Western Skiing and Snow Loss

Warming temperatures and declining snow reliability are reshaping skiing and alpine snowfields across the western United States.

Colorado’s St. Mary’s snowfield illustrates the recreational and cultural consequences of perennial snow loss, while research on western resorts points to shorter natural-snow seasons and less dependable early-season conditions for snowmaking. Higher-elevation and historically snowier resorts may remain more resilient, but vulnerability varies substantially by location. The subject also requires separating long-term climate trends from ordinary year-to-year snowfall variability.