While much of the ski industry is determining how to best capitalize on the April Fools’ Day shenanigans, Alta Ski Area, Utah, has surpassed a very real milestone—amidst an ongoing storm, the ski area hit 500 inches of seasonal snowfall.
More powder’s on the way. Between five to nine inches of additional snow could fall at Alta Ski Area before the day is done, with more seasonally appropriate weather—read: springy, warm—expected by the weekend, according to a forecast from the National Weather Service.
Alta Ski Area is among the snowiest ski areas in North America. Its average seasonal snowfall total is 548 inches, so despite crossing the 500-inch mark, the mountain is still a few storms away from achieving a regular season snowfall-wise.
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Photo: Alta Ski Area
In all likelihood, though, Alta Ski Area will meet that bar. According to the ski area, it receives plenty of snow during its final month of operations—77 inches, to be exact.
A handful of North American resorts remain ahead of Alta Ski Area in this season’s competition for the most snow. Alyeska Resort, Alaska, is reporting a winter total of nearly 600 inches. Mt. Baker Ski Area, Washington—another reliable powder skiing contender—had seen 551 inches as of March 24.
(Baker also holds the world record for most snowfall in a single winter, as verified by NOAA. During the winter of 1998 and 1999, it received a whopping 1,140 inches).
Despite a snowy start to April, Alta Ski Area’s closing date of April 20 is fast approaching. Beyond that, Utah skiers will need to turn to other resorts in the state if they want to continue skiing and riding the chairlifts.
Solitude, Brighton, and Snowbird all plan to continue offering skiing and riding into May. Of these three, Snowbird has the latest planned closing date—May 26.
Alta Ski Area, meanwhile, contributed to the April Fools’ chaos this afternoon. Their silly hoax? A proposed replacement of the Supreme lift with a covered conveyor belt that spans a mile. It sounds pretty cool, honestly.
Related: First Snowfall of Season Blankets Chilean Ski Resort
