Cloudcroft & Ruidoso, NM Seasonal Snowfall Totals.

Seasonal Snowfall Totals.

(Oct 1st, 2019 - January 19th, 2020).

January 11th, 2020.

South Of Cloudcroft, New Mexico.

Top 25 Highest Seasonal Snowfall Totals.

(Cloudcroft, New Mexico 8,750').

Seasonal Totals Are From July 1st - July 1st.

Top 25 Highest Seasonal Snowfall Totals.

(Ruidoso, New Mexico 6,950').

Seasonal Totals Are From July 1st - July 1st.

As a kid growing up in Artesia, New Mexico I always was fascinated by the snowfall in the Sacramento mountains. Especially in the Cloudcroft and Ruidoso areas. Many times Cloudcroft would see their first snowfall by Halloween. It was not unusual to see snow on the ground from around Thanksgiving through Easter in many of these years. 

Sierra Blanca Peak (White Mountain or Old Baldy) west of Ruidoso more often than not was coated with snow from before Thanksgiving to after Easter as well. 

If you have been thinking that it does not snow as much in the Sacramento mountains as it used too, then your thinking is correct. Long term snowfall average for Cloudcroft is about 90". 

The last time the Cloudcroft Climate Co-Op Station measured a season total of 100" or more was during the winter of 2009 - 2010 when that station measured 106.6". Since the winter of 2009 - 2010 they have averaged below normal snowfall each winter up to and including this winter (2019 - 2020)...at least so far.

Total Snowfall Totals For The Following Winters In Cloudcroft.

2010 - 2011      25.2"
2011 - 2012      59.7"
2012 - 2013      35.5"
2013 - 2014      38.8"
2014 - 2015      44.2"
2015 - 2016      62.0"
2016 -2017       49.3"
2017 -2018       21.0"
2018 - 2019      58.2"

2019 - 2020 (as of Jan 19th, 2020) 32.3"

Note: There are missing data and gaps in the snowfall record for Cloudcroft and Ruidoso so some of these totals may be too low. 

The same can be said for the Ruidoso area as well. Ruidoso averages about 40" of snow a year. The last winter that Ruidoso saw 40" or more for the season was in 2009 - 2010 when that station recorded 65.6". 

Total Snowfall Totals For The Following Winters In Ruidoso.

2010 - 2011        9.2"
  2011 - 2012        21.7"
2012 - 2013       3.2"
2013 - 2014      11.5"
2014 - 2015          M"
2015 - 2016          M"
2016 -2017           M"
2017 -2018           M"
2018 - 2019      36.5"


2019 - 2020 (as of Jan 19th, 2020) 2.6"

I wish that I had the seasonal snowfall records for Ski Apache west of Ruidoso. It would be interesting to compare their snowfall totals in the 1960s, '70s, '80s, and '90s with the past 20 years. 

Snowfall Data Is Courtesy Of:

ACIS.
NOAA Climate Data
The Western Region Climate Center.
El Paso National Weather Service Office

The Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction - And Sometimes It Hurts!