Predicting the opening of ski season has been a difficult chore this fall for Lake Tahoe ski resorts. It’s about as unpredictable as the weather.
After one of the wettest Octobers on record that left ski resorts optimistic regarding early openings, November arrived with no measurable precipitation and hotter than normal temperatures.
Mt. Rose ski resort in Nevada was scheduled to be the first Lake Tahoe-area resort to open – Halloween Day. But the October 31 opening didn’t take place.
With cold temperatures and the chance of snow in the forecast starting today (Nov. 16) through the end of the week, Mt. Rose and three other Lake Tahoe resorts say they will fire up snowmaking systems by Thanksgiving — conditions permitting.
Boreal Mountain also has plans to open this Friday. Vail Resorts in Tahoe – Heavenly, Northstar – have Wednesday (Nov. 23) openings scheduled.
“With winter weather returning and cold temperatures in the forecast, our mountain operations team is prepared to take advantage of every opportunity possible to make snow and get the season underway, “ said Mike Pierce, director of marketing at Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe. “Thanks to enhancements we’ve made the past several years to our snowmaking system, we only need a couple of nights of solid snowmaking to build a sustainable base that will keep our guests skiing and riding all season long.”
As snowmaking operations continue leading up to opening day, the Mt. Rose will share additional detail regarding what terrain and resort services will be open, as well as ticket prices.
Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows pushed back their original opening by nearly two weeks. They recently announced that the new opening date is Wednesday, Nov. 23, weather and conditions permitting.
The two resorts, which are situated practically side by side and share the same ownership group, report they had 41 feet of cumulative snowfall in the 2015-16 season.
“We are eager to kick off the season and look forward to opening the resort as early as weather and conditions permit,” said Andy Wirth, president and CEO of Squaw Valley Ski Holdings.
Tentative Lake Tahoe Opening Dates
- Mt. Rose: Nov. 18
- Boreal Mountain: Nov. 18
- Northstar: Nov. 23
- Heavenly: Nov. 23
- Squaw Valley: Nov. 23
- Alpine Meadows: Nov. 23
- Homewood: Dec. 9
- Sugar Bowl: Dec. 10
- Diamond Peak: Dec. 1
- Kirkwood: TBA
- Sierra-at-Tahoe: TBA
- Tahoe Donner: TBA
- Soda Springs: TBA
- Donner Ski Ranch: TBA
- Granlibakken: TBA
