Colorado ski resorts opening, but mega-resort Vail has scanty snow
Six Colorado resorts have already opened, with the help of chilly temperatures that allowed for snowmaking operations. But mega-resort Vail, due to open Friday, may only have one trail available because of scanty snow.
Arapahoe Basin on the Continental Divide was the first to open Oct. 10 and had a base of 18 inches Monday. Keystone opened Nov. 2, a week earlier than scheduled, after a series of October storms. It had an 18-inch base
Flurries fell on the Colorado mountains Monday as a cold front moved through, good news for ski areas that have been experiencing dry, warmer-than-average weather this month. It could bring 3 to 6 inches of new snow to the Continental Divide.
But Ellen Heffernan with the National Weather Service office in Grand Junction wasn’t holding out a lot of hope for Vail, where the ski resort is set to open Friday. She said a dry pattern hanging over Vail is likely to persist into late November.
Vail plans to start the season with only one trail open. The last two years, early snow allowed Vail to open with more trails.
Two other resorts are scheduled to open this week. Winter Park is due to open Wednesday and Crested Butte expects to open Saturday.