Every State's Snowiest Ski Resort
For diehard skiers, finding fresh powder is crucial to enjoying winter. But which ski resorts have mountains of fresh powder, and which are you better off avoiding? We gathered data about natural snowfall totals in each state with a significant amount of natural snowfall and a ski resort (sorry, skiers in the Deep South- you’re out of luck) and created a graphic highlighting the snowiest ski resort in each state, plus stats about each state’s monthly and annual average snowfalls. Start dusting off your skis- the slopes are waiting.
Unsurprisingly, Alaska has the resort with highest annual average snowfall, with an average of 735 inches per year; the Alyeska Resort gets the most snow. The Western United States boast the highest average inches of snowfall, with resorts in Washington, Utah, Wyoming, Oregon, and Colorado following Alaska. In the North and Southeast regions of the United States, New England gets the most snowfall, with Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine enjoying the highest annual average snowfalls. Rhode Island, Tennessee, and North Carolina get the least snow in the country, with averages of 35 inches per year and less; avoid planning your ski trips for April, when each of those three states gets an average of less than two inches of snow.
As for the Midwest? The Upper Peninsula of Michigan gets the title of snowiest state in the Midwest, with an average of 150 inches of snow per year and 39.3 inches of snow on average during January; if you live near the mitten, Ski Brule receives the most snow. Resorts in South Dakota and Minnesota are next when ranking Midwestern states by snowfall, respectively, with Ski Mystic at Deer Mountain (SD) and Lutsen Mountains (MN) as the snowiest resorts. Wisconsin’s Whitecap Mountain averages 94 inches of snowfall annually, with monthly averages staying fairly constant throughout the winter- and even an average of 10.3 inches of snow during April for those of you who like to ski as late into spring as possible.
While the rest of the Midwest- specifically, Ohio, Illinois, Iowa, North Dakota, Missouri, and Indiana- is lacking a bit in natural snowfall (all getting 51 inches or less of annual average snowfall), it’s important to note that our data only accounts for natural snowfall, and it doesn’t include artificially made snow. Therefore, many resorts (especially those in the Midwest) will have plenty of artificial snow that isn’t accounted for in this chart. Our snowfall data came largely from meteorological stations, but for some resorts (especially those not close to a station) we used data from On the Snow, which is accurate but only goes back for about five years, leading to a little bit of deviation.
For most Americans, there’s great opportunities for snow sports in your state, and with this infographic, you can pinpoint the snowiest resort in your state so that you can make the most out of your snowfall. Unless you live in Florida- if that’s the case, you might be better off taking up waterskiing instead.