Montana ski resort forced to close halfway through winter due to lack of snow

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Pacific Northwest ski resorts unable to open 100% of trails due to warm start

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CHOTEAU, Mont. – Not enough snow and warm temperatures forced one Montana ski resort to call it quits for the season during the dead of winter.

"It is more representative of a September snowpack than mid-winter," wrote the Teton Pass Ski Area owner, Charles Hlavac, in an explanation and apology letter.

He said that this winter has been the driest in the mountain's 55 years of recorded history. The Teton Pass Ski Area was only open for business for four days during the 2023-2024 ski season. He points to snowpack data showing the snow water equivalent at 42% of average. That means every inch of snow holds less moisture than normal.

HERE'S WHY THE US HAS THE LOWEST SNOW COVER IN OVER A DECADE

The graph shows the amount of snow (precipitation) that accumulated going back to 1979. Winter 2024 rivals the minimum monthly levels across all years.

(USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service / FOX Weather)

"All that to say, we have received very limited snow this season, and the current conditions are not good," he continued.

"The financial hole we have dug is large, and we don’t think we could operate our way out of it even if the snow showed up," Hlavac explained. "The correct decision from a truly non-emotional business perspective is to 'cut off the limb, to save the life' or, in other words, end this season now, so we can ensure more seasons in the future."

He said that his job as a ski operator is a gamble every year. Each summer and fall, he fronts money for early season payroll, insurance premiums, property tax, big maintenance and improvement projects and start-up costs for the hopefully successful season, like purchasing food and beverages, fuel and explosives for avalanche mitigation.

WHERE IS THE SNOW? US HITS MIDPOINT OF METEOROLOGICAL WINTER

At 6,400 feet of elevation, temperatures have largely been trending above freezing with the exception of the cold snap in mid January.

(NOAA)

"We are becoming delinquent on all of that, and the weight of that stress is real," he said. "Continuing to wait for winter feels like continuing to gamble, but now we are gambling with someone else’s money. It does not feel financially responsible."

He said he is certain the mountain will see more snow the rest of the month through March and April, but he said with El Niño, it won't be enough. He called this season an anomaly, and he needed to think long-term.

COMPLEX JANUARY FORECAST SHOWS EL NINO, POLAR VORTEX, LACK OF SNOW ALL COMING INTO PLAY THIS WINTER

"I spent a bunch of time this week looking at longer range weather models of the jet stream, and everything I can see from 16-30 days out is more of the same ‘El Niño’ pattern, which does not favor Montana for significant moisture," Hlavac said. 

He points to weather extremes like 50-degree temperatures last week and rain that melted all the snow. On Saturday, the resort saw eight inches of new snow, but two days of sunshine and low moisture in the snow reduced the gain to three to six inches.

His plows and snow groomers create a muddy mess in these conditions without a deep freeze in the ground.

The plow picking up dirt and mud in the warm ground.

(Teton Pass Ski Resort)

"We don’t see ourselves as quitters, and we recognize that this decision might be viewed that way by some now or in the future," he said. "This decision will linger, but we have weighed the alternatives."

The mountain will honor all 2023/24 ski passes for the following 2024/25 ski season.