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Forecast for winter weather welcomed by snowmaking crews in Steamboat Springs

With forecasts calling for lows in the teens this week, snowmaking crews at the Steamboat Resort and Howelsen Hill are gearing up to begin snowmaking operations, as shown in this photograph from a previous fall.
John F. Russell/Steamboat Pilot & Today archive

A favorable forecast has crews at Steamboat Resort and Howelsen Hill excited to build the foundation for the 2024-25 season as they look forward to the cold temperatures needed to begin snowmaking operations.

“Every once in a while, we can make snow earlier and we’ll try to jump on that with like a skeleton crew if we can, but generally this is the time of year when it really starts to pick up,” said Ryan Olson, senior slope maintenance manager at the Steamboat Resort. “We start to get excited about making snow this time of year.”

With low temperatures expected to be in the teens Wednesday and Thursday and in the low-20s Friday through next Monday, snowmakers see the window they were hoping for to make the snow necessary to get Steamboat ski runs ready for the resort’s Nov. 23 opening.



For Olson and his crew, which includes nine year-round and 50-plus seasonal employees, the predicted cold temperatures and lower humidity present a chance take full advantage of the more than 800 hydrants and 250 snowmaking guns at their disposal.

Olson’s hope is to make enough snow to cover the opening egress, but he said if the crews get between 50% and 75% of that done, he would be happy.



“Hopefully the forecast holds up and we’re ready to go,” Olson said. “We’re going to start from Christie down, so that’ll be Sitz, Sitzback, Jess’ Cut-Off, Vogue and Stampede. If it gets warm, down low, we’ll switch to the top of the mountain on High Noon, Tomahawk and Sundial.”

He said snowmaking will continue through mid-January, when his crews will take things down and start the process of making repairs and ensuring that everything is in good working order for the next season.

“We’re super excited. Everyone is super stoked to get out and start making snow,” Olson said. “The faster we get done, the faster we get to go play.”

In downtown Steamboat Springs, Howelsen Hill Slope Foreman Robbie Shine is also excited to begin the process of getting the ski runs open to the public and members of the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club, who are eager to get on the hill for some early-season training.

“Two nights in the teens and then maybe a third night in a row, and if we get low humidity, we might be able to go for, you know, 24 to 36 hours straight,” said Shine. “We will just have to see.”

Shine said his crews placed snow guns on the face of Howelsen Hill last week, and on Monday his full-time staff members were looking forward to what Mother Nature will bring in the next few days. He said this storm is coming for the southwest with the cold air dropping in on the backside of the system.

“The front end of this storm is going to be warm, with 100% humidity … so you can’t make snow even at 25 degrees,” Shine said. “It’ll depend on the temperatures, and we’ll keep an eye on it. We’re flexible, so if something changes, we’ll jump on it. We’re excited because this is the time of the year to get excited about skiing in the Yampa Valley.”

As the incoming storm moves through the area, Shine said the temperatures are expected to drop into the teens, and the humidity is expected to drop below 70%, presenting a window to make snow and cover the terrain needed for training to begin — and eventually for Howelsen Hill to open to the public Nov. 30.

“We’re ready to attack the hill in any fashion, whether it’s going up the Alpine hill or over to Pony Land, and we’re going to start making snow for tubing as well,” Shine said.


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