In most ski regions this was a warmer and drier than normal October and early November. However, there was substantial snowfall in the northern and central Rockies in the rest of November to put the season on a normal track in many regions. Open terrain for Thanksgiving was mostly on snowmaking but with some natural base at many areas. The first half of December was mostly dry in the Rockies, leaving most areas below average as of mid-December. The weekend before Christmas there was a strong storm of unusually dense snow in parts of Utah and much of Colorado just in time for the holiday season. Snowfall during the holiday season was heaviest in Utah and the US Northern Rockies.
There were storms during the first week of January in western Canada and the US Northern Rockies, and during the second week in Utah and southern Colorado. Otherwise January 2015 was one of the overall driest western winter months on record, with no areas getting normal snow for the month and many getting less than half of normal. The first half of February was even worse, with the Rockies being as dry as January with warmer temperatures. The only major storm was a Pineapple Express along the West Coast that damaged as many areas with rain as it helped with snow.
Most western regions continued much drier than average through mid-March, with the conspicuous exception of the Southwest, which got 2-3 feet the third weekend of February and another 3-4 feet in late February/early March. The second half of March continued the overall dry pattern, with only a few western Canadian areas getting close to average snow. The West remains on track to match its second worst snow season of 1980-81, with a few areas threatening the record lows of 1976-77. With frequent thaw/freezes since mid-February, skiing off groomed runs is unpleasant at many areas even if terrain is reported open. Some areas have closed prematurely already, and many are hanging on until Easter in limited operation.
California: The first Sierra winter storm hit November
1-2. Tahoe ski areas got 3-8 inches. The storm track was centered
farther south so Mammoth got 12 inches. Unfortunately the next
week was record warm, and the next storm missed Mammoth and
was mostly rain at Tahoe. There were three December storms before Christmas
in the 1-2 foot range plus a couple smaller events. Snowfall was
concentrated near the Sierra Crest west of Lake Tahoe, with much lesser amounts
at the resorts near and east of the lake, as noted in the table s below. Advanced terrain
was still limited, as base depths were no more than 3 feet at high elevation and in
many cases less than 2 feet lower down. Squaw has had less than 1/3 as much snow at
its 6,200 foot base as higher up. There was up to a foot of light snow during the holidays,
but January was record dry, just a few inches near the end of the month. The early February
Pineapple storm had high and fluctating snow levels in the Sierra. Upper elevations attained about
4 feet of coverage while lower elevations had mostly rain. Mt. Rose was the one big winner with
30-44 inches and was the Sierra area closest to full operation. Warm weather over President's weekend
degraded much of the snow. The first Southwest storm dropped up to a foot at Mammoth but missed Tahoe.
The end of February storm ranged from 6-18 inches, but there was only about a foot of snow in March.
Coverage below 8,000 feet has been marginal all season with repeated long warm spells between the meager snowfalls.
Sugar Bowl and Sierra-at-Tahoe closed March 22 and few areas will last past Easter. Even Mammoth may not get
past April this season, which now rivals 1976-77 as the worst Sierra season on record.
See Current
California Ski Conditions for more details on Southern California and Mammoth.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Alpine Meadows |
124 |
38% |
35% |
|
Squaw 8,000 |
177 |
44% |
24% |
|
Northstar |
78 |
29% |
22% |
|
Mt. Rose |
153 |
51% |
78% |
|
Heavenly |
75 |
21% |
20% |
|
Kirkwood |
159 |
38% |
58% |
|
Mammoth |
96 |
31% |
43% |
|
Southern Cal |
46 |
40% |
0-60% |
Pacific Northwest: The entire season has been characterized by storms
with a high rain/snow line. Thus the Whistler alpine has a manageable 71-inch base but much of the lower mountain has melted out.
Mt. Bachelor's Summit opened Dec. 13 and has a 6-7 foot base, but the pre-Christmas storm iced
the Summit lift and closed it for the next 3 weeks. The 20 inches in early February
resurfaced upper terrain and has gave Bachelor the best conditions in a mostly miserable region.
Other Northwest areas had excessive early season
rain and only opened just before Christmas on a limited basis with base depths less than 3 feet.
