2009-10 Ski Season Progress Report as of January 31, 2010

October was colder and snowier than average, so a few areas opened earlier than normal. In November the big news was the record breaking snow at Whistler. In the Pacific Northwest and much of western Canada November snowfall was far above normal and many areas opened a lot of terrain early. In early December there was a moderate storm in California and the Southwest followed by a substantial dump in the Sierra and Utah. In mid-December the storm track returned to the Northwest and Canada. There were only scattered snow showers arouind Christmas, so holiday skiing was excellent in the the Northwest and Canada, but the worst in over a decade in Front Range Colorado and Jackson Hole. Over New Year's the Northwest/Canada storm track resumed but also brought some relief to the Northern Rockies. The next 2 weeks were dry over most of the West, and by mid-January the western season overall was possibly the worst since 1992. In the second half of January major storms have pounded the Sierra, Utah and the Southwest with moderate amounts in nearby regions.

California: The Sierra had a major mid-October storm but with average snow level of 10,000 feet. Mammoth opened Oct. 16-18, then closed in warm weather until a snowmaking reopening of about 5% of terrain on Nov. 7. Boreal, Mt. High and Bear Mt. also opened limited snowmaking runs in early November. But the Sierra had only 2 feet of snow in November, half of on the last weekend, so no one was more than 5% open for Thanksgiving. The Sierra got 2-3 feet of snow around Dec. 7 and another 3-5 feet a week later. With 1-2 feet in late December most areas were 75-90+% open for the holidays, with only the most expert terrain such as Heavenly's Mott Canyon and Squaw's Silverado needing more snow to open. Holiday and early January base depths were 5-6 feet on the Sierra Crest but a below average 3-4 feet farther east. Over New Year's there was 1+ foot snow in North Tahoe but just a few inches farther south. After a dry week+ there was 1+ feet of snow before the MLK weekend. In the second half of Janaury the Sierra has had 6-9 feet of snow, so conditions are excellent on bases of 5-12 feet. Southern California got 4-5 feet of snow and Arizona up to 9 feet in the past 2 weeks. See Current California Ski Conditions for more details on Southern California and Mammoth as of February 8.

Pacific Northwest: This region has the best snow odds in early season, but the start to this season was truly spectacular. Whistler shattered its November snow record with 218 inches and was half open for Thanksgiving, including steep tarrain like some of the Spanky's Ladder runs. Mt. Baker and Whistler had 6 foot bases and other Northwest areas about 4 feet at Thanksgiving. Early December had little snow, so some surfaces were variable after low elevation rain Thanksgiving week. With 3-5 feet of mid-December snow holiday base depths were 5-8 feet. Conditions were excellent through New Year's with 2+ feet of snow. In early January it rained to at least 5,000 feet so low elevation conditions became variable. Since then it has dumped 7 feet at Whistler and 3-4 feet in Washington and Oregon to restore surfaces. Base depths are 6-9 feet.

Canadian Rockies and Interior B.C.: Western Canada also got off to a fast start. Sunshine's 107 inches broke its November record. Sun Peaks was 95% open before Christmas and Big White 81%. Whitewater, Revelstoke and Fernie opened the last weekend of November on 4 foot bases. As in the Northwest, not much new snow the first week of December but 1+ foot at the Banff areas and 3-4 feet in most of interior B.C later in the month. Holiday base depths were 4-5 feet and there was 1-2+ feet of snow over New Year's. Since then the Banff area has had less than a foot of new snow. Some of the Northwest rain temporarily affected lower elevations near the US border but surfaces were then refreshed with 1-2 feet new snow. Farther north there were 2-3 feet through mid-January. The last week+ has been mostly dry in this region, so there are some hardpack conditions in busy areas and sunny exposures.

