Western North America Conditions 2025/26

From Bachelor this morning:
Summit and Northwest will remain closed until skiing/riding conditions improve.
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With high temps forecast 49F, I read that sentence as being a coverage issue with the 38 inch base. Recall a year or two ago I found out they like to have a 50 inch base to get snowcats up to the Summit. Any progress on snowave's rain check to next season?
 
They (Bachelor) weren't interested in offering a raincheck/rollover, and I get it. However, it'd been nice to have been offered something, like maybe a small discount on next years 4-pack, or a F&B offer, etc.

We are still planning on going over M-F of next week. It's gonna be cooler, just hope it doesn't turn into ice all day long. On the Bachelor conditions page (facebook) it sounds like surface conditions have been pretty decent this week, all things considered. We're taking our travel trailer/pets and camping just east of Bend. So, it is was it is at this point. Even if I only get 3 of the 5 days used, it'll make me feel better.

Just heard from someone else on Tamarack... they are closing next Thursday. I'm not actually going to get a pass there next year, even though it's still a really good price. I just can't justify the 1 hr drive vs 20 min to Brundage. I've barely been paying it off the last few years. Good thing is that we did get the Indy Pass upgrade / our full Brundage pass, so that'll give me 2 days at Tamarack at least.
 
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snowave said:
They (Bachelor) weren't interested in offering a raincheck/rollover
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Not surprised. Powdr Corp is not a consumer friendly management. If confined to the lower frontside of the hill as it is now, cooler may be better. And one would presume that Bend's spring/summer activities are available in this weather.
 
I wish I understood the science of spring snow a little bit better. At Montana Snowbowl on Wednesday, with temps in the 40s and mostly heavy cloud cover, everything off piste was miserable glue. The groomers were OK, but grooming is not one of Snowbowl’s strengths.

At Lost Trail the last two days, in blazing sun with temps topping out in the high 50s to low 60s, the skiing was pretty good until about 12:45 or 1pm. In fact, both mornings, high on Saddle Mountain, I had the immense pleasure of skiing significant pitches of very good untracked, fully-supportable corn that had been deep fresh powder as recently as last Sunday.

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All aspects of the area were pretty sticky in the afternoons, but still fun to ski in a beach-day-on-skis kind of way.

For what it’s worth, coverage at LTPM is excellent. On Wednesday, Snowbowl was just becoming only a little bit dodgy in the last few hundred feet above the base, but pretty good everywhere else.
 
flyover said:
I wish I understood the science of spring snow a little bit better. At Montana Snowbowl on Wednesday, with temps in the 40s and mostly heavy cloud cover, everything off piste was miserable glue. The groomers were OK, but grooming is not one of Snowbowl’s strengths.

At Lost Trail the last two days, in blazing sun with temps topping out in the high 50s to low 60s, the skiing was pretty good until about 12:45 or 1pm. In fact, both mornings, high on Saddle Mountain, I had the immense pleasure of skiing significant pitches of very good untracked, fully-supportable corn that had been deep fresh powder as recently as last Sunday.

View attachment 50232

All aspects of the area were pretty sticky in the afternoons, but still fun to ski in a beach-day-on-skis kind of way.

For what it’s worth, coverage at LTPM is excellent. On Wednesday, Snowbowl was just becoming only a little bit dodgy in the last few hundred feet above the base, but pretty good everywhere else.
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Its complicated. Conditions in springtime are best if there are at least 3+ cycles of freeze/thaw. First day or 2 of a warmup is mush. If there isn’t an overnight freeze, it can also go to mush. Strong winds can also keep it firm. Slope sun exposure also determines optimal timing for conditions.
 
Good summary above by skieric.
flyover said:
At Montana Snowbowl on Wednesday, with temps in the 40s and mostly heavy cloud cover
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That almost surely meant no overnight freeze, thus explaining the conditions.
flyover said:
At Lost Trail I had the immense pleasure of skiing significant pitches of very good untracked, fully-supportable corn that had been deep fresh powder as recently as last Sunday.
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Since the area is closed Monday-Wednesday, the snow was undisturbed by skiers trying to churn the last remnants of powder.
 
Tony Crocker said:
MarzNC's friends' situation is ironic because advance booked air travel is usually what locks in an itinerary. Without that constraint it should have been easy to go to the Alps or western Canada instead.
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Perhaps for 1-2 people. Not so easy when the group is 4-5 adults, a few of whom are working. They also play golf. So had a good time in SLC skiing and playing golf on the same day. This particular group are not the type who are up for international travel.
 
flyover said:
I wish I understood the science of spring snow a little bit better. At Montana Snowbowl on Wednesday, with temps in the 40s and mostly heavy cloud cover, everything off piste was miserable glue. The groomers were OK, but grooming is not one of Snowbowl’s strengths.

