LAKEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) — The National Ski Areas Association recorded 61 million skier visits across the United States during the 2021-22 season in its annual review of ski resort visitation.

The overall visitation represents a 3.5% increase over last year, as resorts continue to see improvement after 2020.

The NSAA divides the country into six regions. The Rocky Mountain region includes Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. The region saw a record-high number of visits, totaling 25.2 million skiers and snowboarders hitting the slopes across the six states.

The previous high for the region was 24.4 million visits during the 2018-19 season, before a dropoff to 20.1 million visits in the 2019-20 season.

The report details a strong and healthy industry, with increased visitation despite less than average snowfall this year. Eleven more ski areas opened up across the country, bringing the nationwide count to 473.

Staffing continues to be an issue, like many industries in the pandemic, as 81% of ski resorts reported they were not fully staffed, with an average of 75 positions that haven’t been filled.