Magic’s more fun when you don’t look up the sleeve of the magician or behind the scenes of an illusion.

Sometimes, though, it’s just so darn interesting to find out how things work. Like snow for instance, especially when you know perfectly well it’s not snowing but you see it falling.

And you know it hasn’t snowed all week but you can see huge mounds of it and big plows waiting in the wings to move those gigantic piles around. They certainly look like snow.

Icy trees are mysterious too, especially when one’s covered with frost and the one right next to it is bone dry and winter plain.

When you hunt up a skiing and winter sports vacation in North Carolina, close your eyes to the mechanics if you prefer to believe in the magic of snow in the south. Sixty to 80 inches fall the natural way here each winter, but that’s not enough.

On a January visit, I chose instead to find out how it happens and discovered a layer of winter work that requires individual hands-on workers as well as impressive mechanical operations. Most vacationers ignore all that and simply benefit from the results.

Ten to 12 feet of snow were manufactured by lunch the day I went to Appalachian Ski Mountain above Blowing Rock and that took 4,000 gallons of water a minute, according to Drew Stanley who’s the director of the snowboarding terrain park here.

He needs snow to surround the stairs and jumps and obstacles he fabricates to challenge the mostly 18 – 25 year olds who love this winter version of urban skateboarding and rollerblading.

"We are always improving our snowmaking capability," says general manager Brad Moretz whose family has owned App -- as the locals call this eight-trail ski resort with two terrain parks – since 1986.

In fact, he says of the 400 ski areas in the U. S., App made the biggest improvements in the snow making capability this year.

Where does the water come from? "Our reservoir refills naturally from underground streams, rain and snow melt," Moretz says, "but it has been slower to refill this year.

"Natural snow is good for inspiration," Moretz says, "but you can’t count on it." What he can count on are the buried water lines pumping water from his reservoir and air pressure of 400 psi to change air and water into small particles.

"Temperatures of 20 or lower are good, and so is low humidity, but we can make snow on days in the mid 30s."

And on a day considered a good snow-making operation that can mean six million gallons of water converted to atomized particles spraying from hoses and tall tubes all over these hills.

Sugar Mountain Resort adds snow to its 20 slopes all through the season and grooms the steepest ones in a major way just before dark every Friday afternoon to prepare for weekend NASTAR racing.