From mid-December to early January the West was fairly quiet while the East and Midwest got the most snow. Storms in the second and fourth weeks of January first hit California and then mainly the Southwest. For one week in February the storm track shifted to the Northwest and Northern Rockies, but since then the storms are shifting south again. California has had major dumps, which have now started in Utah and should next hit the Southwest.
Only a few areas post season-to-date snowfall on their websites. At the end of the regional sections, I list selected Ski Central or RSN month-to-date snow totals for other resorts, making educated guesses as to which resorts have supplied complete data for the month.
California : Season snowfall: 121" lower and 220" upper Squaw (80% of normal), 232" Mammoth (107% of normal). Both January storms were unusually low in water content and hit Mammoth more than Tahoe. Thus January base depths were still a far below normal 4-6 feet after the December drought. The coverage problems are over now (base depths are 6-10 feet) after 4-6 feet new snow in the past week. Southern California is getting the dump now, and Arizona should soon follow. See Current California Ski Conditions for more details on Southern California and Mammoth.
Ski Central December Snow: Alpine Meadows 42, Northstar 28, Heavenly 14.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow: Alpine Meadows 88, Northstar 75, Heavenly 57, Kirkwood 100, Arizona 74.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow: Alpine Meadows 61, Northstar 46, Heavenly 39, Kirkwood 76, Arizona 13.
Pacific Northwest: Skiing is good at the 2 major destinations despite the below average start. Whistler/Blackcomb is in full operation on 6 feet of base but has had no snow in the past week. Mt. Bachelor's base is 6-7 feet as it has been hit by the northern edge of the California storm. After a skimpy January, Washington got a much needed 2+ feet a week ago and coverage is finally adequate but still far below normal.
Ski Central December Snow: Whistler 42 (likely incomplete), Baker 59, Stevens 47, Crystal 49, Hood Meadows 50.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow: Alyeska 148, Whistler 61, Baker 74, Stevens 41, Crystal 30, Bachelor 35, Hood Meadows 38.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow: Alyeska 51, Whistler 14, Baker 35, Stevens 37, Crystal 11, Bachelor 53, Hood Meadows 15.
Canadian Rockies and Interior B.C.: Coverage has improved with some new snow this month, but expert terrain is still restricted. The Kootenay region is having its worst start in over 20 years with current conditions at Fernie and Red Mt. like early December of a normal year. Low snowfall areas such as Lake Louise (63 inches YTD snow, 44% of normal) should be avoided as this season is even worse than 1993 and 1998 so far. The Okanagan is somewhat better off than the Banff and Kootenay regions, as Big White finally reached full operation at the beginning of February on a 5-foot base. Cat and heliskiing operations have adequate snow only above 6,000 feet.
Ski Central December Snow: Lake Louise 26, Silver Star 34.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow: Sunshine 22, Big White 34, Fernie 14.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow: Sunshine 16, Big White 21, Fernie 10.
U. S. Northern Rockies: In early October Big Sky got a freak dump of over 3 feet and opened some intermediate runs on weekends, increasing to daily operation on 900 acres on Nov. 11. Big Sky's base is now 42-70 inches and it has been at least 90% open since Christmas. Jackson has had 187 inches snowfall so far this season (74% of normal), and opened the tram Dec. 23. January was much drier than normal throughout the region, as super reliable Grand Targhee fell short of its previous 24-year low January snow total of 55 inches. Schweitzer and Big Mountain (YTD snow 117", 55% of normal) improved from a miserable January with up to 2 feet new in the first week of February, and the Tetons got nearly as much. This week the Tetons are getting modest snowfalls while the northern areas are dry again. Sun Valley (which tends to benefite from southern storms: 1 foot new this week) has received 102 inches this season, 81% of normal.
Ski Central December Snow: Big Sky 35, Targhee 50.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow: Schweitzer 26, Big Sky 19, Targhee 44.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow: Schweitzer 29, Big Sky 29, Targhee 24.
Utah: Alta has received 250 inches since Nov. 1 (80% of normal) after the 65-inch head start in October. Cottonwood areas base depths are over 7 feet after 2-3 feet new in the past week. January's storms brought modest snowfalls to the Wasatch but hit Brian Head hard. Snow Basin, Park City and The Canyons are fully open, with base depths reported 5-6 feet. The current storm is the strongest in the Wasatch since before Christmas.
Ski Central December Snow: Brighton 92, Park City 83, Brian Head 25.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow: Brighton 46, Park City 36, Snowbird 61, Brian Head 115.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow: Brighton 41, Park City 31, Brian Head 19.
Northern and Central Colorado: YTD snowfall totals, with a 1+ foot storm the first weekend of February and a few smaller storms since: Breckenridge 135" (80% of normal), Vail 205" (93% of normal), Winter Park 231.5" (105% of normal), Steamboat 218" (95% of normal). Only a few exposed expert sectors aren't open yet. Conditions are similar to the past 2 years, which had poor holiday skiing but lots of snow in January. This year was the opposite: a strong start but about half normal snow from Christmas through January.
Ski Central December Snow: Copper 64, Keystone 48, Loveland 76.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow: Copper 16, Keystone 22, Loveland 18.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow: Copper 29, Keystone 23, Loveland 22.
Southern and Western Colorado: Wolf Creek's continent-high base depth is 98-106 inches. It has been in full operation since early November with 240" since Nov. 1 (111% of normal) after 54" in October. The January storms from California hit New Mexico and southern Colorado hard, improving conditions to a 4-6 foot base at Durango and Telluride and 6-7 feet at Taos, which needs at least that much for its steeper terrain. With excellent snow preservation, these resorts should offer quality skiing for the rest of the season. The January storms were centered south of Aspen and Crested Butte and the early February storm was mostly north, so the base remains a below average 3-4 feet with Snowmass' Cirque and CB's North Face in partial operation. Most areas got a foot last weekend and more is expected soon.
Ski Central December Snow: Aspen 28, Crested Butte 55, Telluride 27, Durango 42, Taos 30.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow (note the dramatic north/south split): Aspen 23, Crested Butte 21, Telluride 71, Durango 77, Taos 86.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow : Aspen 16, Crested Butte 9, Telluride 18, Durango 15, Taos 15.
Northeast: Warm weather knocked out the first snowmaking attempts by November 15. Since then snowmaking cranked up for a week and Killington, Okemo, Sunday River and Hunter Mt. were about 30% open for Thanksgiving. December snowfall was near record high. Base depths did not reflect this, due to the one weekend (Dec. 16-17) of torrential rain. After the holiday dump of up to 2 feet, nearly all areas have been close to full operation. Conditions since Christmas were excellent with ongoing new snow and cold temperatures in January. After a limited freezing rain event, New England enjoyed an epic first week of February with up to 4 feet of powder. A recent thaw and freeze have created a hardpack surface, but coverage remains deep with nearly all runs open. As my report is an overview, I strongly recommend checking Vermont No-Bull Ski Report or 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.
Ski Central December Snow: Mont-Sainte-Anne 46, Tremblant 31, Sugarloaf 64, Jay 95, Stowe 89, Sugarbush 72, Stratton 49, Snowshoe, WV 34.
Ski Central/RSN January Snow: Mont-Sainte-Anne 35, Tremblant 22, Sugarloaf 53, Jay 77, Stowe 62, Sugarbush 48, Stratton 43, Snowshoe, WV 39.
Ski Central/RSN February Snow: Mont-Sainte-Anne 18, Tremblant 14, Sugarloaf 43, Jay 50, Stowe 48, Sugarbush 34, Stratton 32, Snowshoe, WV 3.