If you’re planning a ski trip to Lake Tahoe during the Christmas holidays, the good news is there’s plenty of snow.
Two major Tahoe ski resorts – Kirkwood, Mt. Rose – already have 100-percent of their terrain open, thanks to some sizable snow storms over the past month that’s allowed them to offer top-to-bottom skiing and riding. Other Tahoe ski resorts have numerous lifts and runs open, giving the holiday crowd plenty of options.
And terrain options are a great thing during the Christmas holidays, the busiest time of year for the 14 Lake Tahoe ski resorts. Besides locals who are anxious to hit the slopes, there will be thousands of skiers and riders vacationing in Tahoe for the holidays.
Located on Highway 88 in the South Lake Tahoe region, Kirkwood Mountain has all 12 lifts running, accessing to 2,400 acres of terrain. Kirkwood is reporting 141 inches of snow this season.
Mt. Rose, located on the Nevada side of Tahoe that caters to Reno skiers and riders, has received 135 inches (more than 11 feet) of snowfall for the season. It has all eight lifts running, including the expert terrain on its famed Chutes region.
Sierra-at-Tahoe: The ski resort off Highway 50 heading into South Lake Tahoe is reporting 156 inches. The early-season snow total is the most snow among Tahoe ski resorts.
Any Santa sightings? Seeing Santa – or multiple Santas – skiing or riding has been a holiday tradition for years at Tahoe ski resorts. And embracing the holiday spirit, many skiers and riders will dress up in Santa gear and hit the slopes on the days preceding Christmas.
If meeting Santa on the slopes is a goal, he has been appearing regularly at Homewood Mountain this week from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Santa will be at Homewood at these same times Monday and Tuesday. No problem getting a photo with Santa – just stop and ask for a photo or even a gift from his Christmas bag.
Sierra-at-Tahoe is offering a cool deal: Anyone who skis in a Santa outfit at Sierra or shows up in festive costume on Christmas Eve will receive a $10 discount on a lift ticket. Limit one voucher per guest.
Holiday weather outlook: If skiing or snowboarding is on the agenda for Christmas Day, don’t anticipate ideal conditions. Monday (Dec. 23) through Christmas Day will be cold with snow dropping lightly from weak systems. Very light accumulations expected, perhaps a dusting of 1 inch each day. Temperatures will range in the 30s at lake level and 20s on the mountains.
Expect conditions to improve by Thursday (Dec. 26). High pressure starting Thursday and continuing into the weekend will result in bluebird days at Tahoe ski resorts through the weekend.
“We should clear out Thursday with sunny skies into the weekend,” predicts OpenSnow, California forecaster Bryan Allegretto. “We should start cold with highs in the 20s on the mountains and 30s at lake level Thursday and Friday, and then warming into the 30s for all elevations on the weekend.”
“It will be a snow-filled holiday here in Tahoe,” said Russell Carlton of Vail Resorts in Tahoe (Heavenly, Northstar, Kirkwood). “Our ski areas have received more than 10 feet of snow this season, including nearly 8 feet of snow in December alone at Kirkwood and Northstar.”
Current conditions: According to OpenSnow.com, the latest storm hit Tahoe ski resorts Sunday morning and should deliver light to moderate snow. Snow showers will continue Sunday night before tapering off. The result could be 2-12 inches of snow by Monday morning at Tahoe ski resorts.
Freezing nights this week have allowed ski areas to crank up their snowmaking operations and add to the recent storm totals. Snow cats are out in the evenings to refresh the surfaces of runs, then groom them into a corduroy-like surface for skiers and boarders.
Wind is often an issue during snowy days in Tahoe and Sunday (Dec. 22) was no different. Many lifts throughout the region were shut down earlier in the day, while some never ran. At Squaw Valley, the Funitel was down for a time in the morning, but was transporting skiers and riders up the hill by around noon time.
On any given day, wind gusts can often reach 50-100 mph, creating swaying lifts and conditions no skier wants to experience. At Heavenly, strong winds that reached gusts as high at 75 mph closed much of Heavenly on Sunday, including the Gondola, Mott, Comet, Dipper, Tamarack, Sky, Galaxy, and Olympic.
