Ski lifts will begin to run Thursday in northwestern Wyoming — marking the official opening day of a season delayed by a mild and dry November.  Wyoming’s largest resort, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, will launch its 60th season with three lifts running. Neighboring Grand Targhee resort wil l follow with its opening day on Friday.  Elsewhere across the state, managers are hoping for assistance from Mother Nature. December has ushered in snowfall and colder temperatures across Wyoming, but for resorts that don’t have snowmaking infrastructure, like Antelope Butte in the Bighorn Mountains, there’s still a little ways to go.  Storms brought about 4-6 inches of snow this week, Antelope Butte Guest Services Manager Tim Brown said Wednesday, but “there’s still grass poking up through the snow.” November was drier and balmier than normal in Wyoming. Temperatures were as much as 10-15 degrees Fahrenheit warmer for much of the month, according to the National Weather Service Office in Riverton.  Santa Claus rides the Thunder Lift at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in the winter of 2022/23. (Nate Berenson/Jackson Hole Mountain Resort) Some people likely enjoyed the mild sunny days, but the weather stymied snowmaking and other preparations for skiing. Jackson Hole Mountain Resort originally planned to open last Friday. White Pine near Pinedale moved its original Dec. 5 target to Dec. 12. Snow King in Jackson will open its scenic gondola on Friday but hasn’t announced when skiing will begin.  For skiers antsy to get on the slopes, here are opening updates and projections for Wyoming’s resorts.  Antelope Butte This small ski area, located off of U.S. Highway 14 between Shell and Sheridan, has a target opening day of Dec. 19. Temperatures at the 8,400-foot-base-elevation mountain started dropping starting in late November, and this week’s weather bodes well. “It’s been coming down pretty regularly for the last 24 to 48 hours,” Brown said Wednesday.  Jackson Hole Mountain Resort  Three lifts — Teewinot, Apres Vous and lower Sweetwater — will be open to skiers Thursday at the state’s most high-profile resort. Crews have been making snow, and natural storms have helped fill in the base, with 2 new inches reported Wednesday morning. The mountain reports some 34 inches of natural snowfall mid-mountain so far, but cautioned skiers that “early-season conditions still exist, and all guests are advised to stay out of closed areas and look for hazards.”  The resort hopes to announce additional terrain or lift openings the second week of December.  Area skiers are heartened by weather forecasts, which call for a 100% chance of snow in the Jackson region this weekend.  “What is certain is snowfall, what isn’t certain is how much,” The Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center said in a Tuesday posting. “The forecast area could receive over 2 inches of snow water equivalent and over 30 inches of snow by Monday morning.” Grand Targhee  The northwestern Wyoming resort, which sits near the Idaho border, will open Friday with two lifts. “The last few days have provided us the necessary conditions to make some snow off the Shoshone lift,” the resort announced Tuesday, thanking its snowmakers and groomers for their efforts. The mountain also cautioned skiers about thin spots until the base gets filled in.  Hogadon Basin Ski Area posted this on Facebook Nov. 25. “Round 1 of snowmaking for the 2025-2026 season has started!” the post read. (Screengrab) Hogadon Basin Ski Area  The slopes of Hogadon Basin Ski Area were still brown in mid-November, but Casper’s weather plunged toward winter in the last week. Casper experienced a record-breaking low on Saturday of -15 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the National Weather Service, and also received a few inches of snow this week.  The mountain plans to open its beginner area on Dec. 13, Ski Area Superintendent Ryan Butler said Wednesday. Snowmaking crews had exhausted the water supply by Wednesday, he said. Once it recharges they will resume.  Meadowlark Ski Lodge Meadowlark Ski Lodge, which sits in the southern Bighorn Mountains, doesn’t typically announce its opening date weeks in advance, co-owner Holly Jones said Wednesday. Opening day is too dependent on the whims of Mother Nature.  Instead, Jones said, management waits until the mountain is ready, then updates Facebook. “We post it online, and then everybody shows up to ski,” she said.  The two-lift mountain, which sits off of U.S. Highway 16 between Ten Sleep and Buffalo, has some base coverage, and snowmakers are making more under the lifts, she said. Though reluctant to pinpoint a date, Jones said the aim is to be welcoming skiers by Dec. 15.  Pine Creek  This small family-operated resort near Cokeville isn’t quite ready to open, operations director Alicia Etcheverry told WyoFile in an email Wednesday. But it typically gets lifts turning by mid-December.  “It all depends on snow levels and right now we are waiting on a couple more good storms,” she wrote. “We have around a foot of snow and the cold temps are helping preserve it.” The resort will update its website when it has an opening set. Skiers flock to Snow King Mountain in Jackson on March 14, 2020 after the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort closed. Lines that long at the Town Hill haven’t been seen in years. (Angus M. Thuermer, Jr./WyoFile) Snow King Mountain Snow King Mountain Resort in the town of Jackson will open its scenic gondola and its “Cowboy Coaster” Friday, but isn’t quite ready for snowsports on its 500 acres. “Skiing and boarding soon to follow!” reads its website.  Snowy Range Snowy Range in southeastern Wyoming plans to open Dec. 12. This week’s storm brought a blanket of fresh snow on Wednesday and temperatures in the teens. The National Weather Service is forecasting more snow this weekend.  White Pine  White Pine, a two-lift resort outside of Pinedale, also moved its opening date back from an original target of Dec. 5 to Dec. 12. In addition, the mountain announced it will offer a new Thursday-through-Sunday schedule this season. Snow looks likely Friday night. 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