Conditions improved with 2+ feet of snow during the holidays and early January, but late January rain
closed some terrain and the February Pineapple (rain to 5,500 feet at Whistler and 6,500 farther south)
closed even more. The entire region had warm weather, more rain and less than a foot of snow mid-February
to mid-March. Mt. Baker closed March 11, soon followed by Stevens Pass. 2-3 feet of late March snow have improved
skiing at the upper elevations of Whistler, Crystal and Bachelor but were too little and too late for
terrain below 5,000 feet that had previously melted out.
Later spring skiing will likely be limited to Timberline, Bachelor's Summit and the Whistler alpine.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Whistler |
236 |
62% |
75% |
|
Crystal Mt. |
213 |
58% |
20% |
|
Stevens Pass |
166 |
38% |
Closed |
|
Mt. Bachelor |
180 |
53% |
54% |
Canadian Rockies and Interior B.C.: There was quite a bit of terrain open
in this region from early snow in November. The Okanagan areas had the most
snow in December. Early January snowfall was 1-2 feet with the Okanagan areas again
getting the most. Base depths were 5 feet at Revelstoke and Whitewater and 3-4 feet elsewhere.
Lower areas near the US border had some of the rain from the early season Northwest storms but
had over a foot of snow during the holidays. The late January and early February rain to 5,500 feet
and ensuing warmup affected most of interior B.C. The Kootenay areas near the US border were
most damaged by the rain. Banff/Lake Louise received all snow from these storms and have since had
the best conditions in the region. There was no more than a foot of snow from mid-February to mid-March in
the entire region so melt/freeze conditions prevailed on sun exposed slopes and rain-affected areas deteriorated.
Surfaces at elevations above 5,000 feet improved with 2-3 feet of late March snow.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Big White |
211 |
85% |
73% |
|
Lake Louise |
147 |
99% |
98% |
|
Sunshine |
174 |
80% |
100% |
|
Revelstoke |
304 |
96% |
40% |
|
Kicking Horse |
215 |
95% |
96% |
|
Whitewater |
241 |
69% |
Closing 4/5 |
|
Red Mt. |
155 |
63% |
Closed 3/29 |
|
Fernie |
212 |
63% |
42% |
U. S. Northern Rockies: There were several storms in
November in Wyoming and Montana. There was not much early December snow
except for Sun Valley getting snow from the south. Big Sky is 97% open, but
steep terrain is reported rocky.
Idaho skiing improved with pre-Christmas storms except at the panhandle areas
which probably had some Northwest rain, while the Tetons got about 3 feet of snow.
The entire region got 2+ feet of snow over the holidays, and was
the most favored western region in the first half of January with 1.5-3 feet of snow.
Low altitude areas near the US border got the late January and early February Northwest
rain while others only had the warm spells. Only the Tetons and SW Montana had
more than a foot of snow from mid-February to mid-March. Late March snow has averaged
about a foot with somewhat more in Montana. Melt/freeze condtions prevail everywhere
except of the highest north facing slopes.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Whitefish |
213 |
73% |
74% |
|
Bridger |
193 |
72% |
100% |
|
Grand Targhee |
255 |
60% |
100% |
|
Jackson Hole |
255 |
74% |
70% |
|
Schweitzer |
158 |
51% |
Closed 3/29 |
|
Brundage |
166 |
61% |
Closed 3/29 |
|
Sun Valley |
124 |
70% |
27% |
Utah: The season started dry but the Cottonwood areas got a mid-November 3 foot dump.
Other areas did not get so much and have had very limited skiing mostly on snowmaking. The pre-Christmas
storm dumped 2-3 feet of heavy snow in the Cottonwoods, and over a foot of fluff topped that off over Christmas,
bringing the base up to 5-6 feet. The areas outside the Cottonwoods were still quite restricted because some
of that pre-Christmas storm was rain up to 8,000 feet. These areas were about half open at Christmas and about
3/4 at New Year's. The second week of January storms dumped up to 2 feet, bringing all areas close to full operation.
However that was nearly the only snow for the entire month, so spring conditions have prevailed since the late January
warmup. February snowfall was barely a third of normal, though most of it was in the second half of the month. There
was one early March Wasatch storm averaging 2 feet, but again followed by warm weather.
