New Zealand Ski Areas See Warmest June on Record But Winter Finally Arrives
6th July 2021
Last modified on July 9th, 2021
The warm weather has been blamed on climate change, but the temperatures have now dropped with more ski areas opening.
The average temperature in June was 10.6 Celsius (51 Fahrenheit) according to the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research.
That’s 2 degrees C above the 30-year average for June.
Records began being kept in 1909.
Experts from The Institute predict that if the trend continues, people can expect later and milder winters with earlier springs.
Ski areas struggled to open and they have also been hit by Covid-19 restrictions in Australia.
Many major cities in Australia are in lockdown and thus people cannot travel to New Zealand for skiing and snowboarding.
We reported on it earlier on PlanetSKI
Snow though is now falling in New Zealand with the temperatures dropping.
“The good news is we are expecting a cold SW change later tonight and new snow for tomorrow! So just one more day to wait out these warmer winds then some pow!” said Mt Hutt.
“We’d always like a bit more snow on the ground,” said Paul Anderson, the chief executive of NZSki, Paul Anderson, to New Zealand media.
The group operates Coronet Peak, Mt Hutt and The Remarkables.
“But we’ve got some good snow arriving and then a cool four or five days for snowmaking.”
“It’s really clear that climate change is a reality. You can’t argue with that science…..But it is over a very long period of time.”
Whakapapa and Tūroa ski fields opened areas last weekend with 5,000 people turning out.
