by Patrick Thorne with First Tracks!! Online Media staff reports
Kiltarlity, Scotland, UK – Despite on-going cold weather in parts of Europe and ski areas still boasting a snow pack of many feet at many top resorts, less than 30 ski areas are currently open worldwide as most northern hemisphere ski areas have now closed and southern hemisphere resorts have yet to open. In fact, there are more places to ski snow indoors than outdoors at the moment, with some 60 indoor snow centers in operation in 25 countries across the globe.nThe latter half of May is traditionally the quietest period of the entire year for world skiing as the northern hemisphere’s season ends while the southern hemisphere’s is yet to begin, and several dozen northern ski areas that will open for summer skiing beginning in June take a few week’s break for low-season maintenance.
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Pre-season snows fell last week across the Andes Mountains of South America, as seen here at Portillo, Chile. |
It is still snowing in different areas around the world, however. Mammoth Mountain, one of only two ski areas still open in California — the other is Alpine Meadows, open this Friday through Sunday for one final weekend — has reported 5.5 inches (14cm) of new snow in the past 24 hours to add to its eight to 12-foot base. There’s also been new snow at Arapahoe Basin in Colorado, Utah’s Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort, and in the southern hemisphere in Australia, Chile and Argentina.
North America
In North America more ski areas closed after last weekend, and resorts still operating are down to Mammoth Mountain (closing July 4th) and Alpine Meadows (closing May 16) in California, Snowbird in Utah (closing May 31), Arapahoe Basin in Colorado (closing June 9) and Mt. Bachelor (May 16), Timberline and Mt. Hood Meadows in Oregon, which will be opening this weekend and next. In Alaska, Alyeska Resort south of Anchorage will reopen this Friday, weather permitting.
Arapahoe Basin has reported another inch of snow in the past three days, topping up its 44-inch (110cm) base. Six of its seven lifts are running and about 75 percent of the total terrain open. All of the terrain at Utah’s Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort is skiable on a base of 115 inches, the most currently in North America thanks in part to a storm that left seven feet of snow in four days earlier this month, but lift operations are restricted on a late season schedule. The resort is currently open Fridays through Sundays, with a projected closing date of Memorial Day.
North of the border in Canada, Whistler’s Olympic ski season continues and Banff’s Sunshine ski area is in the final two weeks of its long winter.
The lifts are no longer running at Silver Star Mountain in British Columbia, but Canada’s National Team and development team cross country skiers are enjoying beautiful spring conditions.
Mike Cavaliere, Head Coach of the National Development Team describes it, “The ski conditions are ideal, great grooming and sunny skies.”
The athletes stay at Silver Star Mountain Resort and use the National Altitude Training Center weight room in the afternoon. This year cross country skiers were able to ski eight months of the year on Silver Star Mountain, October through May.
Western Europe
The ski season has now ended in France and no outdoor snow slopes are open in the country. Tignes, Val d’Isere and les 2 Alpes will re-open in June for summer skiing.
There’s plenty of snow on the ground, however, and the ski touring season is still going strong for those prepared to hike up the hill. In St.-Foy the Tarentaise Mountain Guides have some places reserved for a collective ski touring group from tomorrow through Sunday.
There’s not much open in Italy, either, as Cervinia closed last weekend until it re-opens for summer skiing in late June. Two other ski centers will also be open for summer skiing – Passo Stelvio, which reopens for the last weekend of May, and Val Senales, which opens on 12th June.
In the interim, however, the Presena Glacier above Passo Tonale will remain open until late June. It currently has around four meters (13 feet) of snow on the glacier and two red and two black runs to enjoy.
In Switzerland the weather has warmed up after last week’s snow showers and three resorts are still open. Engelberg’s Titlis glacier as well as the slopes of Zermatt remain open, as does the Diavolezza glacier near St. Moritz, which has a more than 1,000 vertical meters of skiing still open, with 50cm (1.6 feet) of snow at the top.
Austria has the lion’s share of spring skiing in Europe now with glacier skiing available at five areas. At the Kaunertal glacier, where all lifts are running and all pistes open, heavy snow showers are expected for the rest of the week, topping up the 85-135cm (three to 4.5-foot) base.
It’s a similar story on the Pitztal glacier, Austria’s highest ski area, which is approaching its last weekend of its eight-month ski season, which commenced last September.
The Stubai has one of the largest ski areas open anywhere at the moment with 18 runs served by 16 lifts to choose from on an 1.8m (six-foot) base.
You can also ski or board this weekend on the Kitzsteinhorn or Huntertux glaciers.
Northern Europe
In Northern Europe several ski areas remain open in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Scotland.
There’s a heavy frost this morning in the Scottish Highlands, where the mountains have seen repeated small falls of fresh snow over the past few days. The ski area is open weekends only through May.
In Sweden, Riksgransen ski area in the Swedish Arctic is still in full swing and will begin its midnight sun skiing in the next few weeks. In Finland, Riuka still has ski slopes open and in Norway, Galdhøpiggen summer ski area is due to join already open Folgefonn, which has a four-meter (13.3-foot base) when it opens tomorrow.
Southern Hemisphere
With a month to go to the start of the new season in the southern hemisphere, Australia’s Mt. Hotham is expecting snowfalls through the next 48 hours. This comes hot on the heels of some earlier snowfalls in the previous week when the heavens opened over Hotham and Dinner Plain, with snowfalls down to the 1300m level at Hotham Airport. Pre-season snows also fell last week across Chilean and Argentinean ski resorts in the Andes Mountains of South America.
At this time of the year, early light snowfalls work well to cool the ground and prepare it for snowfalls closer to the season opening. This also helps the resort to prepare for the commencement of snowmaking as the ground, will be already be prepared to hold snow.