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Southwest Ski Area Closes, La Niña Probably Isn't Helping

Originally posted on Powder | By Ian Greenwood | Last updated Feb 5, 2025 1:20 PM ET

Sandia Peak, a small ski area near Albuquerque, New Mexico, has temporarily suspended winter operations, citing warm temperatures and limited snow conditions.

The ski area, which received three feet of snow during a massive storm in November, is now “actively monitoring the weather and will take every opportunity to resume snowmaking when conditions allow,” it said in a social media update.

Guest services at the ski area will contact skiers and snowboarders with pre-purchased lift tickets, providing them with one of two options: use the ticket credit at one of Sandia Peaks’ partner ski areas — Sipapu Ski Resort or Pajarito Mountain Ski Area — or wait to use the credit when Sandia Peak reopens. The credits expire April 30th.

On its website, Sandia Peak encouraged guests to “Stay tuned for updates as we work to get you back on the mountain soon this season.”

The temporary closure follows a period of uncertainty for Sandia Peak.

In fall 2023, ski area conglomerate Mountain Capital Partners announced that it would take over operations at Sandia Peak in a joint venture with Sandia Peak Ski Co. Before then, the ski area was unable to open for several seasons as it was beset by limited snowfall and staffing shortages, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports.

One commenter below Sandia Peak’s recent closure announcement suggested that the ski area should turn itself into a bike park. “The writing is on the wall,” their post reads.

Across New Mexico, snow water equivalents — a measure of the water content in the snowpack — are well below the median. Some New Mexican basins, like the Gila-San Francisco, have reached as low as 16%, indicating that a typical La Niña pattern is playing out, at least in the American Southwest. La Niña typically leads to a warm and dry winter for the region.

Statewide, temperatures have been warm, too.

This week, several cities in New Mexico, including Albuquerque, surpassed record high temperatures as springlike conditions dominated, KRQE reports. In Albuquerque, the National Weather Service called for a high of 71 degrees today. At Sandia Peak, no snow is forecasted for the foreseeable future.

So far this winter, Sandia Peak has received 44 inches of snowfall, which is under half of its average seasonal snowfall.

This article first appeared on Powder and was syndicated with permission.

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