With resorts like Hintertux and Zermatt open year round, there's no official start date to winter 2014-15 BUT all the ski areas that were open for summer skiing in 2014 have now closed (the last of them, Cervinia, last weekend) and tomorrow (Saturday 13th September) the Stubai Glacier has announced it is opening for the 2014-15 ski season, with a 50cm base. The picture below was taken of slope preparation yesterday.
Meanwhile there's was heavy snow in parts of Western Canada in the middle of the week with pictures appearing on social media (as above) and palpably raising skier excitement levels. Panorama in BC posted pictures taken at the top of the mountain showing the snow apparently lying a foot deep in places. The first Canadian ski areas are aiming to open at Banff from Friday 31st October.
Last September big snowfalls in Washington state led to a few areas opening early for a few days and ski resorts in Scandinavia opened early too.
There have been smaller snowfalls across Western North America and in Colorado areas like Arapahoe basin and Loveland, among the highest ski areas in the world, expect to start snowmaking efforts imminently with the aim of opening by mid-October.
