Welcome to

"BESTSNOW.NET"

designed by Tony Crocker as the Internet home of:

"YOUR GUIDE TO SNOWFALL"

"The most complete, comprehensive and objective guide to snowfall--and both prevailing and expected snow conditions--at North America's ski resorts ever published"- Powder Magazine.

My statistical analysis of 80 snow locations was augmented by experience based comments from the editors of Powder Magazine and published as their 10-page cover article in the October 1995 issue. This website was constructed in August 1996 with 85 areas, and now covers 119 locations with the statistics recalculated through the 2023-24 ski season.

About this Guide

Recent Snowfall History,
Direct Links to Current Ski Area Reports,
Skier Submitted Reports and
Other Useful Ski Sites

Bookmark this page for easy reference to current snow conditions!

Additions / Revisions in 2023-24

North American Snowsports Journalist Association member since 1999.
Harold Hirsch Award Winner 2008 for Internet Writing.

E-mail comments, suggestions, data for additional areas to: crockeraf@aol.com

Powder's Introduction: The reliability of the following charts lies in the fact that they are the result of a completely independent, methodically competent analysis of an enormous database of snow statistics, and their worth lies in what they can tell you about where you want to ski:

  • Who gets the most snow?
  • Is it consistent between years?
  • Does it all come at once or is it spread out over the winter?
  • How likely am I to find powder if I spend a week there?
  • Is there anything special I need to know?
    And so on.

    And better still, no more chairlift arguments about where the most snow is.

    But before you dive into the wonderful world of snow, I strongly recommend that you browse or download the brief explanations of the 10 column charts: What It Means and How To Use This Guide

    Areas are grouped and analyzed in the following regions:

  • CALIFORNIA
  • PACIFIC NORTHWEST
  • CANADIAN ROCKIES and INTERIOR B. C.
  • NORTHERN ROCKIES (U. S.)
  • UTAH
  • NORTHERN and CENTRAL COLORADO
  • SOUTHERN and WESTERN COLORADO
  • NORTHEAST
    Or search the Alphabetical List of Areas.

    I analyzed Snow Quality--the Issue of Water Content and Temperature for a sample of 11 areas (Alpine Meadows, Mammoth, Mt. Hood Meadows, Stevens Pass, Bridger Bowl, Jackson Hole, Snowbird, Aspen, Vail, Taos and Mt. Washington). In 2013 I added water content data for 18 more areas and grouped the 29 total areas into the 3 classifications used by avalanche professionals. I also compared rain in Stowe, Vermont vs. the Southern California mountains. In 2010 I added graphs comparing the distribution of snow densities at Alta, Mammoth and Mt. Mansfield.

    History of Southern California Snow Conditions is a color-coded weekly chart from 1975-76 through the present.

    Online snow reports over the past decade have enabled me to construct More Snow Conditions Charts:

  • Vermont
  • Fernie and Whistler
  • Mammoth/Sierra Nevada
  • Utah
  • Colorado

    You might also be interested in:

  • History and Process of creating the October 1995 Powder Guide to Powder

  • Who is Tony Crocker? (as seen by the editors of Powder)

  • My most Frequently Asked Question is: Who will have snow in the early season / Christmas vacation? My most detailed analysis of this issue was published on Skiing Magazine's Website.

  • The Powder Archive of Online Skier Submitted Reports documents or references some of the greatest powder days at selected resorts since 1998.

    ARE YOU STILL READING?!! -
    THEN YOU'LL WANT THE REST!!
    YES, THERE'S MORE!!
    This is material NOT already published in Powder.

    Additions / Revisions in 2023-24

  • El Nino/La Nina Analysis of Snowfall updated in June, 2023.
  • 2024-25 Season Progress Report as of December 15, 2024.
  • I have written over 50 articles for ski publications since 1997. Most of these are archived or linked on my Inside Tracks page.
    Most recent article published December 2016: Heli-Ski Iceland
  • Personal Ski Records from 1975 have been updated through July 2022. Detail is organized by region for easier reading. As of November 2019, links to trip reports within each region are below the table of days/vertical/season skied in that region.
  • Trip Reports from selected travels, both skiing and other adventures, are archived here, expanded in October 2019.
  • Regional tables of historical stats (updated June 2023) include December-to-March percentage of days with 6+ inches new snow.
  • The Snow Quality Page now includes graphs comparing the distribution of snow densities at Alta, Mammoth and Mt. Mansfield.
  • What is the Probability of a Powder Day? also analyzes the range of probable powder days over a one week vacation.

