The 2023-24 ski season is off to a rocky start in much of the U.S., despite an El Nino weather pattern having promised another snowy winter.
At California resorts, much of December looked more like spring than winter, with T-shirt weather and an absence of snow dominating the landscape below 8,000 feet. Colorado and Utah started with slightly below-average snowfall, while New England was buried by snow early before several historic rainfall events decimated any existing snowpack.
Luckily, the season is turning around, with almost every part of ski country expected to get hit with significant snowstorms during the first half of January.
Of course, conditions and forecasts are constantly changing, but there are a few resorts early-season skiers and snowboarders should check out thanks to natural snowfall, impressive snow-making efforts or a combination of both.
When an early December storm left much of northern New England buried in up to a foot of snow, skiers and riders on the Eastern Seaboard were optimistic for the banner year forecasters had promised. But back-to-back storms in mid-December brought record rainfall and severe flooding to the region, melting away any signs of a strong early ski season.
Related: 9 best ski resorts on the East Coast to plan a trip around this winter
"I was even able to ski in the trees at the start of December without damaging my skis for the first time," Charlie Peachey, a weather observer and research specialist at the Mount Washington Observatory, told TPG in an email. "But above-average temperatures produced two significant rain storms almost a week apart that decimated the snowpack. I suppose, in true New England fashion, slushy, crusty and grassy trails are better than no trails."
The rain and flooding caused an uphill battle for New England resorts just ahead of Christmas, but most were able to get at least some of their terrain open.
Cranmore, located in North Conway, has struggled this season due to warm temperatures at low elevations. Still, a cold streak just ahead of Christmas allowed the resort to make enough snow to get the mountain going before the rush.
"We used to say Christmas is the first quarter of the football game, but it might be turning into even less than that," said Ben Wilcox, Cranmore's general manager. "We hope to have a strong January and February, and if March cooperates, we can still have a good ski season despite having a marginal Christmas."
Wilcox hopes the mountain will be at least 50% open for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend.
Currently, the mountain is 34% open, with an unimpressive season total of 24 inches. However, a significant snowstorm promises to add to the base depth before switching to rain before the holiday
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