Record Warm Winter Out West Cuts the Season Short for Many Resorts

Featured Image: Courtesy of Mammoth Mountain | Skier: Glen Plake

Unless you're living on the East Coast, this winter has by far been one of the most disappointing seasons we millennials have ever lived through. We've had low snow years and long dry spells in the recent past but March and April have typically been able to deliver multiple full resets. This year, however, we're not getting the miracle March we were all hoping for. Instead, we're facing a significant heatwave that's wreaking havoc on resorts from Colorado to California, causing many to close their lifts before the end of the month.

There's no denying that climate change is to blame. According to Scientific America, the East Coast was significantly colder than the Western half of the country but not a single state set a record low temperature this season. Instead, nine states—including Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, and the Western half of Montana—recorded their hottest winter temperatures ever on record, and another five states recorded their second-hottest winter. For the contiguous United States, it was the second-warmest winter in the last 131 years.

Red denotes record warmth, dark orange is much above average, white areas were average and light blue were below average. PHOTO: Courtesy of NOAA

Because of the warm temperatures and inconsistent storm cycles, many resorts have struggled to stay open for spring skiing simply because there's no snow left to ski. Sierra-at-Tahoe in California has announced its closing day for March 22, as well as Ski Cooper in Colorado, which sits at 10,500 feet above sea level at the base of the ski area. Snowbasin, just outside of Salt Lake City, and Snow King in Jackson Hole, Wyoming are also closing March 22 and Soldier Mountain in Central Idaho announced an unexpected closing on March 6.

While many ski areas have to cut the slushy spring skiing short, there are a few places out West that you can score some corn through May—conditions permitting. Mammoth Mountain has announced it will stay open through Memorial Day as well as Palisades Tahoe , with an advertised May 25 closing date. Mt. Hood Meadows in Oregon has announced an April 2 closing date but Timberline is open for summer skiing, per usual. While the pickings are certainly slimmer than they've ever been, there are luckily still a few places to go to extend your season as long as Mother Nature will allow.