J2Ski Snow Report - August 28th 2026

Fri, 28 Aug 2026 06:43:35 GMT

Nevados de Chillan, Chile, now with a longer season...

New Zealand and South America report excellent snow conditions, whilst there's rain and warmer temperatures in Australia. In the northern hemisphere, there's been a little late summer snow.

The Snow Headlines - August 28th
- Further big snowfalls in the Andes, where the world's deepest snow, at several centres, is over 3 metres/10 feet.
- Chile's Valle Nevado latest to announce season extension, right through to 18 October.
- Two Australian centres end season early after new weather challenges.
- Africa's 2026 season set to end on Monday as Afriski winds down for another year.
- Some fresh snowfall and sub-zero temps bring hope to the Alps but ski areas stay closed.

Significant snow in the forecast for New Zealand, South America and high in the Alps.

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World Overview
As we near September and the start of (meteorological) springtime in the southern hemisphere and autumn/fall in the northern, conditions in different ski nations continue to vary dramatically.

South of the equator, Australia has endured another challenging week as mild temperatures and rain further reduced an already thin snowpack, leaving only higher terrain in usable condition at some centres and relying on overnight snowmaking when possible. A couple of low-lying centres have closed for the season as a result.

New Zealand continues to deliver better conditions with further snowfall, consistently cold temperatures and most centres reporting all (or nearly all) runs open and lifts turning.

In South America, Argentina is enjoying its best coverage of the season, with most terrain available and a clear split between sunshine in the south and renewed snowfall in the north. Chile leads for open terrain and multiple season extensions but Argentina is not far behind and both have reported up to 1 metre/3 feet more snowfall in the past 48 hours.

In southern Africa, the continent's only still operating outdoor snow ski area has extended operations to Monday, 31st August.

There were a few promising signs in the northern hemisphere with a first dusting of snow on high slopes in the Alps late last week, but it has since warmed again. Ski areas in North America are trying to build excitement for a possibly very snowy winter ahead thanks to the 'Super El Nino' forecast, but for now the glaciers that should be open at Saas-Fee and Zermatt in Switzerland as well as Passo Stelvio in Italy and Galdhopiggen in Norway all remain closed due to the summer heat, so lift-served skiing is currently only possible north of the equator on indoor snow or dry slopes.

Southern Hemisphere

Australia

Australian ski areas reported heavy rain at all levels at the end of last week, impacting already soft and in places thin snow cover, so the order of the day is 'spring conditions' with the best up high. There have been some rather grim social media images of narrow lanes of slush to get to lifts. On the upside, conditions remain 'pretty good' on higher terrain at major resorts.

Mount Baw Baw ended its season very early last weekend after battling to open much terrain all winter. Selwyn Ski area announced at short notice on Saturday that it too was closing, so we are really down to the big players now and with temperatures remaining predominantly above freezing with plenty of sunshine (although still dipping a degree or two below overnight some nights up high), it is unclear quite how long they will be able to keep going. Most of the big areas dropped from 45-65% open at the start of the week to 25-40% now.

New Zealand

New Zealand's ski areas continue to report largely good conditions, despite some softening snow during milder spells and occasional wind-related closures. The past week brought regular snowfall, especially on higher terrain, with temperatures mostly in the -5 to -9 oC/23 to 16 oF range through each 24-hour cycle.

When not affected by storms, almost all ski areas remain 95-100% open, giving the country the strongest operational statistics in the Southern Hemisphere this winter. Cardrona is amongst those fully open. Base depths are very healthy heading into September, with Mount Hutt reporting the deepest cover in the country at almost 2 metres/7 feet.

Argentina

Conditions are excellent in Argentina right now, with all areas at least two-thirds open, some at over 90%. Southern resorts are enjoying dry, sunny weather, with highs around +2 oC/36 oF and lows near -9 oC/16 oF. Further north, a dry weekend gave way to heavy snowfall over the past few days with more in the forecast.

Catedral is two-thirds open and currently offers the most groomed terrain.

Las Lenas is thought to have had over 1 metre/3 feet of snowfall on higher slopes since Tuesday but official stats have not yet updated. It is now fully lift-accessible and with its extensive off-piste (one of the world's and certainly the southern hemisphere's largest areas), likely has the most total skiable terrain overall. It also currently has Argentina's deepest base at 3 metres/10 feet, which is also the world's second deepest upper-mountain snowpack.

Chile

Chile shifted from its month-long mid-winter storm cycle into a mostly settled spell for a period over the weekend and start of this week, with sunny days and temperatures swinging from -11 oC/12 oF overnight at altitude to around +8 oC/46 oF at base level in the afternoons.

Fresh snow has returned in the past 48 hours and looks set in for the next few days in many areas.

Portillo has now officially extended its season to 11th October and is back to 80% open. Full road access was finally restored from both Chile and Argentina after around a six-week closure for all but resort guests last weekend, but it is closed again now with another 50 centimetres/20 inches in 24 hours reported.

Valle Nevado, linked with El Colorado and La Parva for roughly 115 kilometres/71 miles of terrain, has the most terrain open in the world and has also extended its season now to 18 October. Corralco continues to hold the world's deepest base at 3.2 metres/10 feet up top.

Northern Hemisphere

There was some snowfall on higher slopes, mostly above 3,000 metres/10,000 feet, in the Alps at the end of last week, with rain at lower elevations. Although not yet enough for the temporarily closed glacier ski slopes at Passo Stelvio in Italy and Saas-Fee and Zermatt in Switzerland to re-open, the return of some snowfall after months of high-altitude heat was welcome.

Overnight lows on glaciers went back to regularly dropping below freezing, resuming the freeze-thaw cycle last seen in springtime in many areas. It did not last long and it has gone back up above 4,000 metres/13,000 feet over the last few days and warmth is in the forecast for the final days of the month.

The Galdhopiggen glacier in Norway, Scandinavia's only summer ski area, remains closed for now, as per its usual operating pattern, with reopening expected mid-September.

That all means that for now the only lift-served skiing in the northern hemisphere remains indoors, with about 150 centres offering indoor snow skiing and boarding across more than 30 countries on four continents - with some posting a 45-degree difference between outdoor and indoor temperatures.

There is not much to report from North America, where there is currently nowhere open, but resorts have stepped up pre-season marketing, some focusing on the fact that their target season start dates are now just over two months away and many highlighting the potential for abundant snow in the 'Super El Nino' forecast, in some cases seemingly regardless of the fact they are not in the areas expected to do well for snowfall from it.

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J2Ski Snow Report - August 28th 2026