Where Skiers Should Head This Winter, According to the Forecast

How this year's ski season plays out will largely depend on the influence of El Niño. What parts of the country will ski enthusiasts want to visit, and where might the conditions be subpar for winter sports? Read on for what you need to know about the ski season forecast in the U.S.

West is the Best This Year for Ski Conditions

The early ski season forecast is calling for an improvement on the slopes out West while the eastern U.S. will see less than ideal conditions.  How much of a grip El Niño ends up having will drive how much snow the nation's ski resorts pick up in the months ahead.

It was a dismal ski season last year for much of the West. Meteorologists are offering hope that things will turn around this year for the ski resorts across the Sierra Nevada and the Rockies. The season is expected to kick off early across a large swath of the Sierra Nevada and to the east into the southern and central portions of the Rockies. Colorado's Arapahoe Basin Ski Area has already opened a few runs to the public.

Strong El Niño years typically result in more snow for the interior West. Should this develop as expected, it will be a complete turnaround from last year's snow patterns. For example, Salt Lake City experienced its least snowy season since record-keeping began in the 1880s when it picked up just 3.7 inches of snow over the course of the entire winter season. A long-range forecast from AccuWeather is predicting that the largest metro area in Utah will notch 50 to 65 inches this winter, coming in just above the historical average.

The expectation of more snow for the West is fueling the prediction of the best ski conditions in the U.S. belonging to Colorado, Utah, Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Nevada. However, it may be a bit different in the Pacific Northwest. El Niño years tend to result in less snow for this corner of the country. The highest chance of regular snow events will be in December to early January.

Shorter Season for the Midwest

The Midwest will see a little bit of everything from Mother Nature this winter, making the ski season more unpredictable. A brief time of cold temperatures and snow by the end of November could give some resorts a jumpstart on building the snowpack. However, that could reverse in December when all indications are that temperatures will land above the historical average.

Another burst of cold temperatures and an active winter storm track could work to pad those snow totals by the end of January. The bottom line is that it could be a bumpy season for the slopes across the Upper Midwest. The tug-of-war of the temperatures could wreak havoc for resorts that have to rely on snowmaking machines.

Inconsistent Winter Weather for the East

The eastern third of the U.S. will experience a similar erratic weather pattern. For instance, while November will start on a positive note for New England with enough cold weather to fire up the snow machines, frequent intrusions of warmer air throughout the winter will make it difficult to maintain the snowpack. Temperatures are forecast to trend well above average levels in December for most of the East.

The storm track is forecast to become more consistent during January and February, translating to more chances of natural snow for the resorts in New England and the southern Appalachians. The worry is that warmer temperatures associated with these storms could deliver ice and rain along with the snow at times, creating messy conditions on the slopes.

In general, the best ski conditions in the East this winter will be found in the northern reaches of New England and upstate New York. The prime time to book that ski trip in the eastern U.S. will likely be from the end of January through mid-February when the storm train picks up. The mid-Atlantic and the southern Appalachians could see an early end to the winter sports season due to a lack of prolonged cold temperatures.

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