Old Man Winter is taunting us this morning at temperatures dipped to 24° at both Sugar Mountain Resort in Banner Elk, North Carolina and Snowshoe Mountain in Pocahontas County, West Virginia. Neither resort was tempted enough to make snow, which answered ONE of the more common questions that some of our readers posted over the last 24-48 hours.
Many of you SkiMailed me asking things hinting at, “Will they or won’t they (make snow) on Tuesday night?”
The answer was, “No, thanks. We are ready to shut it down; take a well-deserved, deep breath and then gather our energies to do the hard work and preparations for the 2023-2024 season which will start somewhere around Halloween, Thanksgiving or shortly after.
139 Days of the 2022-2023 Ski & Snowboarding Season
Sugar Mountain Resort and Cataloochee Ski Area got the season started on Monday, November 14th, 2022. The roar of snowmaking equipment started being heard just two days prior. As Sugar Mountain Resort will now close tomorrow, Thursday, March 30th at 4pm, that will make for 136 straight days of skiing and snowboarding by Gunther and his crew. That is very impressive and we never really saw a complete meltdown of epic proportions in terms of a mid-season, blow-torch thaw that can sometimes happen within a season.
Snowshoe Mountain kicked off their season on November 23rd, 2022 and with their announced closing day of this Sunday, April 2nd, that will make for a strong 130 days ski & snowboarding season…with no shut down days in between, etc.
While some of the region’s ski resorts opted to close mid-week on a few occasions to preserve base snow, I am pretty positive that both Sugar and Snowshoe stayed open each and every day on the calendar this season. That is NO SMALL task as challenging as this winter has been.
Kudos to Sugar Mountain for being there for the start and to Snowshoe Mountain to closing things out. My friends, 136 days is four-and-a-half MONTHS or nearly 38% of an entire YEAR that our ski areas are able to blast and keep snow on the slopes for our enjoyment. Sure, there are some resorts out west that will be skiing through the end of July, but when you (Mammoth) get SEVENTY FREAKING FEET of snow in one winter, what the hell else are you going to do but make lemonade out of lemons.
I repeat…. 840″ or 70′!
Quick Comments and Shares:
The overnight low temperatures have allowed Snowshoe and Sugar to “doll up” the snow and it looks FAST and pretty on the LIVE CAMS this morning. Snowshoe posted:
It’s looking like fast, frozen granular early on today followed closely by soft spring conditions as temperatures rise. Spruce is open as a terrain park. Progression is open as a green ski trail. Upper Flume is open for Basin access only (Soaring Eagle lift is closed). Please be aware that with this spring weather there are some thin areas and bare patches starting to form, so please ski/ride with caution.
Time is running out to take advantage of the Spring Pass Sale! Grab your 23.24 season pass by this Sunday to get in on the lowest price of the year.
Reader Thoughts:
Pat Donovan wrote:
“Back when Snowshoe was run by skiers I’ve skied as early as November 2nd and as late as April 15. I’m sure that will never happen again. Ironically they could with all the snowmaking upgrades they’ve made the last few years. ❄️”
Dennis Thomas wrote:
“We have 700+ inches in Tahoe, even its hills of LA have over 100+inches of snow.”
Beth Lay Campbell wrote:
Meanwhile in New Mexico. We are closed and just got yet another half foot last night…
Jon Lovitch stated:
why ski season ends. lack of skiers not snow
David Britton summed up my own personal thoughts:
One person on the slopes is the reason resorts in the southeast close mid to late March even if there is good snow.
As an instructor I will admit to standing at lineup on a warm sunny Saturday in March thinking about my sailboat back home even though all the slopes were open. When the azaleas bloom the golf course beckons.
In Closing…
Have you guys seen the courtroom testimony of Gwinnett Paltrow about being hit from behind by a skier at Deer Valley. (Or the other way around, depending on who you believe.)
If you want to quickly sum up what is wrong with our world and the legal system, check out that video. Twilight Zone material right there. I will leave it at that.
Feel free to email me your comments, photos and vids and I’ll share here. Email [email protected]