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How the West Lost Its Winter: The 2025-26 US Snow Drought Explained
The 2025-26 ski season across the western United States wasn't just a bad year - it was the worst on record. A massive marine heat wave, a stubborn high-pressure ridge, and relentless warmth combined to destroy snowpack across eight states, force at least 69 ski resorts to close early, and wipe roughly $100 million from Vail Resorts' bottom line. Here's what happened, why it happened, and what it means for skiing's future.
Crystal Mountain Promotes Marketing VP to President Role
Washington's largest ski area has elevated Linnea Hansen from VP of Marketing & Sales to President & COO. The appointment comes as the resort faces ongoing infrastructure challenges including wastewater issues and parking management.
Western U.S. Ski Resorts Close Early as Warm Weather Compounds Poor Snow Season
A heat wave hitting the western United States has forced dozens of ski resorts to close early or abandon their seasons entirely. With below-average snowpacks across the region, the warm spell has ended operations at over 40 resorts from Arizona to Montana.
Pacific Northwest Ski Resorts Just Got Buried — March 2026 Snow Report
Washington's ski resorts have just received a serious dump, with several areas recording over 50cm of fresh snow in a single 24-hour period. Stevens Pass, Snoqualmie, and White Pass are all showing big numbers, and the broader Pacific Northwest — including Oregon and Montana — has copped a solid hit too. Here's what the data is showing right now.
Mt. Baker Ski Area Is Running Night Skiing for the First Time Ever This Weekend
Mt. Baker Ski Area is doing something it has never done in its entire history this weekend — night skiing. Chair 7 and the White Salmon Handle Tow get lit up on Friday 13 and Saturday 14 March, with live DJs, fire pits, and overnight camping in the lot. If you're anywhere near Bellingham, this one's worth knowing about.
Alpental Opens with New Edelweiss Triple Chairlift Completing Three-Year Lift Replacement Programme
The Summit at Snoqualmie's Alpental area opened for the 2025 season on January 7 with the debut of its new Edelweiss triple chair, replacing a 58-year-old Riblet double and completing a three-year lift modernisation. The upgrade promises more reliable upper mountain access for avalanche control, though whether it delivers on capacity claims remains to be seen.
Boyne Resorts' 2025-26 Plans: Upgrades or Marketing Spin?
Boyne Resorts has announced various projects across its North American ski areas for 2025-26, but are they truly enhancing the guest experience or just keeping up with industry trends?
Alpental's Edelweiss Chair Auction Raises $194K Amid Lift Upgrade
Alpental's auction of its decommissioned Edelweiss chairlift has raised over $194,000 for local nonprofits, as the resort prepares to install a new triple chair for the upcoming season. The fundraiser highlights the community's attachment to the old lift while ushering in improvements to uphill capacity and wind resistance.
Alpental Ski Resort Upgrades Edelweiss Chairlift for Advanced Terrain
Alpental, part of The Summit at Snoqualmie in Washington, is replacing its Chair 2 (Edelweiss) with a new Doppelmayr fixed-grip triple chairlift. This upgrade aims to improve capacity and reliability for advanced and expert skiers.
Stevens Pass Revises Parking Plan After Guest Pushback
Stevens Pass ski resort has adjusted its parking policy for the 2025-26 season, offering a mix of free and paid options with some reservations available, following feedback from skiers and riders.
Washington Ski Resort Introduces Paid Parking, Charging Up to $55 Per Day
Summit at Snoqualmie introduces a new parking system starting November 18th, 2024, with fees ranging from $5 to $55 depending on visitor type. The resort cites rising visitor numbers, but the high cost for backcountry users has sparked controversy.
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More from the SnowStash desk
Spain Moves to Ban Smoking at Ski Resorts Under New Tobacco Law
Spain's government has approved a draft tobacco law that would ban smoking across a wide range of outdoor spaces, including sports venues - a category Spanish winter sports media expect to cover ski resorts, potentially extending to slopes and lifts themselves. The rules would also apply to e-cigarettes and vaping devices, even nicotine-free ones. The bill still has to clear the Spanish parliament before any ban, signage, or fines can take effect.
South Tyrol Approves New 16-Person Ciampinoi Gondola in Val Gardena
South Tyrol has approved a full rebuild of the Ciampinoi cable car in Selva di Val Gardena, replacing the current 12-person gondola with a 16-person cabin and a new mountain-station restaurant. Capacity is capped at 3,200 people an hour rather than the 3,600 the operator wanted, and 250,000 euros must go toward compensatory measures. No construction or opening date has been set, though the upgrade is partly aimed at clearing bottlenecks before the 2031 Alpine Ski World Championships.
Resort Spotlight: Hoshino Tomamu - Corporate Japan's Mountain Playground Revisited
Hoshino Tomamu is the ski resort equivalent of a conference hotel that happens to have excellent powder. Built for corporate retreats and package tourists, it offers genuine Hokkaido snow on surprisingly limited terrain - 29 runs spread across 585 vertical metres.
La Thuile's New Cable Car Replaces Two Ageing Chairlifts
La Thuile is spending 38.7 million US dollars on a new 10-person cable car linking Les Suches to Chaz Dura, replacing the La Combe and Chaz Dura chairlifts after nearly forty years of service. Built by Leitner, the new cable car runs 1,950 metres to a top station at 2,576 metres, carrying up to 3,000 people an hour with a six-minute ride. It also improves the connection to La Rosiere in France via the Petit-Saint-Bernard Pass, and is on track to open for the 2026/27 season.
The Remarkables Adds Scarpa Bowl to Its Inbounds Terrain
The Remarkables is adding new inbounds terrain for winter, bringing the Scarpa Bowl - known locally as the Toilet Bowl - into its lift-accessed network after years as backcountry-only ground. The roughly 500 metre run is reached by bootpacking from the top of the Sugar Bowl chairlift, with a shuttle picking skiers up from the road at the bottom. It's a smaller, faster addition than the resort's planned Doolans expansion, though the new terrain hasn't opened yet due to a lack of snow this season.
Ski Portillo Cut Off After Storm Dumps More Than 4.5 Metres of Snow
Ski Portillo remains isolated after an extended storm buried the Chilean resort under more than 4.5 metres of snow, with both ground and air access suspended since Tuesday while crews monitor avalanche hazards and worsening weather. Resort officials say further snowfall is expected in the coming days and haven't set a timeline for reopening the mountain road. Once access resumes, the scale of the snowpack could set up a strong season at one of the Southern Hemisphere's most historic ski resorts.
Resort Spotlight: Lotte Arai - Japan's Corporate Ski Anomaly With 22 Metres of Annual Snowfall
Lotte Arai receives 22 metres of annual snowfall - exceptional even by Japanese standards - but its corporate ownership model and limited terrain create an unusual cost-benefit equation. Here's what the numbers actually mean on the ground.
Resort Spotlight: Banff Sunshine Village - Nine Metres of Snow and a Season That Runs Until May
Banff Sunshine Village sits at 1,660m base and receives 9.27m of snow annually. Inside Banff National Park, it offers a six-month season and terrain split that skews heavily advanced - though the crowds and lift infrastructure tell their own story.