SAM Magazine—Dover, Vt., Nov. 17, 2016—A handful of North American ski areas plan to open in the next couple days, but winter weather remains elusive for much of the continent. Even resorts that still list tomorrow as their opening day haven't published details about what will be open and when, which is a testament to the marginal conditions many are experiencing.

Wild Mountain, Minn., opened last weekend, but closed for the latter part of this week. It plans to reopen this weekend, operating noon – 5 p.m. on Saturday, and 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sunday.

In Canada, Cypress, B.C., and Marmot Basin, Alberta, have both postponed their opening dates. Meanwhile, at Sunshine Village in Alberta—Canada's only open ski area—the rich keep getting richer, thanks to 15 inches of snow in the last four days on top of 74 trails served by 11 of the resort's 13 lifts. Sunshine's neighbor, Lake Louise, plans to open Friday with five lifts serving 47 trails.

Copper Mountain in Colorado plans to open Friday, but as of this report hasn't released details about what terrain will be available. Keystone will also load first chair Friday, with two lifts serving two trails and downloading required to return to the base. Early arrivals will be treated to free coffee, hot chocolate, freshly made donut holes, and might also go home with some free swag.

Purgatory plans to open on Saturday—not just for skiing and riding. The Colorado resort is going to offer lift served mountain biking on Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and plans to open two other lifts at 1 p.m. on Saturday for skiers and riders to access 683 vertical feet of snow until 5 p.m. Snow conditions permitting, the resort will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. starting Sunday. Discounted combo lift tickets providing access for both activities will be available at the ticket window.

Arizona Snowbowl hopes to open Friday and debut its new high-speed six-passenger lift, Grand Canyon Express. The resort's Facebook page says the goal is to open by 1 p.m., depending on snow accumulation from an incoming storm and snowmaking production.

Sipapu, N.M., says it will open on Saturday with one lift. Boreal and Mt. Rose in California both plan to open on Friday, but neither has provided details.

It's worth noting that on snocountry.com—the resource we first check to compile this report, and what many consumers use to see what's open—several ski areas still list Friday or Saturday as “plan to open.” It takes some digging to reveal that they have no intention of opening, despite the published dates.

If there ever was a time to be sure all of your media channels are updated, it's now, when your guests are chomping at the bit to get on snow.

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