2007-08 Ski Season Progress Report as of December 31, 2007

There was some snow in the Northwest and some of the Rockies in early to mid-October. However, the next month was exceptionally dry, so most western areas were well behind schedule in opening terrain and building a natural snow base. High snowfall areas like Alta, Kirkwood and Steamboat did not open for Thanksgiving, and most western U.S. areas that were open only had snowmaking runs and less than 10% of terrain. Therefore I will attempt wherever possible to exclude October from season totals in the tables below. Whistler was the conspicuous exception, opening 1,200 acres November 16 after a substantial dump, and 5,000 acres for Thanksgiving. Elsewhere in the West skiing remained limited through the first weekend of December despite some unusual storms.

Substantial snow during the first half of December was concentrated in the Southwest and the Northeast. Since mid-December Utah, the Northwest and most of the northern Rockies have had multiple storms, completely recovered from the slow start and have above average holiday conditions. The Sierra is the only western region still lagging, but major storms are expected there by the end of this week.

With more areas posting season snowfall since 2003-04, I am no longer tracking the less reliable numbers from RSN, except in regions where no nearby area has up-to-date information. I am now including season snowfall from some areas italicized from SnoCountry.

California:Mammoth opened a very sketchy snowmaking ribbon Nov. 9 and added a couple more runs at Thanksgiving. A few Tahoe areas also opened for Thanksgiving. Late November was good for snowmaking, but no one in the Sierra was more than 10% open Dec. 1 on natural snow of only 2-8 inches. About 2 feet of snow Dec. 6-7 opened about 20% of terrain at areas like Northstar, Sierra-at-Tahoe and Sugar Bowl. The Sierra had 3+ feet of snow Dec. 18-20, and some areas are now 70-90% open on 3-4 foot bases. The steepest terrain like Mott Canyon at Heavenly and much of Squaw is still not open, despite a few inches new this week. But nearly all terrain is likely to open after the predicted 5+ feet of snow starting January 3. The Southwest storms allowed Arizona Snowbowl to open most runs Dec. 13. See Current California Ski Conditions for more details on Southern California and Mammoth.

Area	Season Snow	Pct. of Normal	Pct. of Area Open
Squaw 8,000	90	68%	60%
Kirkwood	78.5	56%	75%
Mammoth	73	65%	70%
Southern Cal	12	46%	5-90%
Arizona Snowbowl	74	113%	90%

Pacific Northwest: Whistler had 4 feet of snow to open on November 16. It remains an excellent bet for early season skiing in North America this year. Some storms reached Washington and Oregon in late November, but starting with a high rain/snow line. The big early December storm started snow but ended with heavy rain and left Whistler with a hardpack base. Mt. Bachelor's Summit received enough snow to open December 10. Skiing was more restricted in Washington due to lower elevation and more rain in early December. Up to 2 feet of snow resurfaced Whistler and opened most terrain there by Dec. 15. Since mid-December there has been 5-9 feet new snow, so all Northwest areas are in good shape now on 6-10 foot bases..

Area	Season Snow	Pct. of Normal	Pct. of Area Open
Whistler	166	108%	100%
Crystal	173	130%	100%
Stevens Pass	186	109%	100%
Mt. Bachelor	172.5	126%	100%

Canadian Rockies and Interior B.C.:Snowmaking at Lake Louise opened one trail Nov. 9, but November skiing was very limited. After 2+ feet new snow Sunshine opened some of Goat's Eye Dec. 7. Snowfall is also above average at Kicking Horse, which opened a week early on Dec. 8. Elsewhere the season started slower. The Okanagan areas have had below average snow and Big White was less than half open until after Christmas, now 78%. Red/Fernie received too much rain in early December, but are in great shape now after 4-6 feet new snow from Northwest storms during the second half of December.

Area	Season Snow	Pct. of Normal	Pct. of Area Open
Lake Louise	59	93%	81%
Sunshine	102	114%	88%
Kicking Horse	129	127%	97%
Fernie	154	106%	100%
Red Mt.	108	107%	100%
Sun Peaks	93	127%	85%

U. S. Northern Rockies: Grand Targhee was 75% open by November 30, maintaining its perfect early season track record. Jackson got some of this snow, but locals reported a low mid-December natural snow base below mid-mountain. 5 feet of snow at Jackson later in December opened most terrain for Christmas. Big Sky was 50+% open on its easier lower mountain since Dec 8, increasing to 85% at Christmas. Bridger Bowl got 32 inches in late November, opened most runs on schedule December 7, and has had 7 feet of snow since then. Schweitzer got 4 feet of snow in early December before it turned to rain. It and Big Mountain got most runs open by Dec. 21 and have had 5-6 feet since mid-December from the Northwest storms.

