Carl Baker / Mt. Hood Meadows : Facebook
What do Oregon, New Hampshire, California, and Colorado have in common right now? Since you’ve already read the headline I’m not exactly tossing you deep cuts of trivia here. Each has resorts that just saw the first snow of the season…and it’s not Labor Day yet. To be fair, as the folks at Snowbrains put it, they were all better described as a bit of light dusting. We’re not talking about anybody getting dumped on in August. Still, when there are resorts in North America that barely turned off the lights on a 2022-2023 season, seeing any new snow drop is a reminder that 2023-2024 is about to knock on our door any minute.
On Wednesday, Mount Hood Meadows shared an image on its Facebook page of the late-August dusting, presumably to spread a little excitement for anybody who’s already foaming at the mouth for opening day. And one follower jumped into the comments section to share in the joy but also establish that he’ll probably be dropping mics on every single “first tracks” claim for the next six-plus months.
“I hit a patch at about 10k feet last Sunday here in the Sierras,” Carl Baker said, sharing a shot from that patch decked out in shorts, a tee, and his boots and board.
Baker was referring to a bit of snow that fell in parts of the Sierra Nevada range thanks to Hurricane Hilary just a week before. But there’s also still plenty of last season’s snow left over at high elevations as well. The Sierra joins the Colorado Rockies and resorts like Breckenridge, Alberta’s Sunshine Village Ski Area, and even Mount Washington on the East Coast as a handful of North American spots that just recorded their first taste of fresh snow before the upcoming season.
“This morning, the summit is seeing temperatures dip below freezing for the first time since early June and we have also observed the first glaze ice and snowflakes of the 2023-2024 season. The ice/snow will be limited to above 6,000 feet and is expected to melt quickly. However, Thursday will remain cold and windy on the higher terrain, so pack/dress like you would for an autumn hike,” the folks in New Hampshire wrote.