Brian Head got 7 feet of snow from the late February/early March Southwest storms. Wasatch areas outside the Cottonwood
Canyons have been losing coverage in March after an entire winter of mostly warm and dry weather. Snow totals at some areas will
rival the record lows of 1976-77.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Alta |
261 |
57% |
100% |
|
Snowbird |
256 |
66% |
90% |
|
Brighton/Solitude |
219 |
51% |
89% |
|
Park City group |
144 |
55% |
46% |
|
Snowbasin |
135 |
50% |
27% |
|
Brian Head |
202 |
74% |
100% |
Northern and Central Colorado: A-Basin opened one
snowmaking run on October 17 and has been 95+% open since mid-January. Most of November
was stormy in this region, so much more terrain than usual was open for
Thanksgiving. There was little snow the first half of December
so base depths settled to the 2 foot range. The pre-Christmas dump of
up to 3 feet of dense snow pushed the base depths into the 4 foot range
for very good holiday skiing at most areas. There was another 1-2
feet over the holidays. January and early February snowfall was about half of normal,
and late February snowfall was about average. March snowfall has been about half of
average but better than most western regions.
Despite recent warm weather, this is the most promising region for the late season.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Beaver Creek |
252 |
88% |
74% |
|
Breckenridge |
287 |
92% |
100% |
|
Copper Mt. |
237 |
97% |
100% |
|
Keystone |
182 |
91% |
74% |
|
Loveland |
251 |
88% |
99% |
|
Steamboat |
227 |
70% |
83% |
|
Vail |
261 |
83% |
93% |
|
Winter Park |
240 |
79% |
89% |
Southern and Western Colorado: November snowfall was above average
north but below average south. Snowfall and open terrain have lagged the Front
Range areas through mid-February. The pre-Christmas storm brought 2+ feet to Aspen and Telluride and
lesser amounts elsewhere. Holiday week snowfall was about a foot except for 3
feet at Wolf Creek. The second week of Janaury storms dropped 2+ feet at Wolf Creek
and 1+ foot in other southern Colorado areas. The region averaged only about a foot of snow
from mid-January to mid-February, leaving sketchy conditions on no more than 3+ foot bases.
The late February/early March Southwest storms dropped 4+ feet of snow at Aspen and Crested Butte and 5-7 feet in
southern Colorado. Taos was also slammed with these storms, so its base jumped from 43 inches
mid-February to 80 inches at the end of the month. The new Kachina chair opened Feb. 13.
This region had very good March skiing though there was little new snow in the second half of the month in the Southwest.
Most of these areas close in early April due to remote location.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Aspen/Snowmass |
185 |
85% |
85% |
|
Gothic Snow Lab |
215.5 |
66% |
N/A |
|
Crested Butte |
183 |
84% |
59% |
|
Durango |
147 |
64% |
93% |
|
Telluride |
218 |
92% |
85% |
|
Wolf Creek |
274 |
82% |
100% |
Northeast: October was too warm for any areas to open
by the end of the month. November was good for snowmaking but
there was intermittent rain along with some snow late in the month.
The first half of December was colder with 2-3 feet of snow, so
skiing was much better than normal for early season. Unfortunately
widespread rain fell just before Christmas, producing icy surfaces and
reduced trail counts for the holidays. January had average snowfall
but consistent cold temperatures for a mostly good month of skiing.
February was outstanding with 4-6 feet of snow and no thaws or rain,
vastly superior to most western regions. March has remained good
in northern areas with 3+ feet of snow, but farther south there have
been more frequent rain and thaws, the first since Christmas.
Percents open: Okemo 97%, Stratton 73%, Hunter 72%, Sugarloaf
91%, Sunday River 94%, Tremblant 75%, Mt. St. Anne 100%.
|
Area |
Season Snow |
Pct. of Normal |
Pct. of Area Open |
|
Jay Peak (mid) |
302 |
99% |
100% |
|
Stowe |
268 |
96% |
100% |
|
Sugarbush |
225 |
91% |
100% |
|
Killington |
188 |
84% |
92% |
|
Cannon Mt. |
185 |
124% |
100% |
|
Whiteface |
153 |
94% |
89% |
|
Le Massif |
154 |
74% |
88% |
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