Ski areas in Canada and USA have been celebrating the 'first snows of the season' on high slopes over the past week.
'Dustings' of snow were reported up high at ski areas in the Canadian Rockies first, and then south into the US with ski resorts in Colorado and Utah among those posting pictures of mountain tops turning white.
They included resorts like Arapahoe Basin which usually tries to open in October (pictured below), thanks to its high altitude allowing early snowmaking, so the start of the 21-22 season may be less than two months away.
Although early snow dustings tend to thaw away almost as fast as they fall, ski areas in Alberta including Sunshine near Banff, another to open in late October or the start of November each year, reported a more substantial second snowfall on Monday (pictured above).
At the same time many ski areas in Western North America are or have been closed due to forest fires, either due to their immediate proximity or due to smoke in the air making breathing difficult. Ski areas in Utah, British Columbia and (currently) around Lake Tahoe in California have been particularly hard hit.
Many ski areas in North America did surprisingly good business last season despite pandemic operating restrictions. This winter resorts including Jackson Hole have said they hope to operate at full capacity.
International leisure travel to the US remains off limits for most although there are strong hopes this position will change before the main ski season starts. Travel to Canada from oversea is re-opening.
