The 2023-24 ski season is ready to commence in Lake Tahoe with Mt. Rose opening Friday (Nov. 10), once again becoming the first Tahoe ski resort to begin running its lifts for skiers and snowboarders.
Located off the Mt. Rose Highway and approximately 10 miles from Incline Village in North Lake Tahoe and 25 miles from Reno, Mt. Rose announced earlier this week it will kick off the season one day later than it was projected.
A recent storm, plus multiple windows of opportunity for Mt. Rose’s snowmakers to fire up the resort’s snowmaking system, will allow skiers and riders their first turns of the season. Mt. Rose snowmakers have been busy making snow from top-to-bottom.
“Mt. Rose has the highest base elevation (8,260 feet) in Tahoe and primarily Northern and Eastern exposure, meaning we have the ability to make snow more often when conditions permit,” said Mike Pierce, Mt. Rose marketing director. “We benefit from the colder temperatures we experience, which often translates to better snow quality.”
Almost exactly a year ago to this year’s opener, Mt. Rose was also the first Tahoe ski resort to begin the season, starting on Nov. 11.
Thanks to some more expected snow next week and low evening temperatures, there could be three more Tahoe ski resorts open a week from now – Heavenly, Northstar and Boreal. Weather permitting, the Thanksgiving weekend (Nov. 23-26) could see seven Tahoe ski resorts open for holiday skiing and riding.
TAHOE SKI RESORTS – TENTATIVE OPENINGS
- Mt. Rose: Nov. 10
- Northstar California: Nov. 17
- Heavenly: Nov. 17
- Boreal: Nov. 17
- Palisades Tahoe: Nov. 22
- Sugar Bowl: Nov. 24
- Soda Springs: Nov. 24
- Kirkwood: Dec. 1
- Diamond Peak: Dec. 7
- Granlibakken: Dec. 15
- Sierra-at-Tahoe: TBA
- Homewood: TBA
- Tahoe Donner: TBA
For opening weekend, Mt. Rose is planning to open Lakeview Express from 9 am to 4 pm, offering top-to-bottom access to intermediate level trails on the Main Lodge side of the mountain. Open trails will include Kit Carson Traverse, Kit Carson Bowl and Ponderosa.
All parking will be available at the Main Lodge, and services are open from 8 am to 5:30 pm. Services include the Lodgepole Cafe, Timbers Bar, and Rental Shop for season lease equipment pick-up.
“We’ll continue to take advantage of the winter weather that’s expected so we can open even more lifts and terrain, and begin ski school lessons and offering equipment rentals as quickly as possible,” Pierce said.
For more information regarding a season pass or lift tickets at Mt. Rose, visit www.skirose.com.
MAMMOTH MOUNTAIN OPENING FRIDAY: Mt. Rose won’t be the only California ski resort open this weekend. Mammoth has also announced it will open for the season Friday.
Joani Lynch is the Director of Business Operations at Mammoth Mountain. She said a mid-November opening isn’t unusual and that Mammoth has opened as early as October.
“What is unusual is we just shut down three months ago,” Lynch said.
Mammoth’s Aug. 6 closing this year marked the end of the second-longest season in the resort’s history, due largely to one of the largest snowfalls (885 inches) that a California ski resort has ever seen in a year.
Lynch said the operations crew will evaluate snow conditions Thursday and make the final call on which runs to open. Those runs will likely be open to intermediate skiers, not beginners.