At Lost Trail the last two days, in blazing sun with temps topping out in the high 50s to low 60s, the skiing was pretty good until about 12:45 or 1pm. In fact, both mornings, high on Saddle Mountain, I had the immense pleasure of skiing significant pitches of very good untracked, fully-supportable corn that had been deep fresh powder as recently as last Sunday.
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Skieric said:
Its complicated. Conditions in springtime are best if there are at least 3+ cycles of freeze/thaw. First day or 2 of a warmup is mush. If there isn’t an overnight freeze, it can also go to mush. Strong winds can also keep it firm. Slope sun exposure also determines optimal timing for conditions.
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Cloud cover is surprisingly important for generating that freeze-thaw cycle. Snow is very efficient at radiating away heat, so you want sunny days and clear nights for optimal radiative cooling. Dry air also helps by adding evaporative cooling. Under clear, dry conditions the top of the snowpack can re-freeze with temperatures in the mid or upper 30's. A thin layer of high clouds can be enough to prevent this.

So lots of things were working against you at Snowbowl vs. Lost Trail - less time since the last snow for corn to develop, and skier traffic slowing the process, along with thick clouds preventing an overnight freeze.
 
MarzNC said:
This particular group are not the type who are up for international travel.
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I get why many people feel that way about Europe. I do not get why people feel that way about Canada. That's to my benefit, as I've been up there average once per season for the past 30 years and appreciate the usually low skier density. A cursory search says U.S. customers are now 13-15% of B.C. skier visits, but I'm sure Whistler is getting a disproportionate share of that. I know the Okanagan gets some drive-up business from Washington State, so I'll bet farther east in B.C. is still under 10%.
 
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Tony Crocker said:
Mt. High and Snow Valley closed March 15. Summit and Bear are still trying for April 5 but I'm skeptical.
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No surprise with today's announcement:
Tomorrow is the last day for Snow Summit while
If you’re not ready to hang it up just yet, Bear Mountain’s still holding on with Chair 5 and 9 expected to keep spinning daily through Sunday, March 28 [sic] for those who want to keep the season alive a little longer.
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ChrisC said:
90 F in Denver yet?
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Officially no, unofficially yes. No idea how the official temp yesterday was only 85, it was above that both at my house and on my car temp for the entire afternoon, hitting exactly 90F for a couple hours yesterday.

Though 85 is the new record high temp ever for the month of March, so there is that...
 
Winter is returning to western Canada this upcoming week. As for the East, see corn snow analysis above. I'm sure it can happen but in general there's too much cloudiness, humidity and groomer skier density.

It's been a judgment call every weekend this month how to update this chart for Vermont. There have been multiple thaws and rain events, yet it snows just enough by the weekends to keep the trail counts up at Jay/Smuggs/Stowe. I'm not awarding A grades despite fresh snow due to explicit comments about frozen subsurfaces off the groomed. Trail counts have declined significantly at Sugarbush, Mad River and Killington to the C level, but with the northern Vermont places at 85+% open I'm going with B grades for all the March weekends so far. JSpin is free to comment if he ever sees this thread.
 
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Tony Crocker said:
I get why many people feel that way about Europe. I do not get why people feel that way about Canada. That's to my benefit, as I've been up there average once per season for the past 30 years and appreciate the usually low skier density. A cursory search says U.S. customers are now 13-15% of B.C. skier visits, but I'm sure Whistler is getting a disproportionate share of that. I know the Okanagan gets some drive-up business from Washington State, so I'll bet farther east in B.C. is still under 10%.
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Believe it or not, there are people who don't have a passport and don't want to pay to get one. ;)
 
I think everyone shoukd at least go somewhere in Europe at least once..
The thing that turns me off now is I don't want to go on guided side and back country days anymore.
I've survived over 20 years doing it..but don't want to press my luck any more.
And I'm not a fan of the on piste slopes day after day...
But..the food is great..the views are great.
And..it makes my wife happy.
Getting there and back..does not make me happy...at all.
 
I loathe long distance flying, but I do want to go to Europe. However, I have much more desire to experience the culture than to mainly go to ski/ride. I'd probably feel feel different after a few visits, I suppose.

As far as Canada (usually BC), we visit at least once a year, especially being relatively close. This year might be an exception, due to overall poor snow and my having surgery in May for a bum shoulder. However, I already told the wife we'll be headed back up again next season using our Indy Pass @ Big White/Apex, and 49 N along the way. We both really love Canada, and keep threatening to move up there (especially in the current political environment), but it's really just not reasonable, given our prime location now in Idaho and all the hassle/expense it would be to actually pull it off.
 
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