J2Ski Snow Report - August 14th 2025
J2Ski Snow Report - August 14th 2025
Published : 14-Aug-2025 08:36
Mount Hutt, New Zealand, looking pretty sweet this week...
The southern hemisphere is experiencing peak winter, with more New Zealand ski areas finally opening after significant snowfall, while the northern hemisphere sees the end of the lift-served ski season in North America. Australian resorts remain nearly fully operational, and conditions in Chile are excellent, contrasting with the limited offerings in Argentina.
The Snow Headlines - August 14th
- More New Zealand centres open for the first time this winter thanks to half-metre/1.6 feet snowfall.
- Final few days of the US 24-25 lift-served ski season, with the last area closing this Sunday.
- Kilde back race training at Norway's Galdhøpiggen glacier.
- US resorts including Mammoth and Solitude report less than 100 days until the start of the season.
See where the snow is forecast.
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World Overview
We're at the peak of winter in the southern hemisphere, while the few open ski areas in the northern hemisphere battle summer heat, with the last lift-accessed option in North America ending its 24-25 run this coming Sunday.
In the southern hemisphere, fresh snow in New Zealand - up to 50 cm/20 inches - has enabled some club fields to open for the first time this winter.
Australia and Chile lead in snow depth and open terrain, with many resorts operating at near full capacity.
Argentina and New Zealand's North Island continue to lag, despite slight improvements.
Meanwhile, Lesotho's Afriski heads into its final fortnight, gearing up for Winterfest to close the season.
Five northern hemisphere ski areas remain open: four in Europe, including Norway's Galdhøpiggen Glacier with fresh snow, and one in North America - Timberline, Oregon, which is nearing the season's end. Most have faced warm, dry conditions this past week, as expected for high summer.
Southern Hemisphere
Australia
After a strong start to the season, Australia's ski season has seen a dry, sunny spell with mild afternoons reaching +10°C/50°F over the past week, while nights remain below freezing.
Resorts like Perisher, Mount Hotham, and Falls Creek report excellent conditions and are nearly fully operational, offering deep snow cover and extensive terrain.
A cold front arriving by the weekend is forecast to bring up to 25 cm/10 inches of fresh snow, improving conditions into the weekend with wintry temperatures aiding snowmaking. Solid skiing is expected across the Australian Alps.
New Zealand
New Zealand ski areas had a strong week, with weekend snowfall refreshing South Island slopes.
Club fields, previously struggling with warm temperatures and low snowfall, saw a boost - Broken River opened for 2025, and Mount Lyford and Hanmer Springs re-opened after receiving around 50 cm/20 inches.
Hanmer Springs reported variable cover with pockets of powder.
Most commercial centres were in good shape anyway but were also bolstered by the fresh flakes.
Mount Hutt continues to post one of the world's deepest bases and is nearly fully open.
North Island resorts Turoa and Whakapapa are still struggling with limited cover but are now up to about 10% open - not much, but the most of the season to date.
Mostly dry weather is forecast, with cool temperatures and possible snow flurries early next week.
Argentina
Argentina's lacklustre 2025 ski season has seen a modest boost following last week's storms, with more terrain open than at any point this winter to date - although it's still not much for most.
The world's most southerly resort, Cerro Castor, leads the way, now over 80% open with a solid upper base of a metre/3.3 feet.
Most other resorts remain under 50% open, with thin cover.
Cerro Catedral, the country's largest by lift capacity, has improved slightly but still offers just 3 km/1.9 miles of skiing—about 7% of its full area.
Las Leñas is nearing half open, while Cerro Bayo, despite a minimal base of 15 cm/6 inches, reports around 75% of terrain accessible.
High pressure has dominated, keeping nights cold but allowing daytime warmth to erode the snowpack. Looking ahead, conditions remain mostly dry and cloudy through the weekend, with Cerro Castor possibly seeing light snow on Sunday. Elsewhere, snowfall is unlikely, and no major changes to terrain status are expected.
Chile
By contrast, despite base depths being below average, Chile's ski season appears to be thriving, with most slopes open and more fresh snowfall reinforcing strong midwinter conditions. It seems to have enough snow, even if it is not a bumper season here either.
Valle Nevado is fully open with a one metre/3.3 feet summit base, while neighbouring El Colorado and La Parva push the combined Tres Valles region to around 90% open - offering more skiable terrain than anywhere else globally right now (about 115 km/71 miles of slopes).
Portillo boasts the deepest snowpack in the southern hemisphere at 172 cm/68 inches and is close to fully open. Likewise, Nevados de Chillán, which has received over a metre/3.3 feet of snowfall so far this month, has over 90% of its terrain accessible.
Looking ahead, the forecast calls for dry, sunny weather through the weekend, with highs near 5°C/41°F and lows around -1°C/30°F. Light winds and good visibility should make for excellent skiing, though no significant new snowfall is expected until early next week.
Lesotho
Sunny weather continues at Lesotho's Afriski, where the 1.6 km/1 mile main run remains open despite bare surroundings. Overnight freezes persist, but daytime highs reach +9°C/48°F. There's a fortnight left of the season, and with warming temperatures forecast, light weekend showers may fall as rain.
Northern Hemisphere
The Alps
Only three Alpine ski areas are currently open - Zermatt and Saas-Fee in Switzerland, and Italy's Passo Stelvio - each offering limited glacier terrain (8-14 km/5-8.7 miles of slopes).
Saas-Fee holds the deepest snowpack globally at 2 metres/6.6 feet.
Austria's Hintertux Glacier is closed until September.
Conditions are mostly warm and dry as expected in early August, with freezing levels rising to 4,000 m/13,123 feet by afternoon. Early morning skiing offers the best surface before midday slush.
Light flurries have touched high slopes, and late-week storms may bring rain, sleet, or snow at altitude.
Scandinavia
Norway's Galdhøpiggen glacier is Scandinavia's only open ski area, still offering a few kilometres of early-morning slopes. Conditions have ranged from sun to sleet, with highs near +10°C/50°F.
The Norwegian ski team, including living legend Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, trained here this week - his first outdoor session since last year's Wengen crash.
The forecast is for a mix of sunshine and showers, the latter more likely to be rain and sleet, unfortunately, with temperatures +2 to +10°C/36°F to 50°F.
USA
North America's 2024–25 lift-served ski season is nearing its end, with Timberline on Mount Hood set to close at the end of this weekend after nine months open, North America's longest season. Just a mile of terrain remains skiable on a thin half-metre/1.6 feet base under mostly sunny skies and warm temperatures—afternoon highs reaching 21°C/70°F.
Copper Mountain's hike-to park stays open into September, while resorts like Mammoth and Utah's Brian Head and Solitude are counting down to November opening dates, now just three months away.
More clear skies are forecast with overnight lows on upper slopes around 3–6°C/37°F to 43°F and daytime highs reaching 18–24°C/64°F to 75°F. Sunshine dominates, with minimal cloud cover expected.
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