U. S. Northern Rockies: Early snow totals were variable, as the big November storms tracked more heavily into into Canada. Big Sky and Bridger were the only areas above average in open runs by mid-December. Schweitzer and Whitefish got 2+ feet mid-December to reach close to normal Christmas conditions. Jackson was less than half open and had its worst Christmas conditions since 1997-98. With 2-3 feet of New Year's snow at most areas only Jackson and Sun Valley remained in limited operation. There was only about one foot of snow in this region in the next 2+ weeks except for 29 inches at Sun Valley from the California storm. Jackson's Hobacks finally opened Jan. 20 and 3+ feet of snow since then finally brought Jackson to full operation. The past week has been mostly dry at the areas closer to Canada.

Utah: The Cottonwood Canyons had about 40 inches of October snow, but less than 2 feet in November. The first lift served skiing was on snowmaking at Solitude Nov. 7 and Brighton Nov. 14. Skiing was very restricted into early December. The first Southwest storm dumped 30 inches on Brian Head but only a few inches in the Wasatch. The mid-December storm was nearly 4 feet in the Cottonwood areas and 2-3 feet elsewhere. Cottonwood areas were 90+% open on 4-foot bases for the holidays with about a foot new snow. The Cottonwood and Ogden areas got 1+ foot over New Year's but more snow was still needed to open some advanced terrain at the Park City areas. Storms in the 2nd half of January dropped nearly 8 feet in the Cottonwood areas (base depths now 6 feet) and 4-6 feet elsewhere, so conditions are now excellent.

Northern and Central Colorado: Loveland opened its first snowmaking run Oct. 6. At Thanksgiving Loveland was 11% open and Breckenridge 14%, with everyone else under 10% open. By mid-December even the snowfall leaders were only 1/3 to 1/2 open compared to about 90% in a normal year. Snowfall from November 1 up to Christmas was about half of normal. Holiday skiing was the most limited since 1998-99 on base depths averaging less than 3 feet. Snowfall leader Steamboat was only 56% open as late as Dec. 24 but had 4 feet of snow over the next 2 weeks. Vail and Winter Park were less than half open until they got 20 inches around New Year's. This region continued to lag through most of January, averaging only one foot of new snow over the first 3 weeks. Some advanced terrain may still be marginal despite 1-3 feet of snow in late January. A-Basin is now 49% open and regional base depths are about 3 feet.

Southern and Western Colorado: Wolf Creek opened Oct. 31 and has been in full operation after 30 inches mid-November. The Gothic Snow Lab between Aspen and Crested Butte had 42.5 inches of October snow, 30 in November and 73 in December. Most areas had 4-5 feet in December and 8+ feet at Wolf Creek. With base depths of 3+ feet this was an average Christmas at most areas with some but not all advanced runs open. There were just a few inches in the first half of January. Storms in the second half of January have dumped 6-7 feet at Durango and Wolf Creek and 3-4 feet elsewhere. Crested Butte's North Face finally opened the last week of January.

Northeast: Cold October weather allowed Sunday River to open on snowmaking Oct. 14. Killington opened Oct. 31. The East had an exceptionally warm November, too warm to make snow most of the time even in Quebec. Sunday River and Mont St. Sauveur were the only areas open at Thanksgiving, about 3% each. The first major storm of the season of 1-2 feet hit at the end of November with another 2-3 feet in the first half of December. The big mid-December East Coast storm missed the ski areas, but trail counts rose with cold weather. It rained 2 days over Christmas weekend over the entire Northeast except for the Quebec City areas which got 3 feet of snow. By the first week of January most areas reached close to full operation due to sustained cold and at least a foot of snow, led by Killington, Cannon and Sugarloaf with 30+ inches. In mid-January there was only 1+ foot new snow but temperatures mostly remained cold. There was a major rain during the last week of January, cutting back some trail counts. There has been over a foot of snow in northern Vermont since the rain. I strongly recommend checking First Tracks Online Ski Magazine No-Bull Ski Reports for up to date information in this region, where both weather and surface conditions can change so rapidly. Percents open: Sunday River 70%, Okemo 86%, Stratton 100%, Hunter 86%, Ste. Anne 100%, Tremblant 94%

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