Five boards · measured station data

Snow leaderboards

Which resort has the most snow, right now and this season, ranked from NRCS SNOTEL station readings and weather-model estimates that say which they are. Every board is dated to its data, not to the page load.

1. Best powder this week

   Most snow in the last 7 days by resort

   The 7-day total is the sum of each day's new snow, where a day's new snow is the positive change in snow depth at the resort's station (or model point) from the day before. Settling and melt make it a floor on what fell, not a ceiling. A resort is listed when it has at least one daily row in the window.

2. Season powder days

   Powder days this season by resort

   A powder day is a calendar day on which the station (or model point) recorded at least 8 in. of new snow, the same threshold as PeakCam's powder alerts. Counted from October 1 for Northern-hemisphere resorts; the Andes, whose season runs June to October, are not on this board.

3. Deepest base

   Deepest base by resort

   Base depth is the snow depth at the resort's SNOTEL station in its latest report, or the weather-model estimate for resorts without a station. A station sits at one elevation, usually mid-mountain, so it can differ from the resort's own upper-mountain figure. Zero is a measurement; resorts with no report are left out.

4. Season snowfall

   Season snowfall to date by resort

   Season snowfall is the sum of daily new snow since October 1, where each day's new snow is the positive change in station (or model) depth from the day before. It is a measured floor, not a resort marketing total. Northern-hemisphere resorts only; the Andes season runs June to October.

5. Percent of normal

   Snowpack percent of normal by resort

   Percent of normal compares a station's snow water equivalent (SWE) with its own 1991–2020 median for today's date in the water year. A resort is listed only when its latest report is a SNOTEL station reading, the station holds at least 2 in. of SWE, and the figure falls between 10% and 300%. Early and late in the season the median is close to zero, so a dusting can read as 900% of normal; those numbers are withheld rather than ranked.