Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe announced today that it will begin the 2015-16 ski season on Wednesday, Nov. 4, becoming the first Nevada or California ski resort to open for the season.
This is one of the rare times that Boreal Mountain will not be the first Lake Tahoe-area ski resort to open for the season. That honor belongs to Mt. Rose, which is located on Mt. Rose Highway in Nevada and is a favorite of skiers and snowboarders from nearby Reno.
Located off Interstate 80, Boreal takes pride each season in being the first Tahoe resort to open its mountain for skiers and riders. Even though Mt. Rose will have that honor this year, Boreal won’t be far behind with a planned opening on Friday, Nov.6.
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Following the Lake Tahoe region’s first winter storm – that began Sunday evening and carried over into Monday – and with cold temperatures expected to continue through the week, Mt. Rose announced its plans Monday to open for the 2015-2016 winter season.
“Thanks to the first snowfall of the season and a forecast calling for cold temperatures to continue throughout the week, our experienced snowmaking and operations teams are hard at work building up snow base depths so we can get the lifts turning for our guests by mid-week,” said Mike Pierce, director of marketing at Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe.”
Mt. Rose originally projected an Oct. 29 opening. However, warm temperatures through Halloween prevented that from happening. Despite the delay, Nov. 4 will be the earliest opening in the resort’s long history.
“Mt. Rose benefits from having the highest base elevation at Lake Tahoe, so early season storms, paired with the cold temperatures, we’re starting to see set us up well to offer some of the best early season snow surfaces in the region,” Pierce said.
According to Murray Blaney, director of operations at Mt. Rose, the resort has brought in 12 portable snow guns and 12 automated machines rooted at the base of the mountain.
“For snowmaking, it’s got to be below freezing, and you also want to have the right relative humidity,” Murray told KOLO/ABC news in Reno. “You like drier cold air to make snow.”
As snowmaking operations continue leading up to opening day, Mt. Rose will share additional details regarding what terrain and resort services will be open, as well as ticket prices. Open lifts will operate from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
This ski season Boreal will have to be satisfied with opening second among Lake Tahoe resorts.
“This will be a great start. We’re looking for great early-season conditions and hope to see this go through Thanksgiving weekend and continue the rest of the season,” said Boreal spokesperson Shayder Edelmann. “We’re hoping for an awesome season. El Nino is shaping up to be great so far.”
Check out video of Mt. Rose.
For more information about Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe, visit www.skirose.com.
Jeffrey Weidel can be reached at skiweidel@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter at @jeffweidel. Thanks for visiting his website at www.tahoeskiworld.com
