Banff Sunshine Village is gearing up for a summer ski season following an exceptionally snowy winter. The regular winter season is set to conclude on May 18, with plans to reopen for a 16-day summer ski season from June 20 to July 5. Kendra Scurfield, a representative of Sunshine Village, credits the abundance of snow on the mountain for enabling the resort to consider a summer ski season. She describes the past season as a fairytale with continuous snowfall. The resort anticipates operating the Strawberry Express chairlift and multiple ski runs during the summer season, with more details to be revealed soon.
Scurfield highlights the uniqueness of Sunshine Village in offering summer skiing due to its high elevation above the tree-line, allowing snow to linger longer compared to other resorts. According to John Pomeroy, a University of Saskatchewan professor specializing in Rockies precipitation, the resort benefits from its high elevation, receiving nearly double the precipitation of valley communities like Banff and Canmore.
This upcoming summer ski season marks the second time in almost 35 years that Sunshine Village has ventured into summer skiing. Scurfield recalls a similar initiative in 2022 when heavy snowfall prompted a short opening over the Canada Day weekend, with visitors even skiing in shorts. Following the positive response in 2022, the resort committed to exploring summer skiing opportunities whenever conditions permit.
Pomeroy notes that the region around Sunshine Village currently boasts well above-average snow levels for this time of year, with approximately 830 millimeters of snow water equivalent compared to the typical 600 millimeters expected. The cooler spring temperatures have aided in preserving the snowpack, although warmer forecasts for May could pose challenges for maintaining sufficient snow for the summer season.