Snow is Piling Up at the Ski Slopes, with 10 Feet in Some Spots, Making for Great Ski Conditions

Snow depth just outside the main lodge at Appalachian Ski Mtn. that leads to the ski slopes.

By Nathan Ham

Wintry precipitation and near-perfect snowmaking conditions have allowed for tremendous snow depths and great coverage at each of the ski resorts in the High Country. Snow depths have reached over 10 feet at some locations on the slopes.

“I’m amazed at the piles of snow we have in certain places. We’ve always had seasons where we make a lot of snow but this season the snow is sticking around,” said Kim Jochl, Vice President at Sugar Mountain Resort. “We are only making snow at night right now, we’ve stopped daytime snowmaking.”

So far this winter, there have not been any warm weather spurts or large rainfall events that have melted the snow. Jochl says that Sugar Mountain has a 41 to 90-inch base with parts of the slopes with much more than that.

Beech Mountain is currently reporting a snow depth of 44 to 80 inches.

“Snowmaking has been consistent this year. Conditions are the best that they have ever been in my tenure here,” said Talia Freeman, the Director of Marketing at Beech Mountain Resort. “We’ve got a lot of snow out there with significant coverage. We’ve been getting nothing but compliments on the conditions.”

Appalachian Ski Mtn. has some of the deepest snow depths that they have had in quite some time. They are currently reporting a base of 64 to 92 inches.

“We’ve got a lot of snow, some places we have 15 to 16 feet of snow. We’ve been very fortunate to have the cold weather. Our snowmakers have been the difference between a good year and a great year,” said owner Brad Moretz. “Hopefully we’ll have some good winter weather through the end of March.”

Appalachian Ski Mtn. is offering a special deal going on right now. If you purchase a membership for 2021-22, you can come and ski the rest of this season for free. That is approximately seven weeks of free skiing available for anyone who buys a membership for next season.

Currently, Appalachian Ski Mtn. is sold out for day sessions on Saturday. Night sessions are still available. Sugar Mountain tickets are sold on a first-come, first-served basis. Beech Mountain still has availability for all sessions this weekend as of Friday afternoon.

Weekend Ski Conditions

Beech Mountain Resort

All 17 trails are open with seven lifts

44-80 inch depth

Sugar Mountain Resort

All 21 trails are open with five lifts

41-90 inch base

Appalachian Ski Mtn.

All 12 trails are open with five lifts

64-92 inch base

Snow is up to the roof of the ski Instructors shack located 100 feet or so from the main lodge at Appalachian Ski Mtn..