As predictions of a moderate El Nino winter stoke hopes for an extra snowy season across parts of the West, several ski resorts announced record early openings this week.
Loveland Ski Area, about 50 miles west of Denver, and Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort, at Mount Charleston, Nev., opened Wednesday. Following close behind: Colorado's Arapahoe Basin and Lake Tahoe's Boreal Mountain Resort, both of which are slated to start welcoming skiers today (Friday).
This week's openings – Loveland's is the earliest in 40 years — represent more "marketing snow" than the real white stuff, says Marc Guido, editor of FirstTracksOnline.com. But, he adds, ski operators are hoping that the weather system known as El Nino could translate to some bigger-than-normal dumps this winter.
Historically, an El Nino of moderate intensity means less snow for mountains in the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies and more for those in California and the Southwest, says Mike Halpert, deputy director for NOAA's Climate Prediction Center. If that holds true this year, a storm that brought up to 8 inches of white stuff to the Lake Tahoe area last weekend could be a welcome harbinger, adds Eric Doyne, spokesman for Ski Lake Tahoe. The region's resorts typically start snowmaking in early November and open by Thanksgiving.
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