Where to Ski and Snowboard in Summer

For the die hard skier or snowboarder, summer can be a real drag. If you are the kind of person who lives for snow, melting in the summer heat can only make you long for the powder days of winter.

Well, if you know where to go you don't have to wait until November to hit the slopes. There are plenty of places in the world that offer amazing skiing from May through September. Here is a quick guide to some summer skiing destinations.

For early summer you can always check out a few of the North American resorts that have extended seasons.

Colorado's Arapahoe Basin usually stays open until early June and is a great destination for a Memorial Day ski trip. I was there for a late May trip in 2008 and we lucked out and had amazing conditions. The friend I was skiing with referred to it as "mid season East Coast". To top it off, we even got some snow during the trip. It was only light flurries but it still made for a fun Memorial Day.

Mammoth Mountain in California also keeps there season going through mid-June.

In Canada, Whistler offers summer skiing on the Horstman Glacier from June 20^th until July 26^th.

However for the longest ski season in North America. the place to be is Timberline at Mt Hood in Oregon. In 2009 Timberline is schedule to stay open until September 7^th. The Magic Mile and Palmer usually operate most days from 7:00AM until 1:30PM.

Soon you won't even have to go outside to ski in the summer. Beginning in 2010 the Xanadu Shopping center at the Meadowlands in New Jersey will offer year round skiing at an indoor ski center.

However, if indoor skiing and one or two tails on a glacier isn't enough to satisfy your mid summer ski cravings then a trip to the Southern Hemisphere is what you need. While the Northern Hemisphere has its summer the Southern Hemisphere enjoys its winter. South American, Australian and New Zealand ski resorts generally open for their season in June.

Argentina probably offers one of the most cost efficient options for a summer international ski trip. Since the economic crisis that hit Argentina in 2002 and caused the devaluing of their currency Argentina has been a shopper's paradise for people with foreign currency. With inexpensive food, lift tickets and lodging it is hard to resist taking advantage of the many different kinds of ski experiences Argentina offer.

It has fancy upscale all inclusive ski resorts like Las Lenas, which has some of the best skiing in the Southern Hemisphere (if the Marte lift is working). There are also family friendly places to ski, like Chapelco near the quaint town of San Martin de los Andes.

Cerro Catedral by San Carlos de Bariloche offers skiers a huge ski resort near to a fun Argentine city. For those who want to ski at the end of the world Cerro Castor in Ushuaia on the Southern most tip of Argentina offers a unique skiing experience. I skied there over Labor Day Weekend one year and delighted at the "snow parrots" that I saw perched in the trees.

Chile also offers a number of amazing ski resorts all within a short drive of the capital of Santiago.

Australia offers over a dozen ski resorts in the Victorian Alps and in New South Wales.

New Zealand has 12 public ski areas. The largest two resorts are Whakapapa and Turoa. Both are located on the North Island on Mount Ruapehu, which is an active volcano. Their ski season runs from June through October.

So, if you've got the summertime blues and long for a ski trip remember you have plenty of options if you want to hit the slopes!