How much rain is too much for skiing?

A snowHead

I planned a ski trip with teenage sons to upper NY area this weekend and it seems there will be 0.7 inch of rain throughout the day. Is it going to be alright or should I wait out for the next day?

I've never gone skiing in the rain so any inputs will be appreciated!!

A snowHead

That sounds a bit grim.... I would wait if you've got the choice.

Skiing itself is no problem in the rain, but you tend to get soaked and cold which isn't so great

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

@krutakee, hi and welcome snowHead

It depends how much you want to ski and also the altitude of the rain (which you may not know until you get up the hill). It may be that it is only raining lower down, so when you get higher it is snow. If that’s the case, stay high and enjoy the fresh tracks on what are likely to be fairly empty pistes (no one goes out in the rain...). Or it could be a soggy day all the way up.

Wet snow or rain, I recommend waterproof ski wear and lots of spares – spare gloves, spare buff and use dry bags for anything else you need to keep dry (camera, wallet, phone etc). You will get wet, but it doesn’t have to be miserable and you can always stop for a coffee.

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@krutakee, which forecast? My favourite all round forecast meteoblue is suggesting snow, not rain.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

@red 27 & @Scarlet,

Thanks for your inputs. My sons insist they want to go regardless of rainy weather. I was against it but as you mentioned there will be literally nobody out there.. so that's tempting. Toofy Grin

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@under a new name,

I was looking at this:
https://darksky.net/details/42.1428,-74.5196/2017-12-23/us12/en

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Everyone should ski in the rain at least once.

Makes a great war story.

Deserted trails, empty restos, pointing skis downhill but not going anywhere, taming the offpiste concrete, nearly died of hypothermia but battled on through the pain barrier, etc. etc.

After all it is free

@krutakee, I know it is on the opposite coast, but skiing in the rain is common in Whistler. You can have very heavy rain at village level, which changes to sleet and then snow as you gain altitude.

I would say that the existing piste conditions and the temperature are more important. Rain on top of ice / man made snow would be no fun, unless you are race training Very Happy

It's a long time since I skied in the rain, as I now go in January...but I can remember getting soaked....and the snow was heavy and dangerous, from a leg break pov. Those were back in the days of skinny skis.

So...my advice would be to use wide Freeride skis (hire if necessary), which will make the skiing much easier....and bring some spare kit, like Gloves, which can be changed into.

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Any.................

There is nothing more depressing in a ski resort than being on a chairlift in the rain Evil or Very Mad

Even if you know it's snowing higher up, it's just a damp, miserable place to be.

You know it makes sense.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Rain is challenging for seeing out your goggles, even more so if it freezes. I've only skied in places where rain freezes and makes the snow rock hard (Sweden). Not much fun. But I'll still ski in the rain, than not ski.

A snowHead

Rain on top of soft snow can also make the going very sticky. Had that experience at Glenshee once (@red 27, you are right!), and it was hard to get any speed up at all even on the steeper parts of the blue runs. Then there were the parts which weren't sticky where your skis suddenly accelerate, launching you backwards, before hitting the next sticky bit where you lurch forwards again...

We've been fairly unlucky in that we've had rain at times in all four of our previous weeks in the Alps (Soll, Alpe d'Huez, Les Carroz, Belle Plagne), though not for days on end. The snow underneath was OK, but it just makes you wet. A lot of ski gear is good for keeping out cold and snow, but not so good for keeping out water.

A snowHead

As above there is only masochistic pleasure Twisted Evil

to be had skiing in the rain.
You will go. Of course you will. But do not wear down Jackets- think of skiing in a wet sleeping bag. Hard to make an @whitegold war story out of that misery.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Skiing in the rain is like being Scottish.

http://youtube.com/v/f1CB-D1TtXc

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My forecast https://www.meteoblue.com/en/weather/forecast/week/hunter-mountain_united-states-of-america_5121621 is still for snow...

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

@Thornyhill, rofl, I saw that movie in Aviemore when we went for a ski break, I laughed out loud at that scene, and then remembered Shocked

I wasn't in Ireland anymore...

After all it is free

To answer the original question - any! Went to Killington (Vermont) years ago prepared for freezing temperatures and boilerplate and got warm weather and eventually rain. They were issuing plastic ponchos but after one run went shopping! Then got stuck on a chair lift in La Plagne with my daughter with horizontal sleet/rain. She was on the lee side so had the better of it. To make it worse the lifties couldn't stop laughing at the top at the state of us when they eventually got the lift going.

I’ve boarded in the rain the hinterglem and chamonix. It’s really grim.
Coming out of a tent bar in hinterglem in the pishing rain, I bent over to do my bindings up and was amazed at the water pouring off me into my glove.. untill I realised a
I had an open bottle of water in the side pouch of my ruck sack.

Anyway. Did I mention. It’s grim.

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I've already said it but it's worth repeating.................. ANY

I have the dubious experience of Cairngorm, Glenshee, Edinburgh (dry slope), Italy at 2000 metres but at a late easter and sadly 3 Valleys 2015 at 2300 metres in early March. Steamboat Springs in 1989 (early easter) and North York Moors when young and stupid.
Again, how much rain is too much to ski? any.....................

Mountain bike, trials bike, walk etc in the rain? OK, not brill but liveable. Ski? NO- duvet day.......

Having said (ranted) all of that I have been very lucky with few fully rotten days. Mind you 24 degrees in February in Austrian slush was not great fun either as I get older (and therefore weaker) God, I hate that last bit........

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I loathe rain in ski resorts - but have been relatively fortunate over the many decades I've been skiing to have only a few stand-out rainy days.

The worst was probably in 'powder capital' Fernie - redefined miserable as the slopes turned green; sat in a bar in Thredbo watching the same thing happen; there was a horrible morning in Valmorel; a soaking experience on the chairlifts in Sierra at Tahoe; and last season one day of torrential rain all day and night in Saalbach (fortunately turned to snow the following day!).

The worst thing is the hope that it's snowing higher up - only to find it's a mixture of sleet and rain as you ascend on the lifts!

snow reports

Three valleys has been pretty wet Wednesday & Thursday. Wednesday it was pretty much closed down and pissing down (we didn't ski). Ventured out yesterday but got absolutely drenched. No fun at all.
Well, maybe just a little, but pretty miserable after not too long..

Evidence of yesterday’s and last night ‘s Rain right to the top of the mountain in Lech today. Never seen anything like it (rain damaged snow) Slush moguls in January. That is too much rain. Evil or Very Mad

but better than NO SNOW

Help!!

How much rain is too much for skiing?

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