Snow Skiing in May -- Utah vs Oregon
 

I am missing skiing already, everything is closed down now back East, so I was toying with the idea of going skiing for about 4 days around Memorial Day, which is the next time I can get away for that long. It is May 26th this year, so around May 22-26. I see that Timberline in Oregon and Snowbird in Utah are both open until about May 27th. I was wondering what the snow quality is really like then, anyone done it? I know right now they have about 100 inches base, and if it's similar to early March skiing back here, that's acceptable to me. I"m not crazy about icy stuff, like packed powder but some corn snow is okay. I was at Park City one year in mid-March, and it wasn't that great even then, but I know they close in April.

Of course there is Whistler up in BC, also, but I think that's a bit longer to get to from the airport, but the airfare and time to fly is about the same for me, actually, so I'm looking into that, also.

The expectation for Arapahoe Basin in Colorado is that they will be open till the 4th. Has not happened for several years.

I had skied as late as mid May in Colorado. It is an experience. Doubt if Utah would be much different. The morning will be hard pack and very icy and very rutted. No grooming at all. By 10 it should soften till corn snow and with more mush every run till about two in the afternoon when it turns into a combine of snow and water skiing.

You only going to find early March conditions in March.

Pretty much the same for Timberline, maybe even softening up faster as it's not that high.

You might see if Oregon's hidden gem - Mt. Bachelor - is still open then. It's a bigger mountain than Timberline - on a par with the other big ski areas in the West.

We live in OR, not far from Timberline. I have not skied it, but DS does and likes it. It is open year round and athletes train there in the summer, so that says something:) I would not worry about it being icy.

Mt. Bachelor (outside Bend OR) still has nearly 100 inches.
They are planning to close on Memorial day unless conditions deteriorate earlier.
I believe HooDoo (Santiam Pass) is still open as well.

Out of curiosity I just looked and Timberline has 162" at the moment. But with this trip being nearly 2 months out, it is really hard to say what conditions at any place will be. With the odd weather we have had this year, it's anyones guess:)

thanks for the comments, my reference to early March conditions was that early March in Pennsylvania is obviously completely different from early March in COlorado or Oregon or Nevada. So if their May conditions are like Pennsylvania or Virginia early March, that might be okay for me.

I read Whistler was actually closing mid-April so it's out. And Snowbird in Utah is not stating a date yet, so I think Arapahoe Basin (I just read about that but wanted somewhere else as I went to Aspen last month) and Timberline and Mt Bachelor may be it. I wanted Timberline aas the air connections into PDX and time to get there is a lot better than from Bend, OR.

I'll have to decide soon, it wouldn't matter but you need to book airfare fairly early to get anything decent, and then it isn't much refundable.

Altitude is your friend. Pick the highest slope. At that time of year, ice will always be an issue.

You can drive from Portland down to Bend in about 3+ hours - and it's a very scenic trip to boot. Cinder mountain/snowcones along the way :)

Most people have never even heard of the Three Sisters - much less Mt. Jefferson - both at/over 10,000 feet.

And yes, mms - the US Ski team used to train at both Timberline (it has a glacier) and at Mt. Bachelor - and a lot of junior racers still train there.

Bachelor has way more runs however.

Just checked the webpage and Mt. Bachelor still has 165 inches of base - mid-mountain - so guessing many of the 88 runs might still be open toward the end of May? Think it depends a lot of how many skiers they get into late spring.

A high school classmate of mine used to manage the 7th Mountain Resort (the closest lodging to Mt. Bachelor)- and late spring - they liked to ski in the morning and then go play golf in Bend in the afternoon.

Christina--We have skied in the NE, and you are right about the conditions. Much better here later in the season than back there. From PDX you can be on the mountain in less than an hour. If you can get a room right there at Timberline, that is ideal. Otherwise Govt Camp isn't far and has several options.

I have skied Bachelor a lot, and Meadows and Hoodoo, just not Timberline (in the spring) so my comments are based on personal experience, FWIW.