You've got to admire the resilience of Australian snow lovers as the disappointing 2023 ski season winds down.
It might be tempting to mock the patchy snow coverage in our ski resorts, based on the image of Thredbo below on Friday.
But in the the Aussie spirit of having a go and not complaining, you've got to admire these skiers and snowboarders who were enjoying themselves on the beginner slopes on paper-thin ribbons of muddy snow.
The 2023 Australian snow season is pretty much on its last legs now.
After several resorts closed much earlier than ever before in early September, the last few resorts look unlikely to keep lifts open beyond this weekend.
If one resort makes it through to the traditional season closure on the first weekend in October, it'll probably be Perisher in NSW, where despite the warmest September day on record of 18 degrees on Thursday, Friday afternoon's snow cam image revealed slopes that were still mostly snowy.
Meanwhile Weatherzone reports that while 2023 won't go down as the worst Australian snow season on record, it will be remembered as the season with the earliest peak depth.
In other words, the season started out OK, but after a peak depth of 131 cm on July 13, consecutive spells of record warmth in July, August, and early September melted most of the natural snow cover away.
But even if the slopes are more mud than snow, you can bet there'll still be skiers or snowboarders out there having as good a time as possible.
After all, the warm months last a lot longer than the cool months in Australia.
