Crowded ski slope with skiers and chairlift under clear blue sky.
Image Credit: Cataloochee Ski Area.

Sometimes, the Southeast gets its ski season going earlier than the Northeast. Much to my dismay due to me residing in New England, this year is one of those cases.

Sugar Mountain was the first to announce it was opening in North Carolina. Opened on Sunday, the ski resort has six trails and three lifts open.

Cataloochee also opened up today. They opened at 8:30 a.m., giving them a slightly early opening than Sugar. They have five trails and two lifts currently available, including the new Omigosh chairlift.

Meanwhile, snowmaking is underway at other North Carolina ski resorts. This includes Beech Mountain and Hatley Pointe.

This technically means that the Southeast beat the Northeast to start their ski season. There is some skiing in the Northeast underway. This includes Ski Ward (served by a carpet lift mostly focused on lesson operations) and a hike-up snow pile at Proctor Ski Hill. Killington could be opening soon, but has yet to announce an opening date. That snow pile was saved from last winter thanks to a new Snow Secure system. Unfortunately, a warm front awaits New England this week. Bro, I’m straight up not having a good time.

Ski resort trail map with lifts, trails, and terrain zones in a snowy mountain setting.
Ski map of a mountain resort with trails and landmarks.

Image/Video Credits: Sugar Mountain, Cataloochee Ski Area

Born and raised in New Hampshire, Ian Wood became passionate about the ski industry while learning to ski at Mt. Sunapee. In high school, he became a ski patroller at Proctor Ski Area. He travelled out...