Mountain Resort’s Snow Reports
HOW TO READ BETWEEN THE LINES OF A RESORT’S SNOW REPORT
Let’s face it…resort snow reports are an advertisement to get you to come to the resort, no matter what the conditions that day, for one reason…so that you spend money. So it’s important for you to realize this fact, and to be able to decipher what that daily snow report is really saying. Here’s an example of a typical snow report:
2-4 inches of new snow in the past 36 hours, machine groomed snow, light winds at the base with 45mph at the top. All lifts are scheduled to be open, wind and weather permitting.
So let’s see what this all means…2-4 inches of new snow…not very much new snow. Check to see how much new snow the resort has received say in the last 7-14 days. If this is the first snow in recent time, then the machine groomed snow means hard pack, especially after the groomed snow has been scraped off…usually after the first few hours of the day.
Light winds at the base with 45mph at the top. Most often, with 45mph winds, lifts at the top won’t open or will have a very good chance to be put on wind hold, so that’s why the resort puts in the disclaimer…all lifts are scheduled to be open, wind and weather permitting.
To be fair, just remember in the mountains the weather can change in an instant…so the report that you read or hear that was produced at 5:30a.m., may be way off at 9:00a.m. Take these reports with a grain of salt.
Tags: Mountain Resort's Snow Reports
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