Lower Snowfall Forces Ski Resorts to Take Drastic Measures

TAOS SKI VALLEY, N.M. — This winter, ski resorts across the Western United States are grappling with some of the lowest snowfall in decades, compounded by an intense heat wave. In response, places like New Mexico’s Taos Ski Valley are resorting to bulldozing mountain snow to keep their runs operational.

Park City, Utah, typically bustling with visitors, has seen a sharp decline in activity due to snowfall that’s been roughly half of what it usually is. Streets that would normally be filled with skiers and diners are eerily quiet. Meanwhile, ski areas in Colorado, such as Vail, are looking more like a desert with brown dirt covering the slopes, leaving fewer than 20% of trails in operation.

Sadly, spring skiing seems to be a distant dream this year.

According to a tally by Reuters, more than half of the 120 ski resorts in the western U.S. are either closing early or not opening at all due to an unusually warm winter marked by record low snowfall. Typically, only about a dozen resorts make the decision to close early.

Climate scientist Daniel Swain noted that nearly all ski destinations in the region are experiencing unprecedented low levels of snowfall. “This year was particularly poor across most areas,” he explained, linking this issue to ongoing climate change. “The West has been unusually warm.”

For skiers and snowboarders, the mild winter has already shifted to a stifling spring. Often, this season brings essential spring snowfalls, which are critical for the local economy, supporting bars, restaurants, and hotels that thrive on spring break guests.

During the week ending March 26, the National Weather Service reported that temperatures across the western U.S. soared 20 to 30 degrees above normal, breaking records in over 150 locations.

This disheartening season has ski patrollers pondering the future viability of the roughly $20 billion U.S. ski and snowboard industry, which sustains more than 190,000 jobs. The lack of snow raises alarm bells for wildfires in highlands typically blanketed in snow, as the dry earth escalates the potential for fire outbreaks. It also poses risks to water supplies for major cities like Phoenix and Las Vegas that depend on melting snow from the Colorado River.

Abby Freireich, a longtime visitor to the ski resort, observed a drastic reduction in traffic in Park City, where 158 inches of snow have fallen this year—less than half the usual amount. The resort plans to remain open until April 20.

“It’s like a strange sci-fi landscape out there, with most of it out of bounds for skiing,” Freireich, 46, from New York, remarked, noting that her son, Zachary, 11, had to navigate around rocks and enormous puddles while skiing.

Vail Resorts, which encompasses ski areas such as Park City, Vail, Beaver Creek, and Keystone, labeled this season as a “worst-case weather scenario” for its 37 North American resorts. On March 9, the company revised its fiscal 2026 net profit forecast downward by 30%, reducing it from a range of $201 million to $276 million to between $144 million and $190 million.

“Resorts in Colorado and Utah have recorded the lowest snowfall in over 30 years, marking the harshest winter we’ve faced throughout the Rocky Mountains,” stated CEO Rob Katz.

Allison Buffum, who operates a restaurant in Silverthorne, Colorado, said her business is seeing a drop of 10 to 15%. “There’s just no snow in the mountains. This has been the worst winter since 1976,” she added, mentioning that some visitors are embracing the warm weather on outdoor patios instead of hitting the slopes.

In Breckenridge, cross-country skiing enthusiasts were seen shoveling snow to clear the trails.

Anton Artemenko and his wife volunteered at the Breckenridge Nordic Center, helping to move snow from wooded areas onto the muddy trails. The center has closed three weeks earlier than usual.

“It was a tough job,” he reflected on the challenging task.

At Taos Ski Valley, where the total snowfall for the season is just 76 inches—less than a third of the norm—shirtless skiers were spotted “water skiing” through large puddles at the base of the resort.

Just days before the resort’s closure, Maylin Bubala, a 19-year-old student from Oregon State University, skied in 80-degree heat wearing a bikini top. “The temperature spikes we’re seeing are pretty unusual,” she commented, adding that she recently wrote a paper on the environmental effects of early snowmelt, saying, “This isn’t normal.”