Mammoth, opening day.
So, it’s pretty much on. Thanks to early winter storms, resorts are opening up across North America. While some have more coverage than others, there’s most likely a resort open in your general vicinity and some resources to help you get the lowdown on conditions. With that said, here’s where we are by region:
Pacific Northwest:
Mt. Baker is the story. The mountain has gotten walloped, with the Northwest Avalanche Center’s Kenny Kramer telling us that the resort and mountains in the northwest corner of Washington have experienced storm cycles in the last week that haven’t blessed the rest of Washington or northern Oregon. The resort opened up yesterday with all eight of its lifts in operation.
Intermountain:
Colorado’s Arapahoe Basin has been spinning lifts for a couple of weeks now. They have four of nine lifts open. Breckenridge, Winter Park and Copper are all open on a limited bases, too. Jackson Hole has received more than 100 inches of snow but curiously, doesn’t open until November 25 (it’s a long season and there may be Forest Service permitting issues, too). Grand Targhee, just over the pass, is open with four of five lifts running.
Southwest (and West):
Yes, Mammoth. It’s on, with 5 of its 28 lifts running. And that’s hard to believe that so few lifts are up and going, given that the mountain is reporting an incredible six feet form this most recent storm! Hey, they do have to dig out, so we’ll cut ’em some slack. Get up there, now. Up north in Tahoe, Heavenly is a go as is Boreal and Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows.
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Canada:
Whistler. One of Canada’s favorites has been in a similar snow cycle to Mt. Baker with 5 of its 37 lifts open. Banff’s Sunshine Village is also off and running with nine of its 12 lifts in operation.
Northeast:
Hoping for a winter without the white ribbon of death, Killington is open (barely, two of 21 lifts running) as is Sugarbush (one of 16), Stowe (two of 13) along with Main’s Sugarloaf (one of 13) and Sunday River (two of 15). Hey, at least the season is kicked off and there’s somewhere to ride.
For a full list of resorts open across North America, check here.
