HOW DEEP'S THE SNOW, MAMA?
I hope you like snow. If you don't, Red River is the wrong place to be from November through March and, sometimes, even in April and May.Look at the weather records that Red River's Bob Prunty has been keeping for the past fifty years and you'll see that the 20-year average for snowfall in town is 155 inches. Elevation 8,750 feet.
Just a little change in elevation can make a big difference in snow depth. Sometimes as little as a 50 foot increase up the mountain is easily noticeable.
The Red River Ski Area reports an average accumulation of 200+ inches. Elevation: 10,350 feet at the top of the Red Chair Lift.
The Enchanted Forest Cross Country Ski and Snowshoe Area at the top of Bobcat Pass... well, it's hard to measure because the wind likes to blow the snow around on the trails and into the trees, making measurement difficult at best. Top Elevation: 10,040 feet, Base Elevation: 9,600 feet.
Go up high to the very high, high country where the snowmobile tours go... well, nobody knows for sure how deep the white stuff gets because nobody really measures snow depth there, but it's not unusual to step off your sled and sink up to your waist or over your head.
Talk about dismounting in the wrong location!
So how deep does it get?
Deep enough to provide runoff for New Mexico folks and flatland farmers "down on the prairie," (Guess what fills the underground rivers and the huge aquifer that irrigates the dry land crops. Rain? In West Texas? Yeah, once every 50 years or so.
How much snow do we get in Red River during the winter?
How much do you need?
Enough to play in and have big-time fun? Enough to make our gloved fingers numb on occasion and enough to get our noses rosy?
Enough to make Red River a place where winter memories of a lifetime are made every day? That works for me.
Fritz Davis, Editor