When it starts
Kirkwood, Jan 1–5, 2026: the model's run on the day said 18.2" skiable over 5 days, best Sunday at 7.8" (Nice day); the Caples Lake SNOTEL pillow gained 18" of depth. Close.
Close. 18.2" skiable in the model, 18" on the pillow: inside 3" or 30%.
Pack going in: 25" on Dec 31, 24" on Jan 1. The storm total counts from the first reading, so snow after 5pm the night before is in it.
| Day | Call | First chair | On hill | Skiable | Starts | Pillow before | Pillow after | Gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu Jan 1 | Nice day | 0.2" | 1.9" | 2.1" | ~9am | 24" | 22" | -2" |
| Fri Jan 2 | Stay home | 0.0" | 0.0" | 0.0" | — | 22" | 32" | +10" |
| Sat Jan 3 | Nice day | 4.5" | 1.7" | 6.3" | ~1am | 32" | 47" | +15" |
| Sun Jan 4 | Nice day | 3.8" | 4.1" | 7.8" | ~5pm Saturday | 47" | 45" | -2" |
| Mon Jan 5 | Nice day | 2.0" | 0.0" | 2.0" | ~5pm Sunday | 45" | 43" | -2" |
Model: the run on the day (Open-Meteo Previous Runs, best_match). PowHound does not keep superseded live forecasts, so this is not the number you saw the night before. It is usually closer.
Clocks, local time: first chair 5pm–8am, on hill 8am–5pm, skiable is both. Stay home under 2", Nice day 2–8", Full Send 8" or more.
Pillow: snow depth at the Caples Lake SNOTEL station, read once a day around midnight. A day's gain is the next midnight reading minus that day's, so it runs midnight to midnight, not 5pm to 5pm. Depth is not snowfall: new snow settles and blows around, so the pillow usually reads under what fell. Not the resort report.
Verdict: close is within 3" or 30%. Season numbers and method: llms.txt.