Snowmaking Starts on East Coast in Maine and Vermont

Featured Image: Courtesy of Sunday River Resort

They say that if you watch a pot of water, it will take longer to boil. Is the same true for watching and waiting for ski season to arrive? We hope not, because we can't stop watching winter roll in across North America. And over the last few days, cold temps and frosty mornings have prompted many East Coast resorts to begin snowmaking operations for winter 2025/26.

One of the first resorts to give the green light was Maine's Sunday River. The resort got a hearty few inches of snowfall, and as temps plummeted, the mountain operations team took advantage of the cold weather to fire up one of the most powerful snowmaking systems in the world, which features 2,000 snowguns and can pump 11,500 gallons of water per minute. For reference, that's enough water to fill Fenway Park in under 17 hours.

A brief pause in operations over the last 48 hours due to warm weather has been interrupted by another cold front, which Open Snow suggests will bring precipitation to the area through November 9, and we expect snowmaking to continue in full force.

Snowmaking rolls on at Sunday River, Maine | Photo: Courtesy of Sunday River Resort

Maine wasn't the only state in the East that was handed a crisp welcome to winter 2025/26. Vermont was also covered with fresh snow, allowing Stowe, Jay Peak and Killington to fire up their snowguns. Stowe even teased their opening date in a recent Instagram post, saying that the continued cold weather will allow them to target November 22 as their tenanative start to ski season. Killington has yet to set a firm opening date, with the resort saying they will open "As Soon as Conditions Allow."

Parts of the East Coast had a stellar winter 2025, with many skiers, including Vermont's own Brooks Curran, coming across staggeringly deep snow last January. The latest winter weather predictions from NOAA paint a hazy picture for the East Coast during the upcoming winter, with much of the region sitting in equal chances above or below average precipitation. As of October 16, 2025, La Niña conditions are active, which can typically favor the East Coast with heavy snow.

No matter what Mother Nature has in store for the East, we'll be patiently waiting and watching as winter 2025/26 inches closer. And with resorts already up and running in Colorado, it won't be long until we're sliding from coast to coast.

Click HERE for a much more detailed explanation of NOAA's 2025/26 Winter Weather Predictions