6 Jul 11 - As Fourth of July weekend kicks off,
people across the West are hitting the slopes from California to
Colorado, said this article in USA Today. They're "donning shorts,
bikini tops and Hawaiian shirts — and then they're hitting the slopes."
Interestingly, the article waxed eloquent about all of the sunshine hitting the
slopes and late-lingering snowpack, but somehow neglected to mention why that
massive snowpack is there. It somehow neglected to mention the record-breaking
snowfall last winter - two times, four times, even an incredible seven times
normal.
California's Alpine Meadows has offered Independence Day skiing just one other
time in its 50-year history, while Mammoth Mountain advertised that you could
"ski to your heart's content all day long."
Colorado's Arapahoe Basin Ski Area last offered skiing on Fourth of July weekend
in 1997, as did Washington State's Crystal Mountain Ski Area.
At Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort in Utah, 783 inches of snow this season
smashed the old record of 688 inches set in the winter of 1983-84. By the time
the resort closes on July 5th, it will have been open a record 202 days.
But conditions are proving frustrating — even deadly — for campers and hikers.
At Yosemite National Park in California, several of the park's popular
high-country campgrounds, cabins and other amenities remain closed due to snow.
Meanwhile at nearby Stanislaus National Forest, much of the terrain above 8,000
feet remains blanketed in snow, while some lower-elevation areas are blocked by
high- and fast-running creeks and overflowing rivers fed by the massive thawing
snowpack.
See also:
Snowbird snowpack 525 percent of normal
11 Jun 11 - "There are places on the mountain that will probably retain snow all
summer long." That's how ice ages begin!
See
Snowbird snowpack 525 percent of normal
The mighty NY Times: Record snowpack threatens western states
23 May 11 - Blizzard-filled winter and unusually cold and wet spring leaves
record snowpack at more than 90 measuring sites from Montana to New Mexico and
California to Colorado. It must have pained the New York Times to speak of this
record snowpack. They'd much rather talk of global warming.
See
Mighty NY Times - Record snowpack threatens western states
Historic snowpack brings historic flood threat for West
21 May 11 - Yesterday as I drove east from Libby, Montana, I kept seeing lakes
that didn’t appear on my map. Then I noticed miles fence posts with only 2, 3, 4
inches of their tops poking out of the newly formed lakes.
See
Historic snowpack brings historic flood threat for West
728 percent of normal snowpack on Mammoth Mountain
10 Jun 11 - At end of May it still had twice as much snow as during an entire
normal winter.
See
728 percent of normal snowpack on Mammoth Mountain
Squaw Valley - Most snow in recorded
history
29 May 11 - Over 700 inches of total snow accumulation -- something that has
never happened in Squaw Valley's recorded history, crows the Squaw Valley USA
website.
See
Squaw Valley - Most snow in recorded history
Record snowpack spoils Memorial Day plans across
West
27 May 11 - Epic snowpack in parts of CO, UT, WY, MT, ID, Oregon, WA and CA.
Skiing great. Camping lousy to non-existent.
See
Record snowpack spoils Memorial
Record Snowfall - Mt. Bachelor open for skiing on 4th of July
With a record 650 inches of snowfall this past season, management at Oregon's
Mt. Bachelor ski area announced today that they are opening for skiing over the
4th of July weekend.
http://www.tsweekly.com/blogs.html
http://www.mammothmountain.com/ResortActivitiesEvents/Event/2772/?p=1&m=7&y=2011&evttype=resort&ret=resort&wkIdx=2