Active Mountain Entertainment cancelled Merritt Mountain Music Festival for the second time in three years — this time with a tone of finality — on Tuesday.

Citing ticket sales that have slumped in 2012, the company posted a cancellation notice on its website late in the day.

"Although ticket sales had shown the promise of a solid attendance number when going on sale back in October of 2011; sales slowed down considerably from then on and have not rebounded thereafter …," the notice reads.

Anyone who purchased tickets is asked to call their credit card provider to request a refund.

Once Canada's largest country music festival, Mountainfest ran into financial difficulty in 2009 and was forced to cancel its 2010 event as it sought additional backing.

The festival resumed last summer but attendance had significantly declined from previous years. Co-founder Claude Lelievre remained upbeat about the future of the festival, however, pledging to stay the course to gradually rebuild.

There was no clear indication Tuesday that the cancellation would be final, but the company thanked loyal patrons, volunteers and staff, "all of whom have historically made what Mountainfest meant to hundreds of thousands of country music fans over the past 18 years.

"Goodbye to all," the notice concludes.

(Kamloops Daily News)