In last week’s column of The Outlook, I expressed hope a Christmas Miracle would bring us snow ahead of the holiday. While the storm did not come together quite as I had hoped, we did see snowfall on Saturday with a few inches of fresh to add to the festive ambiance around town and on the mountain. It was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.
As for where we stand now, we continue to fall further off the pace of a “normal” winter in the Park City region. Our snowpack was near normal two weeks ago but now stands at about 70% of normal.
Earlier in 2023, we saw one of the snowiest months in Utah’s history. March broke records in many locations and ultimately culminated in a record snowpack for the state of Utah. With these records on 2023’s resume, it would be fitting if we were to close out the year with snow. Unfortunately, Mother Nature has other plans.
High pressure will dominate the weather in the Intermountain West over the next week.
A trough of low pressure remains parked off the coast of California. This will spread storm energy to the immediate coast, but farther inland in Utah, we can only hope for scraps — a few clouds and maybe a stray snow shower this weekend. Otherwise, we remain dry and mild.
The skiing, to its credit, remains good. Groomers have been riding nicely and there is enough open terrain for skiers and boarders to spread around the mountain. Off-piste conditions, however, leave quite a bit to be desired. Simply put, we need snow.
My sanity starts to wear thin during long periods of high pressure. My mood is negatively impacted. In all honesty, I become a less pleasant human being. At times I have tried to dissociate a bit from my obsession with powder and skiing — for the sake of my family. At the same time, my passion for skiing and snow is probably why I have the career I do. Why I am writing this column right now. And maybe, if you are anything like me, why you are reading it.
So now, for your sake, my sake, and the sake of anybody else who might be feeling down because it isn’t snowing, I am going to share some good news. There are signs that the pattern will finally change in early January. The trough of low pressure will move east. The ridge will weaken. Finally, the storm door could open.
While any signs of this pattern change are somewhat speculative at this point, I have an earnest belief that next week I will have real storms to talk about. I guess we will find out.
For up-to-date forecasts, you can subscribe to Evan’s Utah Daily Snow forecast on OpenSnow.com and the OpenSnow app.