Weather
A high-confidence Friday afternoon through Saturday storm brings a solid shot of snow to much of New England, with improving snow quality as colder air filters in Friday night. Expect a brief period of denser, lower-elevation snow at the onset in the south and along the coast, then a trend to lighter, drier snow overnight as temperatures fall and snow-to-liquid ratios climb. After that, the pattern turns more hit-or-miss, with a low-confidence coastal brush Sunday night into Monday and additional, increasingly uncertain chances for snow later next week as the broader signal favors an active northern-tier storm track.
Friday Afternoon through Saturday Storm (Friday, February 20 into Saturday, February 21). Snow spreads in from the southwest Friday afternoon and ramps up into the evening, with the steadiest burst lining up well across the interior mountains. The models are largely converging on the core timing, with the strongest snowfall rates centered Friday late afternoon through late evening, then tapering to lighter snow overnight and into Saturday. Snow levels stay low enough for mostly snow at the ski areas, but temperatures flirt near freezing at the lowest elevations early, so the first few hours can run denser before colder air arrives. Once the colder air wins Friday night, SLRs generally climb into the 14-18:1 range at higher elevations, so snow quality improves notably for Saturday morning turns. Winds are a secondary factor, running breezy at times as the storm matures, with exposed ridgelines most likely to feel the impact.
Late Weekend into Midweek (Sunday, February 22 through Wednesday, February 25). Behind the storm, conditions turn seasonably cool with only spotty, light snow chances. A potential coastal system Sunday night into Monday remains a lower-confidence play, with model spread still favoring a track far enough offshore to keep most ski areas quiet, though a small westward shift would matter most for far eastern sections. Outside of that window, the signal is for occasional, minor refreshers rather than a clean, organized storm, and confidence in exact timing and placement stays limited. Temperatures generally support snow in the mountains, and when flakes do fly, SLRs lean moderate to fairly good, which helps the on-mountain experience even when accumulations are modest.
Extended Range (late next week). Guidance supports a more active pattern for the broader region as we head deeper into the final week of February, with a higher likelihood of at least one additional system somewhere in the Northeast. Confidence drops with lead time, and the biggest uncertainty becomes storm track and temperature profiles, which will determine whether the next meaningful event skews as a colder, fluffier mountain snow or a warmer, mixed-precip setup at lower elevations. Plan on a higher chance of precipitation overall, with details still evolving.
Resort Forecast Totals (Fri 2/20 – Sat 2/21)
- Killington – 9″-12″
- Mt. Bohemia – 8″-11″
- Sugarbush – 7″-10″
- Stowe – 7″-10″
- Wildcat – 7″-9″
- Sunday River – 6″-8″
- Cannon Mountain – 6″-8″
- Jay Peak – 5″-7″
- Loon Mountain – 5″-7″
- Bretton Woods – 4″-6″
- Sugarloaf – 3″-5″
- Mont Sainte-Anne – 0″
