Ski powder much?
Skiers around the west are throwing out big claims this season. Things like “this could be the best season I’ve ever had” and “this is the most snow I’ve ever skied”. Magical numbers have graced the snow stakes, and surprise morning freshies are more common than not. And not to mention Utah—consistently blowing up our OpenSnow forecasts. We reached out to friend of the shop and winter weather expert Joel Gratz for his expertise on why this winter was so special.
Return of La Niña
Lots of weather forecasting models predicted the third consecutive La Niña pattern at the beginning of this season. Historically, La Niña tends to bring deeper precipitation totals around the country. Skiers are always interested in these weather patterns, and make for great ski film topics, like the classic Attack of La Niña. But Joel tells us it’s not just La Niña behind these deep days. There have even been several seasons with La Niña patterns that have proved disappointing for some zones (i.e. the last two winters).
Other weather patterns play a role in what the actual weather on the ground will be. The location of individual storm cycles and other global weather patterns (like the jet stream or Quasi-biennial Oscillation) all interplay to create different conditions. Overall? Luck was on our side this season, with a mashup of all the right things in the right place.
Feet, not inches, in California
California and the Sierra Nevada are known for their deep snow. But, this year is particularly deep. This winter has been one of the deepest seasons on record in the Tahoe area. Photos of houses completely buried in snow and Palisades Tahoe struggling to dig the resort out all support the evidence. So why does California get such extreme snow? As they say, location, location, location.
“Big snowfall requires big moisture, and the most moisture comes from oceans. California is located next to the Pacific Ocean, so they can get a LOT of moisture moving in from the Pacific Ocean, and this high amount of moisture allows the atmosphere to create massive, multi-feet snowfall days.” Joel explained.
In short, California’s location helps them from year to year, but the magical cocktail of weather patterns this year elevated them from normal to big.
“The Greatest Snow on Earth”
Utah on the other hand, is more prone to Colorado like weather. Deep snow on occasion, with bouts of drought. The intercontinental snow is usually lighter, more fluffy, and more sparse. But this year, it felt like their 10-day OpenSnow forecasts were completely in orange. Day after day, big storm after big storm. So what’s going on over the Divide?
Joel explains “the average storm track this season went through central California and then extended into Utah and then Wyoming and Colorado. This means that the favorable storm track for California also created a lot of snow for Utah, and enough moisture made it from the Pacific Ocean and across California to bring big snow to Utah.” A good amount of luck goes into your local weather, and Utah happened to hit the jackpot this year. Luckily, us here in Colorado could ride their coattails. But being on the otherside of the mountains gives the storms a chance to get weaker, giving us lower snow totals.
In my opinion? Karmic relief after a light snow year last season. They earned it.
And the East gets some too.
Throughout this season, while we were out playing in powder, I realized many of the eastern mountains weren’t quite getting the same knee deep powder days. That doesn’t seem entirely fair, does it? It turns out, Mother Nature is just trying to stay in balance. According to Joel, “weather patterns often even out. When one area is snowy, another area is dry, and when one area is cold, another area is warm. Unfortunately this season, the east coast was unlucky as the western US was cold and snowy and the eastern US was relatively warm and lacked snow.”
The good news? Eastern skiers are getting some seriously deep days now. Let’s be sure to share our snow dance energy for skiers everywhere.
What does this big snow year mean for the future?
So, big dumps mean more big dumps, right? Not so much. Joel explained we might be heading for an El Nino year next year, but winter weather relies on much more than just one weather pattern. We’ll have to wait and see how the rest of the year lines up.
In the meantime? Don’t be down on the beginning of spring. This deep winter will have us all skiing well into the spring. Our first few warm, sunny days on the mountains here in Colorado have left us excited for beach days and parking lot hangs. Let’s enjoy it while we can.
