More US & Canadian Ski Areas Open Early For 24-25 Seasons

More big name North American ski area have opened early or announced they will be doing s over the next few days.  They’re crediting big snowfalls for their decisions.

Those opening early include the biggest of them all, Whistler Blackcomb, which is opening a day early, later today.

In Colorado Aspen Snowmass say that thanks to recent storm cycles that have delivered nearly two feet (60cm) of early season snow and favourable temperatures for snowmaking, they’re going to open for their 2024-25 season on Saturday 23 November, five days ahead of their originally scheduled opening. 

“Thanks to the dedication of our hard-working resort teams and the help of some great early season snow, Aspen Snowmass is grateful to welcome another season and celebrate an early opening,” said Geoff Buchheister, CEO of Aspen Skiing Company.

A number of Californian ski areas have also opened early, joining Mammoth and others. With 9 inches of new snow in the last week and more actively falling, Heavenly Mountain Resort announced that it would open two days earlier than originally planned on Wednesday, November 20.

“It has been such a privilege to work alongside our dedicated team as they have been working tirelessly ahead of our opening day,” said Shaydar Edelmann, Vice President and General Manager of Heavenly Mountain Resort. “Thanks to them – and some recent help from Mother Nature – we can open for the season two days ahead of schedule. I am so thankful for the contributions of the team, and every single one of us is fired up to welcome guests back to the mountain and soak in the great vibes and those iconic winter views of Lake Tahoe.”

A second Vail Resorts-owned Californian ski area, Northstar, has also opened a few days early.

North of the border several other BC ski areas are opening early, including Big White, six days ahead of their target day and Silver Star.

It’s less good news on the east coast though where, although a few areas have already opened with limited terrain, others are announcing delays due to a lack of natural snowfall and few cold temperature windows for snowmaking.

“Not the announcement we wanted to make, but it is the one we need to make. Due to the limited snowmaking windows we've had this November, we will be postponing our Opening Day. Right now we just need about 36-48 hours of good snowmaking temps to open up our Gate House terrain, which we could see starting Sunday evening. We also have our eyes on a few potential storms that if they delivered enough snow down low, could perhaps get us open,” a spokesperson for Vermont’s Sugarbush explained.