2 Non-Glacial Resorts in the Northern Hemisphere Are Now Open for the Season

We’re officially into fall, and we’ve had dustings of snow at ski resorts across North America, whetting our appetite for winter. The days are getting shorter and colder, and the countdown to opening day is now on.

• Related: Which European Ski Resorts are Opening in October?

In Finland, they haven’t had to wait as long. Levi, the nation’s largest ski area, and Ruka, another one of the largest, opened for the season today, Friday, October 4.

“Skiing and cross-country skiing season has begun today! ❄️

The long wait is over, and the seven-month winter season will continue all the way until May. The goal is to keep skiing on the Northeast Slopes in the new Levi Six chairlift area until May 18th!”

– Levi Ski Resort

The massive undertaking of spreading stored snow began at Levi on Tuesday, September 17.

 
 
To open early, the two resorts use snow farming – saving piles of snow collected last spring under insulating covers. The Process of Snow Farming can save up to 75% of the snow from the season before. With the continued threat of climate change, snow farming provides a viable safety net for resorts. The holiday period is often the most lucrative for resorts, and having limited terrain can negatively impact the guest experience.  Using snow farming can negate these impacts regardless of the weather. Technologies like snowmaking are great when the weather is cold. However, snow farming allows resorts to have snow when snowmaking temperatures are impossible. Resorts like Ruka can open regardless of the temperature.

• Related: Mammoth Mountain, CA “Snow Farming:” A Dutiful Art on an Absolutely Massive Scale

Whistler and European resorts have begun to use snow farming or covering of glaciers to prolong, or in this case, provide an early start. As resorts are affected by climate change, dryer seasons, and earlier closing dates, nations and their ski areas must become more creative. Courchevel now uses the same technique in France and Kitzbühel in the Austrian Tirol, usually the first location in the Alps to open without a glacier.

• Related: VIDEO: Resort Turns All Year? All-Weather Snowmaking System Launched

Various resorts nationwide, from Colorado to Minnesota, have won the “Race To Open” in North America. Perpetually, some of the first to open in the United States are A-Basin and Loveland in Colorado. Unlike Ruka, these resorts rely on cold temperatures, so snowmaking can be possible in late September and October. In 2019, A-Basin opened on October 12th. It will be interesting to see how they compare to Ruka this year.

So get ready. Do your snow dances and keep an eye on the skies. North America won’t be far behind…