Friday the 13th: The Luckiest and Unluckiest Week in Skiing

It's Friday the 13th, and the skiing world is giving us a week that feels like a choose-your-own-adventure book where every path leads somewhere completely different. Depending on where you are right now, skiing is either having its best week of the season or its worst.

Let's run through all of it.

Washington: The Storm That Delivered

Remember that PNW mega storm we previewed on Tuesday? It showed up. And it brought friends.

The Cascades have been getting pummeled since Wednesday, and the numbers are stacking up fast:

• Stevens Pass: 18 inches in the last 72 hours, 59-inch base, and another 33 inches forecasted over the next 5 days. A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect through Saturday morning.
• Crystal Mountain: 14 inches in the last 24 hours alone, 89-inch base -- the deepest in the region. Up to 63 inches more in the next 5 days. Gusts hitting 55 mph, so hold on to your goggles.
• Mt. Baker: 10 inches in the last 72 hours with a Winter Storm Warning calling for another 12 to 20 inches through Friday night. Up to 3 feet possible on nearby Mt. Rainier.

This is the real deal. Heavy Cascades snow, strong winds, and the kind of multi-day cycle that transforms a so-so season into something worth remembering. If you're within driving distance of any Washington resort this weekend, you know what to do.

The storm isn't done either. Models show snow continuing through Saturday morning before a brief break, then potentially more next week. The PNW is making up for lost time in a hurry.

California: Season Over at Mt. Shasta

While Washington drowns in snow, California's northernmost ski area just... stopped.

Mt. Shasta Ski Park closed for the season on March 10 after a brutal 55-day season -- five days short of its 60-day guarantee. Season pass holders will receive credits for next year. The resort opened December 17, closed temporarily February 9, briefly reopened, then closed again March 2. This time, it's final.

The webcam tells the story: brown dirt where there should be white slopes. The National Weather Service is predicting 70°F in Mt. Shasta City next week and 90s in nearby Redding -- about 25 degrees above normal for March.

This is California's worst snowpack since 2015, with the Sierra Nevada sitting at less than half its historical average. Mt. Shasta isn't alone -- Mt. Ashland across the Oregon border also paused operations this week. These smaller, lower-elevation ski areas are the canary in the coal mine, and the canary is not doing great.

The contrast is almost surreal. Stevens Pass and Mt. Shasta are both on the west coast, both dependent on Pacific moisture. But one is 850 miles north and that's making all the difference this year. The atmospheric river that's been fire-hosing the Cascades has been arriving as rain -- or not arriving at all -- in Northern California.

The Paralympics Are Melting

Speaking of climate contrasts, the Winter Paralympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo are having a rough time.

Athletes are racing in T-shirts. Courses are being redesigned overnight because snow melts during the day and refreezes as ice. In the men's seated downhill on Monday, 11 of 23 starters didn't finish -- "slush" was the general description. British athlete Davy Zyw ended up in the hospital with broken ribs after a crash in the snowboard cross.

US para snowboarder Amy Purdy posted a TikTok that cut right to the point: "I don't believe that the Paralympics should be happening right now."

She's not wrong. According to Climate Central, the average March temperature in Cortina has risen 2.5°C in the last 50 years. Of 93 potential Winter Olympics sites evaluated, only 22 would be viable for March competition by 2050. The IPC's response? Moving the calendar "is easier said than done" because of broadcast deals and World Cup scheduling.

1.8 million cubic meters of manufactured snow were required for the Olympics and Paralympics combined. That number is going to keep climbing. At some point, the question isn't "can we make enough snow" but "should we?"

Ikon Pass 2026-27: $1,399 and Some Sweeteners

While all this is happening, Alterra dropped the 2026-27 Ikon Pass on Thursday. The headline: prices went up about $70.

Here's what you're looking at:

• Ikon Pass (full): $1,399 new / $1,349 renewal
• Ikon Base Pass: $949 (unlimited at select resorts, blackout dates apply)
• Ikon Session Pass: starting at $299

The price hike stings, but Alterra is trying to soften it with renewal perks -- pick from $25 monthly resort credits (up to $300/season), a $100 Backcountry.com gift card, a free Marriott hotel night, gear rental credits, or a $50 renewal discount.

New resorts: Snowriver Mountain Resort (Michigan), Lutsen Mountains (Minnesota), and Granite Peak (Wisconsin) join with 7 days on the full pass and 5 on the base. Midwest skiers, your lobbying worked.

The big structural change: Arapahoe Basin now gets unlimited access on the Ikon Base Pass (it was limited days before), and Snowmass gets 5 days on the Base Pass. Both are wins for Colorado-based passholders who were annoyed at the limitations.

There's also a new refund policy -- if you buy insurance and don't scan your pass by January 15, full refund. One scan before that date? 50% back. It's Alterra acknowledging that seasons like this one, where some people barely used their passes, can't keep happening without some consumer protection.

The Bigger Picture

Zoom out and this week tells you everything about where skiing is headed. The snow is concentrating -- when it comes, it absolutely dumps in specific corridors while nearby regions bake. Mt. Shasta closes with dirt showing in March. Stevens Pass measures snowfall in feet. Cortina manufactures 1.8 million cubic meters of artificial snow so athletes can race in T-shirts.

And pass companies keep raising prices because what else are you going to do? Not ski?

The weather gap is becoming the story of every season. The question for next year isn't just "which pass should I buy?" It's "where is the snow actually going to be?" Tools like our multi-model forecast and storm tracker exist precisely for this reason -- because betting on history isn't enough anymore.

Happy Friday the 13th. If you're in Washington, go skiing. If you're in California, maybe go mountain biking. If you're at the Paralympics, stay safe out there.

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Check live conditions for all our tracked resorts at snowradar.com/ski-this-week. PNW storm totals are updating in real-time on our forecast page.