April in Colorado

[davidwh_us@yahoo.com]

I'm stuck in the East, and the only time I can get to take a western trip is April, maybe not until the third week. Where's a good bet then? I love spring corn snow, but any chance of powder then? I'm thinking Winter Park or Copper. When can I expect late-season deals to kick in, especially on lodging?

 

[jon]

Skiing A basin and staying in Summit county may be as good a bet at this time as anything. In general, by mid late April you'll want high elevation ( cooler temp) and Northen exposure ( avoiding sun on snow) to minimize skiing in slush or dirt.
Later April is not a peak time, so you could play it more by ear and see what the conditions look like a couple weeks before your sched departure.If you stay at Summit County , Colorado eg Frisco , Breck, Copper, or Keystone you could also ski several areas during your trip. But A basin often has the best Spring conditions.

Jon

 

[Tony Crocker]

Easter is April 16, and you need to check on closing dates if your trip is any later than that. A-Basin is nice, but it's rather small for a whole week.

Colorado I-70 is having an outstanding year, and you should certainly go there if it's before April 16. If later I'd recommend Mammoth, Bachelor, Whistler, Snowbird.

 

[snowave]

You should be able to get great deals at most places in April...

Powder in April can and does happen, but I probably wouldn't "count" on it.

 

[lookn4powder]

Easter is April 16, and you need to check on closing dates if your trip is any later than that. A-Basin is nice, but it's rather small for a whole week.

Colorado I-70 is having an outstanding year, and you should certainly go there if it's before April 16. If later I'd recommend Mammoth, Bachelor, Whistler, Snowbird.

Summit County (CO) gets most of its snow between 15 March-15 April, so skiing during National Taxpayers Week (15 APR) tends to be good; however, the snow conditions can vary from 16" powder to mashed potatoes--all on the same day. During outstanding snow years areas like Copper tend to extend their seasons a week or two. Watch for extension announcements to appear by 8 April at the area websites and the online Denver newspapers. To skiers/riders, the decision about extending the ski season may seem easy; however, it is a multivariable function governed by labor law, electrical power contracts, National Park system permits, and the likelihood that money will be raked in.

We have skied Mammoth, Bachelor, Whistler, and Snowbird in very late April and early May. Even though I've skied on 39" fresh on 30 April at Snowbird (1987?), I'd drop Snowbird from Tony's list without compelling evidence that such good conditions will persist. The powder can turn to mush in a day.

Cheers,
Jeff

 

[Tony Crocker]

Snowbird's normal practice is to go to very low operation of just tram and Little Cloud around the first of May. In late April nearly the whole mountain should be accessible. But I would agree that Mammoth, Bachelor and Whistler do more grooming and maintenance and would have better conditions if recent weather has not been cooperative.

I should let admin's SLC posse comment further. Last year at Snowbird was not representative. They had so much snow that they ran more lifts into May than possibly ever before.

I was in Denver last weekend of April in 1987 and 1991 and Copper was still open. But in the lean 2002 season the big Summit areas and Vail rolled their close dates back and have not extended them since. This is the first real big year since, so it will be the test of how flexible these areas are for late season.