Ski resorts, mountains waiting for snowpack after dry November

SEATTLE - Do your snow dance, skiers. A drier than normal November has left ski resorts wanting snow.

Stevens Pass hoped to open for daily operations Dec. 4, but a lack of significant snow has pushed back opening day, a resort spokesperson said. A tentative date has not yet been set.

State Snowfall Map

The Summit at Snoqualmie also needs more snow to open.

Crystal Mountain opened a few runs the day after Thanksgiving, but much of the mountain is bare and snow is needed to open more runs.

Assistant state climatologist Karin Bumbaco said snowfall for the Cascades is lower than normal for this time of year.

"We've been on the dry side, but there's still plenty of winter to build snow," Bumbaco said.

November is typically the wettest month of the year, Bumbaco said. But the dry weather did almost nothing to boost mountain snowpack, which sits between 20 and 45 percent below normal.

There may be some relief in sight. Q13 News Meteorologist Tim Joyce said a wetter, warmer pattern is heading our way this week. Snow levels should hover between 4,000 and 5,000 feet.

"We're much warmer this week but we're also wetter, too," Joyce said. "A few systems headed our way will deliver some lowland rain and some snow for our higher resorts and passes."

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