Powderchaser: Storm Warning

Snow Reports:

Arapahoe Basin open H 71° L 36° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open 5 of 8 Base Lower/Upper 47/47

Ashcroft Ski Touring closed H 70° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Aspen Highlands closed H 70° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 5 Base Lower/Upper /

Aspen Mountain closed H 70° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 8 Base Lower/Upper /

Aspen/Snowmass Nordic Trail System closed H 70° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Beaver Creek closed H 69° L 39° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 25 Base Lower/Upper /

Breckenridge closed H 66° L 41° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 31 Base Lower/Upper /

Buttermilk closed H 70° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 8 Base Lower/Upper /

Copper Mountain Resort closed H 67° L 40° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 22 Base Lower/Upper /

Crested Butte Mountain Resort closed H 69° L 39° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 16 Base Lower/Upper /

Crested Butte Nordic Center closed H 69° L 39° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Devil's Thumb Ranch closed H 69° L 37° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Durango closed H 64° L 34° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open 9 of 10 Base Lower/Upper 47/51

Eldora Mountain Resort closed H 71° L 40° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 11 Base Lower/Upper /

Gold Run Nordic Center closed H 66° L 41° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Grand Lake Touring Center closed H 68° L 40° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Irwin closed H 69° L 39° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 1 Base Lower/Upper 80/80

Kendall Mountain Ski Area closed H 60° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 1 Base Lower/Upper /

Keystone closed H 65° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 20 Base Lower/Upper /

Loveland Ski Area closed H 68° L 39° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 9 Base Lower/Upper /

Monarch Mountain closed H 75° L 45° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 6 Base Lower/Upper /

Powderhorn Resort closed H 79° L 47° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 4 Base Lower/Upper /

Purgatory at Durango Mountain Resort closed H 80° L 39° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 10 Base Lower/Upper /

Silverton Mountain closed H 60° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 1 Base Lower/Upper /

Ski Cooper closed H 59° L 32° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 5 Base Lower/Upper /

Ski Granby Ranch closed H 69° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 5 Base Lower/Upper /

Ski Hesperus closed H 77° L 44° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 1 Base Lower/Upper /

Snow Mountain Ranch closed H 69° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Snowmass closed H 67° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 21 Base Lower/Upper /

SolVista Basin closed H 50° L 28° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open 0 of 5 Base Lower/Upper 24/25

Steamboat closed H 76° L 49° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 18 Base Lower/Upper /

Steamboat Ski Touring Center closed H 73° L 50° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Sunlight Mountain Resort closed H 74° L 42° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 3 Base Lower/Upper /

Telluride Ski Resort closed H 60° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 18 Base Lower/Upper /

Tennessee Pass Nordic Center closed H 59° L 32° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Vail closed H 67° L 40° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 31 Base Lower/Upper /

Vail Resorts Nordic School closed H 68° L 40° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Vista Verde Ranch closed H 69° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of Base Lower/Upper /

Winter Park closed H 68° L 39° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 26 Base Lower/Upper /

Wolf Creek Ski Area closed H 79° L 38° 24 hour snow " 48 hours snow " Lifts Open of 7 Base Lower/Upper /

Powderchaser: Storm Warning

[ March 29, 2010 - 1:34pm ]

Loveland March

Enlarge Photo

The Bullwheel

Dek:

Our weather forecaster is calling for more big storms this spring, everywhere from the Pacific Northwest to the Wasatch to the Rockies. It's not too late to ski powder—get to Mount Baker or Crested Butte or Snowbird this week.

Spring has sprung where temps are expected to reach the high 70s by Tuesday in Denver however don't put the boards away yet as a powerful storm is going to pound the Northwest Monday and Tuesday with lowering snow levels and 9-15 inches in many spots (Mount Baker could be deep by Tuesday morning). The Sierra will see 8-14 inches by mid-week primarily up north. The low pressure tracks over Wyoming on Tuesday morning with very high winds from the Southwest favoring areas such as Grand Targhee and Jackson Hole with moderate snow likely during the day (3-6) and evening (4-8).

The Wasatch will see light snow and very strong winds Tuesday night and Wednesday (3-7 inches) however a strong cold front will shift all of the action to a Northwesterly flow by evening setting up a favorable pattern for 9-18 inches by Thursday morning (Cottonwood Canyons—Snowbird, Alta, Brighton, Solitude). In Colorado, moderate snow will fall over Crested Butte and perhaps Aspen on Wednesday however the deep won’t be seen until late Wednesday and Thursday where many areas might exceed 15 inches. The low pressure will stall in central Utah so my best guess would be areas like Aspen, Crested Butte, and Silverton will do very well on accumulations with a shift to the northern mountains on Thursday when Vail and Steamboat will see good dumpage. Snow will linger over Colorado on Friday with high pressure expected by the weekend and the hint of another storm by early next week. Unfortunately the East Coast gets washed out this week with 4-8 inches of rain expected in southern New England and some snow possible in northern Maine near the Canadian border.

THE CHASE? I would hit Mount Baker or Crystal on Tuesday (9-14 inches storm ski day) and plan on being at Jackson Hole or Targhee for Wednesday (7-12). Thursday will be the deepest day for the Wasatch (11-18) and perhaps even areas in south central Colorado such as Crested Butte, Silverton, Aspen (snowing that day). Late on Thursday could see decent dumpage in Summit County and areas closer to Denver so Friday could be your fourth day in a row for faceshots. The powder will get deeper as the week progresses. For more predictions from the Powderchaser, check out www.powderchasers.com.