El Niño & Ski Resorts: Press Kit

Key findings

• The Southwest is El Niño's big winner. New Mexico and Arizona resorts have averaged +23% snow in El Niño winters, and every one of the 10 gains. Biggest gainers: Sandia Peak (+33%), Ski Apache (+33%), Mt Lemmon (+30%), Pajarito Mountain (+28%), Ski Santa Fe (+23%).
• Tahoe's "big El Niño winter" is not in the data. Over 40 winters, Lake Tahoe and Sierra resorts have gotten about the same snow as average in El Niño winters, and they've actually done better in La Niña winters (+6%). Even in the four strongest El Niño winters they averaged only 6% more snow, nowhere near the "huge winter" talk.
• Southern California is boom or bust. Big Bear and the San Gabriels have averaged about +16% in El Niño winters, and around +40% in the strongest ones, but many El Niño winters there still come in below normal.
• The northern Rockies usually lose. Montana, Idaho and Wyoming resorts have averaged −10% in El Niño winters; Jackson Hole about −11%.
• Most of Colorado and Utah show little consistent effect, with big and lean El Niño winters mixed in.

Regional pages: California & Lake Tahoe · Colorado · Utah · New Mexico & Arizona · Montana, Idaho & Wyoming · Pacific Northwest & Alaska · Canada · Vermont & the Northeast · Midwest.

How we measured it

• 40 winters (1986–87 to 2025–26) of ERA5-Land weather reanalysis, adjusted to each resort's mid-mountain elevation, with rain and snow separated hour by hour.
• Each winter tagged by NOAA's Oceanic Niño Index (Dec–Feb): El Niño at +0.5°C or more, La Niña at −0.5°C or less. "Strongest" means +1.5°C or more (1991–92, 1997–98, 2015–16, 2023–24).
• Checked against 89 SNOTEL snow stations with 25+ winters of measurements: correlation 0.93 with the measured El Niño effect.
• Averages, not forecasts. Any single winter can buck the pattern; each resort's page shows its 40 winters one by one.

Badges for resorts

Resorts that gain snow in El Niño winters can use these badges on their site, blog or newsletter. Copy the code under a badge; it links to that resort's full El Niño record.

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/sandia-peak/el-nino"><img src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/sandia-peak.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Sandia Peak: +33% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/ski-apache/el-nino"><img src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/ski-apache.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Ski Apache: +33% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/mt-lemmon/el-nino"><img src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/mt-lemmon.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Mt Lemmon: +30% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/pajarito-mountain/el-nino"><img src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/pajarito-mountain.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Pajarito Mountain: +28% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/ski-santa-fe/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/ski-santa-fe.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Ski Santa Fe: +23% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/arizona-snowbowl/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/arizona-snowbowl.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Arizona Snowbowl: +19% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/sipapu/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/sipapu.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Sipapu: +18% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/bear-mountain/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/bear-mountain.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Bear Mountain: +17% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/angel-fire/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/angel-fire.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Angel Fire: +16% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/mountain-high/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/mountain-high.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Mountain High: +16% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/mt-baldy/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/mt-baldy.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Mt Baldy: +16% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/snow-summit/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/snow-summit.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Snow Summit: +16% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/cuchara/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/cuchara.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Cuchara: +15% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/snow-valley/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/snow-valley.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Snow Valley: +14% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/taos/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/taos.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Taos: +14% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/brian-head/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/brian-head.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Brian Head: +13% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/red-river/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/red-river.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Red River: +13% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/alyeska/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/alyeska.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Alyeska: +10% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/arctic-valley/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/arctic-valley.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Arctic Valley: +10% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/eagle-point/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/eagle-point.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Eagle Point: +9% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

<a href="https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/eldora/el-nino"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.zrankings.com/elnino/badge/eldora.svg" width="420" height="110" alt="Eldora: +7% snow in El Niño winters, according to ZRankings"></a>

Contact

Christopher Steiner, founder, ZRankings · chris@zrankings.com
Christopher is a New York Times bestselling author and the creator of ZRankings' snow, climate and El Niño data.