& NEW YORK - Unseasonably warm weather in much of the country is delaying usual winter activities. From melted ice rinks in the northeast to bare ski slopes - the warm weather has winter enthusiasts praying for snow. It's a far cry from what it was last year.&

In 2010, parts of Georgia saw a rare white Christmas. This month has seen people on Tybee Island swimming in the ocean.

Winter is hiding in ski country as well where in Western New York, they're missing an important element: snow.

So far this month, the area has seen only 3 inches of snow. That is about 27 inches below normal. It's been 13 years since they've seen this little snow in December. Those who love the snow are holding out hope.

"It's going to be a super season, we've got lots of time left," Steve Minier, a local ski instructor, said.

"We are two lake-effect snows away from being full open, so I'm sure it's on its way," Rachel Fanelli, the Kissing Bridge marketing director, said.

In Rochester, N.Y., they went water skiing over the weekend. The water temperature was a crisp 40 degrees.

The mild winter also put a damper on two Connecticut families' plan to set up an ice rink for their kids. Instead of a glistening sheet of ice, warm temperatures left them with a 1,900-square-foot puddle.

In Fargo, N.D., warmer than normal temperatures are causing thin ice and dangerous conditions for animals.

It's more of the same in neighboring Minnesota where the weight of one ice fishing shelter was too much and it went into the water.

Adding to the odd weather pattern, so far this year, West Texas has seen more snow than Buffalo, N.Y.

Forecasters warn this current mild start to winter won't necessarily continue. In 1998, the last time Western New York had this little snow in December, it was hammered with more than 65 inches of snow in January alone.

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