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Purgatory


Power Pass

Purgatory Ski Resort


Power Pass
Purgatory El Niño ≈
Purgatory Climate Change C
Purgatory Snow Totals
Purgatory Lodging Map M
Purgatory skiing by month:
Purgatory
By Month
Data show that February is the best month Purgatory for overall snow quality.
DEC
Purgatory
in December
JAN
Purgatory
in January
FEB
Purgatory
in February
MAR
Purgatory
in March
APR
Purgatory
in April
Purgatory winter weather:
Purgatory
Winter Weather
How often it snows vs. rains at Purgatory, how cold it gets, and how much winter sun to expect.
Snow vs. Rain
Precip on 25% of days
Highs & Lows
Coldest week: 7°F low
Winter Sun
83% of possible sun
El Niño
+7% snow in El Niño winters

Core Strengths

Purgatory
Travel Ease
83.1
Overall
69.1
Snow Quality
65.7
Overall
Overall PAF Score

Overall
Rank

55

Rank in
Region

33

Rank in
State

16

This resort is often compared with:

Telluride
Wolf Creek
Vail
Purgatory Snow Quality Across Full Winter
Click ON/OFF:
Purgatory Snowfall Last 10 Days (inches)

Powder
Forecast

Powder Forecast
ZRANKINGS EXCLUSIVE
Sunday
Day
0"
Night
0"
Monday
Day
0"
Night
0"
Tuesday
Day
0"
Night
0"
Wednesday
Day
0"
Night
0"
Thursday
Day
0"
Night
0"

Snow

True*
Annual Snowfall

264"

True Snow: 264" per year
Snow Quality Rank

51

Accounts for resorts' snow quantity, moisture content, latitude, elevation, and slope aspects.

Dump Potential Rank

96

Purgatory Ski Resort is ranked No. 96 in North America for its total snowfall during an average season.

Historical Powder Odds
Daily Lottery

% of days with more than 6" of snow

10.0%

Extended Stay

% of months with more than 90" of snow

6.8%

Drought Threat

% of months with less than 30" of snow

31.2%

*Special thanks to Tony Crocker and Bestsnow.net.

Dump Potential Rank

96

Purgatory Ski Resort is ranked No. 96 in North America for its total snowfall during an average season.

Snow
Quality
Rank

51

Accounts for resorts' snow quantity, moisture content, latitude, elevation, and slope aspects.

Total Snow Score

This score accounts for total snow quantity, its moisture content, the resort's latitude, elevation, and its slope aspects, which affect total snow preservation.

Comparables

Purgatory Ski Resort
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Christmas at Purgatory

Will there be snow for the holidays? Here's what the record says about Purgatory at Christmas.

80% of the mountain open on Christmas, on average
15% of years it's less than half open by Christmas
1,090 hours cold enough to make snow at the base, Nov–Dec, in a typical year

Opening figures are ZRankings' analysis of past Christmas seasons. Snowmaking hours come from 40 winters of hourly weather data at the resort's base. Purgatory's full climate profile →

A Few Words on the Snow at Purgatory

Purgatory's snow record is below average in Colorado. 10.4% of winter days with 6 inches or more of snow is middle of the pack for western destinations, while 7% of months with 90 inches or more and 31% of months with 30 inches or less are worse than average. Snow density as in most of Colorado is as light as it gets. Fortunately competition for powder at Purgatory is less intense than most places due to its remote location.

Accumulation and Preservation

Purgatory averages 80+% open at Christmas due to moderate terrain not needing as much coverage as many places. Purgatory's snow preservation is excellent. It’s over half north facing and ski elevation is 8,800 – 10,800 feet. Surfaces are mostly packed powder to late March, and into April on some of the higher slopes.