RED LODGE — A steady snowfall blanketed Red Lodge Mountain on Thursday, marking a return to normalcy for local ski conditions this year after a disappointing previous season.
In total, Red Lodge has received 81 inches of natural snow since Jan. 1 and also boasts a 30 percent increase in snowfall for the whole season compared to last.
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“The powder is coming down really well,” said Maya Kane, a visitor enjoying the slopes Thursday morning. "We went back on Cole Creek and it was amazing. There was a ton of powder back there."
Kane's energy was felt by other skiers enjoying the slopes, including Bruce Ireland.
"I usually get around 100 days a year," Ireland said. "We've got the coverage, and it's getting relatively safe everywhere you go. If you're not here, you're in the wrong place."
Even though a 30 percent increase in snow might feel like a lot, it's more of an indication of the struggles the mountain saw last year. Red Lodge Mountain Director of Sales and Marketing Troy Hawks said this year the snow has actually been standard.
"We're about on par with an average year," Hawks said Thursday. "After last year, we'll take average."
Hawks said it's felt great having more snow than last year.
"You go through a bad snow year and it's kind of like going through a stretch of -30 degree weather," Hawks said. "Once you get back to zero, it feels good."
Q2 meteorologist Ed McIntosh has monitored Red Lodge and all the snowfall at Montana ski mountains throughout the year. He said that Red Lodge has steadily picked up compared to the start of the season.
"It's a lot better than it was in December," McIntosh said. "It's looking like they are set up to have outstanding spring skiing once again."
McIntosh said that most of the mountains have seen average amounts of snow, which is a little surprising considering Billings experienced its third-snowiest February. He said it's because most of the storms came in from the southwest, missing Red Lodge.
"Red Lodge really depends on storms that come in from the north," McIntosh said. "A lot of (the storms this year) just seemed to focus on that area in Montana where we just seemed to have a couple major storms."
Those major storms have made a huge difference at one mountain: Showdown, which is well above its average after its lowest snow total in 80 years last winter.
"When it snows anywhere, we’re happy because we know that gets people excited to be out in the snow sports,” Hawks said.
You won't find much jealousy in Red Lodge, with a couple months of the season left.
“Last year, it wasn’t quite as good, so we were selective about when we came up,” Kane said. “But this year, I’ve been able to come up a ton, and it’s been really good.”
