Alta looking awful bleak for November 28th | Photo: Alta Ski Area | Cover Photo: USDA
  • Alta is well below its November average.
  • 5 watershed regions are measuring 0% of their average for this time of year. 

30″ of snow this month. The last time Alta Ski Area saw less snow in November was way back in 2009 when the resort reported a meager 22″ of snow during what is normally known as the first month of ski season in Utah.

Related: NOAA Forecasting La Nina For 2017/18 | Ski Resorts That Should Get Above Average Snowfall

Looking to the rest of the Beehive state, the picture remains bleak. Below the Wasatch, 4 different watershed zones are measuring a mind-blowing 0% of their average snowpack for this date in history. That’s not good AT ALL.

Shortly after opening for the season, Snowbird was forced to shut down its lifts due to warm temps and a waning base depth.

The average snowfall for Alta during the month of November is 70″ with the month’s biggest snowfall total having come in November of 1995 when the  ski area saw 205.9″ of snow in a single month! Obviously this year is a far cry from that season, which ended up being the snowiest in the resort’s storied history (745.4″).

The good news is we still have time. In 1968 Alta started the season with only 22″ and the ski area ended up having a decent season with a total snowfall of 479.5″. On the flip side, good starts can mean bad endings. The 2014/2015 saw decent early season with 59.5″ in November which was ultimately followed by the worst season in Alta’s history. The ski area wound up with a depressing 267.5″ that season.

But sometimes, bad starts just mean plain ole bad endings– like in 1976 when Alta recorded its lowest snow total for November (13.2″). By the end, they saw a year end snowfall total of 314.5″. Let’s hope we’re not in for a season like that…

So in the meantime, keep your snow dances going because in the end– we never know how the season will shake out.

Find the historical record of Alta snowfall here: Snowfall at Alta Guard 1945- Present

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