Anyone who has spent a winter in Denver before should recognize this one is unusually warm. December 2025 was the second warmest December in city history, experiencing more 60 degree days than traditionally warmer cities like Las Vegas and Atlanta.
The state is currently in a “snow drought” which is forecasted to worsen. Snow cover this January has been at the lowest in recorded history which is concerning for a state that financially depends on the ski industry.
In 2023, winter recreational activities generated nearly $4 billion in value for the state, with the outdoor industry making up around 5 percent of the state’s employment. This year, ski shops and resorts have reported about 20-30 percent fewer customers than past winters. With an industry this integral, these drops in attendance will make it harder for the state to grow.
Cities like Vail and Breckenridge that depend on ski related tourism have had to make significant cuts. Vail reported that by the end of December, roughly one-tenth of their total terrain was open. In response, capital investments such as affordable housing, community events and road maintenance, have stalled.
Many ski resorts are now turning to supplementing the snow, gathering it in trash cans from nearby forests and scattering it on the slopes. For example, Wolf Creek Ski Area used about 40,000 barrels in December alone. While this is technically a solution, it is difficult to maintain.
This warm weather will be felt well past the end of winter. It is easy to assume that a warm winter leads to a warm summer but there is little evidence of this. Instead, this lack of snow means less water which is used for power and agriculture.
Snow drought leads to real drought. The less precipitation the state receives, the less moisture it will have during fire season. Heatwaves and drought have already been more prevalent in recent years.With fewer and fewer snowfalls, they will only get worse. Combined, this leads to more frequent and farther spreading wildfires.
In turn, areas that have been burned by wildfires have less snow retention. This process creates a positive feedback loop where less snow leads to more wildfires which then creates land that cannot preserve the snow, leading to less moisture and an increased risk of wildfires.
Colorado and the general Southwest has been experiencing a drought for the majority of the past 20 years, which has only worsened due to climate change. A decrease in snow not only impacts the state’s economy but plagues the state itself.
Although I always took global warming seriously, this is the first year I feel that I am truly seeing its impacts. I have spent the better part of my life in Colorado, so it’s alien to experience a barely white winter. But what’s scarier is the effects of climate change and our understanding of it are still in their infancy.
