2000-01 Ski Season Summary

The following major weather patterns affected the ski season.
October / early November: Natural snow skiing got an unusually early start at Big Sky with a localized storm in early October. More widespread storms came in late October but were of sufficient intensity to establish a base for skiing only at the snow magnets of Wolf Creek and Alta/Snowbird. Wolf Creek had 7 feet in less than 2 weeks while Alta/Snowbird had a comparable amount but spread out over a month. This storm sequence started in the Sierra, but at a maximum total of 3 feet the base was marginal and was lost over the next 2 dry months.
Mid-November to mid-December had steady ongoing snow in Utah and northern and central Colorado. These were the only western regions with good conditions for the holidays, but no individual storms of more than 2 feet. Areas farther north had suffered drought in November but high snow areas (Whistler, Bachelor, Targhee, Jackson) got enough new snow in December to open most terrain for Christmas.
The Holiday Season: 1977 Revisited? The entire West was dry while the Midwest and East were pounded with snow. Vermont skiers enjoyed epic powder while drought continued to grip the legendary stashes of interior Canada.
January: There were 2 unusual storms the 2nd and 4th weeks, very cold and low in water content even when they got started in Northern California. These storms then moved southeast, continuing through Arizona, New Mexico and southern Colorado and Utah and finally funneled into Wolf Creek, which led the West in base by the end of the month. The Utah Wasatch and I-70 corridor of Colorado were mostly bypassed by these storms. A weaker northern storm track maintained Whistler and opened more terrain in the Okanagan, but elsewhere in western Canada conditions remained grim and conditions deteriorated in the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies.
February: California had the most new snow, 6-12 feet in the month, with Southern California getting nearly as much as the Sierra. Snowfall was normal in the rest of the western U.S., but western Canada was dry again. Whistler went to an early spring and interior snow depths were the lowest in 50 years in some locations. New England skiing remained excellent with a major dump in early February.
March: March 2001 skiing was all about New England, with the entire region getting at least 7 feet of snow, the highest single snow month in my records for nearly all areas. By contrast only Colorado had a normal month in the West, with other regions being much drier. Canada had more snow than in February but was still below average.
April: The East moved abruptly from winter to summer while the West finally had a widespread snowy month. Utah had the most snow but all western regions were above average. Some of the record drought areas of western Canada finally had a week or two of decent coverage.
For more detail on snow incidence by month and region, see 2000-01 Ski Season Analysis.

2000-01 SKI SEASON SNOWFALL SUMMARY
RECORD HIGH (10 Years Minimum) RECORD HIGH (10 Years Minimum)
Jay Peak, Vt. 3,000 581
Smuggler's Notch, Vt. 1,600 434
Waterville Valley, N. H. 3,000 211
Whiteface (Lake Placid), N. Y. 3,660 213
HIGH HIGH
Killington, Vt. 4,142 315 Breckenridge, Colo. 11,100 254 Dec.-Mar.
Stowe, Vt. 3,950 297
Sugarloaf, Maine 3,695 229
Southern California Composite 7,000 - 8,000 210
Loon, N. H. 2,000 209
ABOVE AVERAGE ABOVE AVERAGE
Mammoth Mtn, Calif. 9,600 or 8,900 407 Crested Butte, Colo. 10,150 174 Dec.-Mar.
Taos, N. Mex. 11,200 312 Copper Mtn, Colo. 11,000 228 Dec.-Mar.
Loveland, Colo. 11,200 379 Monarch, Colo. 201 Dec.-Mar.
Alyeska, Alaska 1,400 638 Wolf Creek, Colo. 10,642 292 Dec.-Mar.
Snowshoe, W. V. 4,848 176 Telluride, Colo. 11,170 185 Dec.-Mar.
Sugarbush, Vt. 3,000 309 Purgatory, Colo. 10,000 193 Dec.-Mar.
Stratton, Vt. 3,875 225 Keystone, Colo. 11,641 169 Dec.-Mar.
Okemo, Vt. 3,300 203
Arizona Snowbowl 1, Ariz. 9,500 224
Arizona Snowbowl 2, Ariz. 10,800 292
Vail, Colo. 11,250 370
BELOW AVERAGE BELOW AVERAGE
Central Sierra Snow Lab - Boreal, Cal. 7,200 307 Steamboat, Colo. 9,200 202 Dec.-Mar.
Mt. Washington, N. H. 6,262 292 Beaver Creek, Colo. 11,200 205 Dec.-Mar.
Berthoud Pass, Colo. 11,315 272 Sunlight, Colo. 154 Dec.-Mar.
Alta, Utah 8,650 485 Snowmass, Colo. 11,000 139 Dec.-Mar.
Alpine Meadows, Calif. 7,000 337
Brighton, Utah 8,740 359
Snowbird, Utah 10,000 451
Kirkwood (Carson Pass), Calif. 8,526 419
Mary Jane at Winter Park, Colo. 10,800 359
Gothic, Colo. 9,400 307
Grand Targhee, Wyo. 8,200 415
Arapahoe Basin, Colo. 10,820 261
Squaw Valley, Calif. 6,200 210
Red Mt. Pass, Colo. 11,090 258
Brian Head, Utah 9,770 343
Sugar Bowl, Calif. 7,000 389
Heavenly Valley, Calif. 10,000 292
Heavenly Valley, Calif. 8,400 181
Squaw Valley, Calif. 8,000 315
Northstar, Calif. 7,800 193
LOW LOW
Mt. Rainier Paradise, Wash. 5,420 438 Aspen Mtn, Colo. 11,190 129 Dec.-Mar.
Jackson Hole, Wyo. 8,250 282
Mt. Fidelity (Selkirks), B. C. 6,150 346
Whistler Base, B. C. 2,200 108
Mt. Bachelor, Ore. 6,350 155
Whistler Roundhouse, B. C. 6,000 289
Big White, B. C. 6,200 225
Mt. Baker, Wash. 4,300 410
Stevens Pass, Wash. 4,061 304
Sun Valley, Idaho 8,800 106
Tod Mt. (Sun Peaks), B. C. 6,100 124
Big Mountain, Mont. 6,700 233
RECORD LOW (10 Years Minimum) RECORD LOW (10 Years Minimum)
Sunshine Village, Alb. 7,028 154 Schweitzer, Idaho 90 Dec.-Mar.
Mt. Hood Meadows, Ore. 5,400 215
Fernie Snow Valley, B. C. 5,400 179