STEVENS PASS — Last month was the snowiest April ever recorded at Stevens Pass.
The pass collected 86 inches of snow during the month, according to figures kept by the state Department of Transportation. It’s the highest figure for April in 60 years of
record-keeping.
The total reflects an unusually cold and wet spring — so far — with record-low temperatures last month.
The average high in Seattle was a record-low 52.2 degrees, breaking a 66-year-old record, according to the National Weather Service.
Last month also was the seventh-wettest April on record, with 4.47 inches of rain reported at Sea-Tac International Airport.
Paradise at Mount Rainier recorded 146 inches of snowfall in April, Mount Baker 127 inches and Timberline at Mount Hood in Oregon 149 inches, said Garth Ferber, an avalanche meteorologist with the Northwest Avalanche Center in Seattle.
Ferber wasn’t certain if those are records, but they’re much higher amounts than usual, he said.
Many spots in the Cascade Mountains, including Stevens Pass, hit their maximum snowpack for the year much later than normal, Ferber said.
“Everybody’s about a month later than usual on their maximum snow depth,” he said.
Stevens Pass hit its high snowpack for the year of 138 inches on April 6, about three weeks later than usual, Ferber said.
Many other locations hit their high this year around the end of April, “which is really unusual,” said Ferber, who has been in his current job for 18 years. “It’s the latest I’ve seen maximum snow depth.”
The Stevens Pass ski area was open through April 17, marketing director Chris Rudolph said. The ski area had a lot of visitors on weekends, but weekdays were slow, he said.
The ski operation is shut down every year in April regardless of conditions, he said. Stevens Pass received complaints for not staying open later this year, but even in years when snow comes late, the crowds start to thin out, Rudolph said.
“So with the exception of a handful of very busy days, the majority of operating days in April see a precipitous drop when compared to (similar) days in March,” Rudolph said in an e-mail.
Still, he said, the ski area is considering building flexibility into its schedule next year and beyond, which would allow it to stay open if conditions warrant.
Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439; sheets@heraldnet.com.
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