Area	Season Snow	Pct. of Normal	Pct. of Area Open
Big Mountain	140	118%	97%
Bridger Bowl	148	151%	100%
Grand Targhee	167	105%	100%
Jackson Hole	132	98%	93%
Schweitzer	131	136%	100%
Sun Valley	77	115%	89%

Utah: The Cottonwood Canyons had up to 4 feet of snow in mid-October, bringing out substantial numbers of backcountry skiers Oct. 21. But November was the driest since 1976, exceeding that drought year only in the final week. 1+ foot of snow at the start of December and up to 3 feet Dec. 6-8 got Utah's season off the ground. At mid-December only Alta approached full operation. Then the Cottonwood areas got another 3 feet and most runs there were open by Dec. 21. Additional storms finally opened most runs at Snowbasin and the Park City areas by Christmas. Total December snowfall of 8 feet at Park City and 12 feet in the Cottonwood Canyons has made the November drought a distant memory.

Area	Season Snow	Pct. of Normal	Pct. of Area Open
Alta	166	95%	100%
Snowbird	141	95%	95%
Brighton/Solitude	145	103%	95%
Park City group	99	104%	95%
Snowbasin	111	104%	90%
Brian Head	94	93%	92%

Northern and Central Colorado: Loveland received 22 inches snow in October and had 105 acres open by Nov. 4. November snowfall was less than half normal throughout the region and record low along the Continental Divide. But 4-5 feet of denser than normal snow fell during the first half of December. Therefore, normal percentages of terrain were open for the holidays even though many snow totals were still below average. Steamboat's snow was lagging past mid-December, but no longer after 6 feet new since mid-December. By year end snow totals are noticeably below average only at the Continental Divide, where A-Basin is still less than half open.

Area	Season Snow	Pct. of Normal	Pct. of Area Open
Beaver Creek	108	96%	99%
Breckenridge	98	95%	94%
Copper Mt.	84	96%	87%
Keystone	73	121%	94%
Loveland	79	75%	74%
Steamboat	149	109%	96%
Vail	114	92%	98%
Winter Park	98.5	80%	89%

Southern and Western Colorado: The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, located at Gothic 9,400 feet between Crested Butte and Aspen, had 34 inches of October snow, but a 30+ year record low of 14 inches in November. Telluride did not open for Thanksgiving, and even Wolf Creek was less than 10% open. But this region had an outstanding first half of December, with 5-6 feet of high density snow at most areas, and 13 feet at Wolf Creek. Much more terrain is open than normal for the holidays on 4-5 foot bases, and even most of Crested Butte's North Face is open, rare by Christmas. Taos opened Dec. 14 with far more than average base depths and open runs and was 90+% open by Christmas. Second half December snow has ranged from 3+ feet at Aspen, which has roughly tied 1983 for its snowiest December, to 2 feet in southern Colorado.

Area	Season Snow	Pct. of Normal	Pct. of Area Open
Aspen	126	167%	97%
Crested Butte	99	133%	93%
Gothic	128	123%	N/A
Durango	125	152%	99%
Telluride	126	164%	98%
Wolf Creek	203	182%	100%
Taos	115	129%	100%

Northeast: Sunday River made enough snow for a "marketing opening" on Halloween. A few areas opened for the weekend of Nov. 10-11, and many more for the next weekend, assisted by over a foot of new snow at many areas. For Thanksgiving trail counts increased from the 10% to 20% range, though surfaces were less than ideal due to midweek rain. November had overall average conditions by historical standards though much better than the past few years. Upper New England and Quebec had 5-8 feet of snow the first 3 weeks of December with outstanding conditions. Unfortunately surfaces were degraded by rain just before Christmas, though with the ample base depths there was only a moderate drop in open trails. With a foot of snow this week most of those trails are open again, and in the northern areas with mostly packed powder. Percents open: Okemo 89%, Stratton 98%, Hunter 78%, Sunday River 95%, Tremblant 100%, St. Anne 100%. 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.

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