Disclaimer: This is sponsored content. All opinions and views are of Monarch Mountain and does not reflect the same of KOAA.Despite Colorado's snowpack sitting at just 60% of average for this time of year, recent snowfall has pr ovided skiers with several solid resort options heading into what's typically one of the busiest ski weekends of the season.The state's snowpack remains at record lows, but it is important to keep the numbers in context: we only have statewide snowpack data beginning in 1987. This isn't a long record of data when trying to define climate extremes. But, even if there could have been past years in which even less snow has fallen in the mountains, it remains true that this is an incredibly poor position to be in for avid skiers and riders, and it has other significant impacts as well if the pattern doesn't evolve.There is good news, though. First - snow totals from last Thursday through Saturday delivered useful accumulations to some parts of the state. Second - snowmaking technology has improved dramatically over time, and a significant amount of terrain is open at many major resorts statewide due to a combination of natural and machine-made snow. While backcountry ski options are limited, resort skiing options are not, unless you're trying to ski the absolute hardest lines in the state.Steamboat Springs received 20 inches during last week's system, allowing the resort to dramatically expand its open terrain. The resort now offers excellent conditions for expert skiers, with several open chutes and bowls available. Aspen's multiple resorts also have several open expert lines. You're not going to be straightlining pure powder, but it sure is better than staying home!Monarch continues to stand out among Colorado resorts, too, maintaining one of the highest percentages of open terrain in the state despite relying entirely on natural snow. This is not an easy feat to achieve with the conditions we've experienced this season so far.For beginners, Keystone and Winter Park currently offer some of the best terrain conditions and runs. Intermediate skiers, which are the statistical majority of skiers, will find solid options at Vail, which has maintained good base depths and offers plenty of blue and single black diamond terrain.Breckenridge and Copper both have reasonable open terrain - however - due to strong winds, many runs are icier than those listed above. Base depths are also closer to early season, and you may experience variable conditions on nominally easier runs. For example, one of the runs I skiied at Breck last weekend was Crescendo - typically an easy blue that's partly groomed that you can use to work on your bump skiing. In this case though, the entire line contained solid moguls, and various obstacles - trees and rocks - that wouldn't typically be found on a blue partial-groomer. Those are some of the easier Epic and IKON resorts to access from southern Colorado, but if you ski them, you'll have plenty of options but may want to level down one peg for your early runs to assess conditions. On the other hand - being able to ski thin and icy conditions well, improves your overall skiing when conditions are more grippy and filled in, so there is still a real benefit to getting out and visiting these resorts, too.Weekend weather outlookSkiers can expect mostly dry conditions on the slopes this weekend, with a chance for light snow accumulation in the northern mountains on Monday.Wind will be the primary weather concern. Today will remain gusty but less windy than Friday. By Sunday, breezes will be mostly confined to the northern Front Range.Night skiing opportunitiesBoth Steamboat Springs and Keystone will offer night skiing this weekend. Steamboat's night skiing runs Thursday through Sunday, while Keystone extends its night skiing Friday through Monday one of the few weeks this season offering the Monday option. This old tradition is fun - and worth trying if you have the opportunity. Ikon and Epic pass holders do not need to pay any extra money to experience night skiing at the respective resorts.See you on the slopes.This story was written and reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.__Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching. ...read more read less