Copper Mountain sees tons of pow, and tons of people, for their opening weekend. Copper Mountain photo.
With the El Niño hype slowly coming to fruition in the form of snow up to our eyeballs shins, we find ourselves participating in the late fall equivalent of the advent calendar-The Opening Day Countdown. While a kind, cold start to the season has already allowed ski areas to open on both coasts, chances are your local hill is planning to press the green button on your favorite chair sometime in the next month. Here's when.
The East Coast
This legend got the goods when Killington opened for a few weeks in October. Killington photo.
With warm weather after a snowy couple of weeks, many Ice Coast resorts are either closing their doors after temporarily opening, or are pushing their projected openings back.
RELATED: A Drunk History of Skiing in Vermont.
After a banger 2014-2015 season, we're interested to see how El Niño plays out in the Northeast. With variable conditions on the horizon, these dates are weather dependent and may vary.
Killington, VT: Reopening 11/15
Mad River Glen, VT: 12/13
Mt. Snow: 11/22
Okemo, VT: Sometime after 11/14
Smugglers Notch, VT: 11/27
Stratton, VT: 11/25
Stowe, VT: 11/21
Sugarbush, VT: 11/20
Cannon, NH: 11/29
Loon, NH: 11/16
Sugarloaf, ME: 11/30
Sunday River, ME: 11/25
Waterville, NH: 11/21
Belleayre, NY: 11/27
Bristol, NY: 11/20
Hunter Mountain, NY: 11/22
Windham, NY: 11/26
Whiteface, NY: 11/22
Mont Sant-Sauveur, QC: Sometime after 11/13
Mont Sainte-Anne, QC: 11/21
Tremblant, QC: 11/20
Stoneham, QC: 11/29
Ski Bromont, QC: 11/29
The Midwest
Mount Bohemia is known as an experts only, extreme skiing, Midwest mecca, right? Dana Westbrock photo.
The Midwest may not necessarily be known for it's skiing, but it seems that those days might soon be over. Voodoo Mountain, nearby infamous Mount Bohemia, will be the first cat skiing op in the Midwest starting in December.
RELATED: (Cat)ski the Midwest: New Mountain Opens Cat Skiing Only Terrain
With a handful of pro skiers being raised amongst the farms and flatlands of the midwest, it's no surprise to see that resorts are catering to the alpine inclined.
Coffee Mill Ski, MN: 11/28
Lutsen Mountain, MN: 11/26
Ski Brule, MI: 11/20
Mount Bohemia, MI: 12/27
Voodoo Mountain, MI: 12/26
Crystal, MI: 11/22
Boyne Highlands, MI: TBD
Indianhead, MI: 11/28
Blue Mountain, ON: 12/05
The Rocky Mountains
Wolf Creek is ready to rock and roll with a fresh coat and a few faceshots. Kevin Blue photo.
Ah, the Rocky Mountains. Where the park lines are as long as the pow is tracked... except for this week. With a huge winter weather cycle hitting Colorado and the surrounding areas, The Rockies are getting dumped on right now.
RELATED: Epic Pow on November 7th in Colorado
Opening day is no longer synonymous with heinously long lines of drunk college kids, but more like mid-season conditions and faceshots (and maybe a coreshot) aplenty.
Aspen, CO: 11/14
Beaver Creek, CO: 11/25
Breckenridge, CO: OPEN
Copper, CO: OPEN
Crested Butte, CO: 11/25
Eldora, CO: 11/20
Keystone, CO: OPEN
Loveland, CO: OPEN
Steamboat, CO: 11/25
Silverton, CO: 12/21
Telluride, CO: 11/26
Vail, CO: 11/20
Winter Park, CO: 11/18
Wolf Creek, CO: OPEN
Alta, UT: 11/20
Brighton, UT: 11/20
Deer Valley, UT: 12/5
Park City, UT: 11/21
Snowbird, UT: 11/21
Solitude, UT: 11/21
Big Sky, MT: 11/26
Bridger Bowl, MT: 12/11
Red Lodge, MT: 10/27
Whitefish, MT: 12/5
Grand Targhee, WY: 11/20
Jackson Hole, WY: 11/26
Schweitzer, ID: 12/4
Sun Valley, ID: 11/28
Taos, NM: 11/26
The West Coast
Check out the base of Mammoth last week! Mammoth photo.
With a tough couple of seasons under their belt, California, Oregon, and Washington could use a some solid preseason snow, if only for morale.
RELATED: Mammoth One of the First California Areas to Open
El Niño isn't projected to show it's true colors until late December, but luckily the West Coast is getting a little reminder of what winter's really all about with some early openings.
Baldy, CA: 12/20
Big Bear, CA: 11/13
Boreal Mtn., CA: OPEN
Heavenly, CA: 11/14
Kirkwood, CA: 11/14
Mammoth, CA: OPEN
Northstar, CA: 11/14
Sierra-at-Tahoe, CA: 12/12
Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows, CA: OPEN
Mt. Bachelor, OR: 11/27
Timberline, OR: 11/28
Mt. Hood Meadows, OR: 11/21
Alpental, WA: TBA
Mt. Baker, WA: 12/21
Crystal Mountain, WA: 12/02
Summit at Snoqualmie, WA: 12/31
Steven's Pass, WA: 11/20
British Columbia
Mike Douglas and Robin Van Gyn getting after some pre-season pow last week. Paul Morrison/Whister Blackcomb photo.
For those of you up in The Great White North, your winter is just around the corner. Whether you're cat skiing at Bald Face or clipping tickets at Kicking Horse, we're hoping for an epic winter.
RELATED: Hey Guys-It's Snowing All Over the West Right Now!
Expect an entourage of van-dwelling skids making the pilgrimage up the Powder Highway to the pow-and-pillow mecca (otherwise known as BC).
Fernie, BC: 12/5
Kicking Horse, BC: 12/12
Revelstoke, BC: 11/28
Whistler/Blackcomb, BC: 11/19
Sunshine Village, AB: 11/14
Red Mountain, BC: 12/21
Mt. Seymour, BC: 12/30
Grouse Mountain, BC: 11/20
Cypress Mountain, BC: 11/20
Silver Star, BC: 11/20
Big White, BC: OPEN
So there you have it; a projected roundup of opening dates to get you through this fortunately short fall. If you haven't started skiing/riding already, saddle up, because winter isn't going anywhere now.
Steelea3
November 14th, 2015
Mt. Rose in Tahoe- open!