Photo: Banff Sunshine Village//Instagram
Banff Sunshine Village is often one of Canada’s last resorts spinning lifts each year, but skiing into the summer is a rare treat. Over the past five years, for example, the resort has wrapped up its season between the 18th and 24th of May, give or take a day. This year’s final day of spring skiing fell right in that range (May 18) with a special twist coming not long after skiers and snowboarders thought they’d be hanging them up until late fall. That announcement: a two-week summer reopening.
The last time Banff Sunshine Village enjoyed a similar summer reopening was 2022, when it fired lifts up for a six-day stint covering the Canada Day weekend. It’s a treat skiers and riders only get when the winter delivers a deep enough snowpack to open terrain back up in June, and this year’s 1,000-plus centimeter snowpack (33 feet) was one of the best in North America. And the reopening that’s coming in 17 days isn’t just a few days this time, it’s spanning two full weeks. This is just the second time in 35 years the resort has been able to do this – just for some perspective on how special and rare that is.
Still, summer skiing at Banff Sunshine Village is dependent on the winter’s snowpack and doesn’t necessarily mean anybody’s making turns on new snow. But June opened up with a treat ahead of the summer reopening this time around though, with the resort welcoming a solid 25-plus centimeters near the summit.
At least for a couple of days, it looks like winter just took a short breather.
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