Teton Pass ski area in Montana was forced to close mid-season due to the impact of the worst snowfall in 55 years.
The locally owned ski resort operated for only four full days this season due to warmer weather associated with El Niño and the driest conditions recorded in the mountain’s 55-year history.
Charles Hlavac, owner of Teton Pass ski area, announced the early closure in a six-page letter, saying, “It is more representative of a September snowpack than a mid-winter one.”
Under normal circumstances, the Teton Pass receives an annual snowfall of 300 inches, but the 2023-2024 season marked the lowest precipitation totals in the mountain’s recorded history.
Each centimeter of snow contains less moisture than usual, and the region receives only 42 percent of the average snow water equivalent, as indicated by snow cover data.
Teton Pass ski area in Montana forced to close mid-season due to impact of worst snowfall in 55 years
The locally owned ski resort (pictured last year) operated for only four full days this season due to warmer weather associated with El Niño and the driest conditions recorded in the mountain’s 55-year history.
Under normal circumstances, Teton Pass (pictured last year) receives an annual snowfall of 300 inches, but the 2023-2024 season marked the lowest precipitation totals in the mountain’s recorded history.
El Niño, caused by a change in the distribution of warm water in the Pacific Ocean around the equator, caused a drastic change in winter weather conditions across the country this year.
Despite dumping more snow on northern California, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and areas of Texas and Oklahoma, the weather pattern does not favor Montana in the upcoming forecast, Hlavac said.
“I spent a lot of time this week looking at longer-range climate models of the jet stream, and all I can see between 16 and 30 days is more of the same ‘El Niño’ pattern, which does not favor Montana for significant moisture. ,’ he said.
Last week, temperatures above 50 degrees, combined with intermittent rains, destroyed the scant layer of snow that the season had accumulated.
Hlavac remained optimistic about the weather this past weekend, but the eight inches of snow the area received fell “on the lower end of what was expected,” he said.
“Unfortunately, that storm started as rain and fell on unfrozen ground…The plow caught in the mud under the snow and revealed what was still underneath,” he wrote.
Each centimeter of snow contains less moisture than usual, and the region receives only 42 percent of the average snow water equivalent, as indicated by snow cover data.
Last week, temperatures above 50 degrees, coupled with intermittent rains, destroyed the scant snow cover that the season had accumulated.
The decision to close the complex was not an easy one, as Hlavac noted the financial burden in his letter.
“The financial hole we have dug is big and we don’t think we can get out of it even if snow appears.”
“The right decision from a truly non-emotional business perspective is to ‘cut off the limb to save life,’ or in other words, end this season now, so we can secure more seasons in the future.”
‘We hope we have proven over time that we are not afraid of the incredibly hard work that comes with operating a uniquely challenging business in a sometimes hostile environment.
‘We do not consider ourselves to be a give-up person and we recognize that this decision may be viewed as such by some now or in the future. This decision will remain, but we have weighed the alternatives.
Charles Hlavac, owner of Teton Pass ski area, announced the early closure in a six-page letter, saying, “It is more representative of a September snowpack than a mid-winter one.”
Every week or so, Hlavac had to take to Instagram to announce the resort’s closure due to warmer weather and minimal snowfall.
The Hlavac resort is one of many locally owned ski areas affected by the decline, but more variable, natural snowfall across the country in recent years.
Winter has never fully embraced the resort this season, as photos and videos shared on social media provided a glimpse of the challenges the ski resort faced in recent months.
A video posted two weeks ago captured areas of muddy terrain, exposed grass and bare earth at the resort, replacing the usual blanket of snow.
Hlavac then wrote: ‘Is this what they meant by the dry January challenge? Strap on those anti-gravity boots and make the best of it.
Every week or so, I had to take to Instagram to announce the resort’s closure due to warmer weather and minimal snowfall.
Already in the first days, Hlavac warned in one of his posts about the snow conditions that were not ideal: ‘The snow cover is very low in density and early season conditions prevail. Expect buried objects such as rocks, stumps, and logs.
The Hlavac resort is one of many locally owned ski areas affected by the decline, but more variable, natural snowfall across the country in recent years.
According to data from the Environmental Protection Agency, total snowfall has decreased by 57 percent at weather stations.
Additionally, from 1982 to 2021, the snowpack season was shortened at about 86 percent of the sites where snowpack was measured, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported.
Across all sites, the length of the snowpack season decreased by an average of about 18 days.
Hlavac said running a ski resort feels like a gamble every year, as the resort pours money into payroll insurance and taxes early in the season in hopes it will pay off next season.
“We are becoming delinquent on all of that, and the weight of that tension is real,” he said.
‘Keeping waiting for winter is like continuing to gamble, but now we’re playing with someone else’s money. “He doesn’t feel financially responsible.”