    Alphabetical List of Areas
    Alpine Meadows, Calif. 7,000
    Alta Collins, Utah 9,600
    Alta Guard UDOT, Utah 8,700
    Alyeska 1, Alaska 1,500
    Alyeska 2, Alaska 2,750
    Arapahoe Basin, Colo. 10,820
    Arizona Snowbowl 1, Ariz. 9,500
    Arizona Snowbowl 2, Ariz. 10,800
    Aspen Mtn, Colo. 11,190
    Aspen Highlands, Colo. 11,100
    Mt. Bachelor, Ore. 6,350
    Mt. Baker, Wash. 4,300
    Bear Valley, Calif. 7,750
    Beaver Creek, Colo. 11,200
    Berthoud Pass, Colo. 11,315
    Big Sky, Mont. 8,920
    Big White, B. C. 6,200
    Blackcomb, B. C. 5,002
    Central Sierra Snow Lab - Boreal, Calif. 7,200
    Breckenridge 1, Colo. 11,100
    Breckenridge 2, Colo. 12,000
    Brian Head, Utah 9,770
    Bridger Bowl, Mont. 7,100
    Brighton, Utah 9,502
    Brundage, Idaho 6,000
    Cannon Mt., N. H. 1,800
    Castle Mt., Alb. 5,700
    Copper Mtn, Colo. 11,000
    Crater Lake (Mt. Bailey), Ore. 6,800
    Crested Butte, Colo. 10,150
    Crystal Mtn 1, Wash. 4,400
    Crystal Mtn 2, Wash. 6,100
    Deer Valley, Utah 8,200
    Fernie Snow Valley, B. C. 5,400
    Mt. Fidelity (Selkirks), B. C. 6,150
    Gore, N.Y. 1,500
    Gothic, Colo. 9,400
    Grand Targhee, Wyo. 8,200
    Heavenly Valley 1, Calif. 8,400
    Heavenly Valley 2, Calif. 10,000
    Mt. Hood Meadows, Ore. 5,400
    Jackson Hole, Wyo. 8,250
    Jay Peak, Vt. 3,000
    June Mtn, Calif. 8,700
    Jupiter Bowl, Utah 10,000
    Keystone, Colo. 11,641
    Killington, Vt. 4,241
    Kicking Horse, B. C. 6,757
    Kirkwood (Carson Pass), Calif. 8,526
    Lake Louise, Alb. 6,700
    Le Massif, Que. 2,600
    Lookout Pass, Idaho/Mont. 5,600
    Loon, N.H. 2,000
    Loveland, Colo. 11,200
    Mammoth Mtn, Calif. 9,600 or 8,900
    Mary Jane at Winter Park, Colo. 10,800
    Monarch, Colo.
    Mt. Bohemia, Mich. 800
    Mt. Sutton, Que. 2,000
    Mt. Mansfield Stake, Vt. 3,950
    Mt. Norquay, Alb. 5,350
    Northstar, Calif. 7,800
    Okemo, Vt. 3,300
    Park City 1, Utah 7,140
    Park City 2, Utah 9,300
    Purgatory, Colo. 10,000
    Mt. Rainier Paradise, Wash. 5,420
    Red Mt. 1, B. C. 3,800
    Red Mt. 2, B. C. 6,650
    Red Mt. Pass, Colo. 11,090
    Revelstoke, B. C. 6,429
    Mt. Rose, Nev. 8,600
    Mt. St. Anne, Que. 2,000
    Schweitzer, Idaho 4,700
    Sierra at Tahoe, Calif. 7,746
    Silverlake-Brighton, Utah 8,740
    Silver Mt., Idaho 6,200
    Silver Star, B. C. 5,200
    Smuggler's Notch, Vt. 1,600
    Snoqualmie Pass, Wash. 3,000
    Mt. Snow, Vt. 3,600
    Snow Basin, Utah 7,700
    Snowbird Tram Base, Utah 8,100
    Snowbird Mid-Gad, Utah 9,600
    Snowmass, Colo. 11,000
    Snowshoe, W. V. 4,848
    Solitude 1, Utah 8,000
    Solitude 2, Utah 9,400
    Southern California Composite 7,000 - 8,000
    Squaw Valley 1, Calif. 6,200
    Squaw Valley 2, Calif. 8,000
    Steamboat, Colo. 9,200
    Stevens Pass, Wash. 4,061
    Stowe, Vt. 3,014
    Stratton, Vt. 3,875
    Sugar Bowl, Calif. 7,000
    Sugarbush, Vt. 3,000
    Sugarloaf, Maine 3,695
    Sun Valley, Idaho 8,800
    Sunlight, Colo.
    Sun Peaks (Tod Mt.), B. C. 6,100
    Sunshine Village, Alb. 7,028
    Taos, N. Mex. 11,200
    Telluride, Colo. 11,170
    Teton Pass, Wyo. 8,000
    Thompson Pass (Chugach), Alaska 2,450
    Vail, Colo. 11,250
    Mt. Washington, B.C. 3,926
    Mt. Washington, N. H. 6,262
    Waterville Valley, N. H. 3,000
    Whistler Base, B. C. 2,200
    Whistler Roundhouse, B. C. 6,000
    Whiteface (Lake Placid), N. Y. 3,660
    Whitefish, Mont. 6,700
    Whitewater, B. C. 5,500
    Winter Park Base, Colo. 9,265
    Wolf Creek, Colo. 10,642

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