brule in Michigan's Upper Peninsula is scheduled to open Nov. 7, according to its Web site. Cascade Mountain near Portage is tentatively scheduled to open Nov. 22, and the ski hill at Devil's Head Resort & Convention Center near Merrimac is set to open Nov. 28.

At Sunburst ski hill in Kewaskum just north of Milwaukee, temperatures haven't been cold enough to make snow. In 2006, the hill, which is typically one of the first in the state to open, had its first skiers on Nov. 3.

"We'll open as soon as we possibly can," said Steve Voss, the hill's general manager. "As soon as we get three straight nights of 28-degree weather, we'll open."

— State Journal reporter Chris Rickert contributed to this report.