Banff Sunshine's web cam shows off mid-winter conditions in May.SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., May 12, 2026—Rocky Mountains ski areas closing in March? Snowmaking in the Mid-Atlantic in April? Feet of snow in the Sierras after all but a couple ski areas had closed? It’s been a wild few weeks for North America’s ski industry, and the season continues at a few mountains that are hanging on at least into mid-May.
Who’s Still Open?
It appears that four resorts are still open for daily operations: Banff Sunshine Village, Alberta; Whistler Blackcomb, B.C.; Timberline Lodge, Ore.; and Mammoth Mountain and Palisades Tahoe in California. A few others are open for weekend operations only, including Sommet Saint Sauveur, Quebec; Arapahoe Basin, Colo.; Jay Peak, Vt.; Killington, Vt.; Black Mountain, N.H.; and Boyne Mountain, Mich.
West
Banff Sunshine has the most open terrain as of today with skiing and riding on 100 trails with an average base depth of more than 7 feet served by 11 of the resort’s 12 lifts. Sunshine has a loaded spring events calendar, hosting the Leg Burner Banked Slalom last weekend and it will close out the season on May 18 with the Slush Cup pond skim competition. The resort has gotten a record 390 inches of snow this season and plans to reopen for summer skiing June 20 through July 5, according to vice president, brand and communications Kendra Scurfield.
Whistler Blackcomb still has 30 trails served by five lifts. Blackcomb Mountain will be open until Monday, May 18. The Whistler Mountain Bike Park opens this Friday, May 18.
Timberline Lodge, Ore., where SAM Cutter’s Camp is being held this week, is still open with two lifts and will remain open as long as the snow lasts, which is typically well into summer.
Down in California, after getting just a solitary inch of snow the whole month of March, Mammoth Mountain received four feet of snow in April and currently has 79 trails and eight lifts open, seven of which are operating 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, with the Unbound Express serving park laps from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
After no snow in March, the month of April delivered for Palisades Tahoe, too. A total of 84 inches landed and allowed the resort to extend its season through Sunday, May 24, spinning lifts from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily with all access from the base via the Funitel to three other lifts serving 25 open trails. Lift operations will gradually consolidate. Today is the last day for the Siberia Express and the Shirley Lake Express is expected to operate through the middle of next week.
In Utah, Snowbird and Brighton made it to May 10, a strong finish to a challenging season. Snowbird was the last to close in Utah in 2024-25, making it to Memorial Day Weekend.
Colorado has one more weekend of skiing and riding at Arapahoe Basin, which will reopen Friday after a midweek pause and send up last chair on Sunday, May 17. The ski area got more than a foot of snow last week, which made this past weekend’s skiing “a beauty,” COO Alan Henceroth wrote in his blog. A-Basin is historically one of the last ski areas open in North America. It stayed open until June 15 last year.
Midwest
Moving east, Boyne Mountain is once again the last Midwest ski area open thanks to the man-made “Victor Glacier” on the resort's Victor trail, which reached nearly 24 feet deep this winter and is still roughly 9 feet deep today. The resort plans to offer weekend skiing and riding through Memorial Day Weekend.
Boyne will welcome pass holders from Michigan’s Mount Bohemia for the annual Boho Bash on May 16. Mount Bohemia got 350 inches of snow during the season and had planned to operate through May 10 but had to close April 26. Big early season snow fell before the ground froze, which caused the snow to melt quickly as temps rose in April, according to a social post from the ski area.
Also in Michigan, Norway Mountain had enough snow to reopen for one day of skiing and riding on April 26 after it had initially wrapped up the season the weekend before.
East
Camelback, Pa., made it all the way to Cinco de Mayo, the longest operating season in the resort’s history (138 days) thanks to a cold winter and late-season snowmaking—Camelback made snow on April 20, a seemingly unprecedented time for a Pennsylvania ski area to fire up its system after most others had closed for the season.
Up in Vermont, Killington plans to continue Friday-Sunday skiing and riding on the “Superstar Glacier” with the Superstar Six spinning until 5 p.m. all three days for as long as the snow holds. The resort plans to offer the trifecta of downhill mountain biking, golf, and skiing over Memorial Day Weekend, conditions permitting.
After 410 inches of snow this winter, Jay Peak will reopen for its final weekend of the season on Saturday, with the Jet serving advanced terrain. Lift tickets will be $55. Last chair of the season will go up at 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 17. Also making it to May was Sugarbush, which wrapped up its 157-day season on May 2.
Black Mountain, N.H., will reopen Saturday, May 16, for a ’70s-themed party to close out the season. The snow report indicates four trails will be open served by two lifts with “soft and smooth” conditions.
Up in Quebec, perennial early-opener and late-closer Sommet Saint Sauveur will reopen Friday-Monday (May 15-18) for its final weekend of the winter. Night skiing will return on Saturday as part of the resort’s Après-ski May Madness, with a DJ and band taking the stage that evening for the last après event of the season.
Ed. note: This article was updated May 13 with Banff Sunshine Village's closing date and plans to reopen for summer skiing.
