Another Major North American Ski Resort Delays Opening

Another western ski resort, this time the famed Jackson Hole, Wyoming, has pressed pause on the start of the 2025-26 season.

The ski resort announced in a press release that the delay stemmed from unseasonably warm temperatures and low snow.

Around two feet of snow has fallen at Jackson Hole’s mid-mountain this month, but the mild weather has affected snowmaking, meaning there isn’t enough snow to cover the slopes, and most of the natural snow has melted from warm temps. Many ski resorts rely heavily on snowmaking to open in November, depending on the year.

“The mountain just needs a little more time, but we are monitoring conditions closely, and the forecast is favorable for both snowfall and snowmaking,” said Jackson Hole CEO Doug Pierini in the press release. “We’re making every effort to open as soon as possible and expect to announce Opening Day for our historic 60th Anniversary season soon.”

“We thank our Mountain Operations team for their incredibly hard work to get the Resort ready, and we look forward to celebrating Opening Day together soon!” Pierini added.

In an update on its website, Jackson Hole added some words of encouragement: “The last time we delayed opening, we ended the season with nearly 600″. Keep on snow dancing!” That was in 2016.

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The delay is hardly unusual, given the state of other mountains in California, Utah, Idaho, and British Columbia. Several major destinations, including Park City, Deer Valley, and Palisades Tahoe, have also tweaked their opening days. 

North America hasn’t been totally devoid of snow, though. 

Mammoth Mountain, in southern California, managed to start its season after a brief delay and is now running multiple lifts with a solid chunk of terrain open. A group of Colorado ski areas has been open for much of November, and this week, they benefited from a very welcome storm.

And the rest of the season, as always, could deliver a dramatic turnaround, depending on where the weather dice fall. What we can say for sure is this: skiing will be getting in the way of fewer Thanksgiving traditions than usual this year. We hope you’ve been training for flag football and the Turkey Trot.

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