BY JEFFREY WEIDEL
There was plenty of rejoicing Friday at Lake Tahoe ski resorts. The reason was mentioned several times on Twitter where the message was short and to the point: “Dumping.”
Indeed, it was dumping throughout the Sierra in the first major snow storm since Dec. 20. Heading the list of reported snow was Mt. Rose, which got up to 2 feet of new snow.
The higher temperatures meant Friday’s snow was wet, but no one was complaining. Although the storm was reportedly going to rain at lower levels, the snow level dipped surprisingly to 6,000 feet, which means many ski resorts got much-needed snow at their base elevations.
The snow wasn’t all good news Friday. Severe high winds throughout the Lake Tahoe region had many ski resorts shutting down for the entire day, while other resorts were reportedly on hold due to the severe wind.
Today’s forecast should add a few inches of snow at higher elevations. However, another storm is expected to arrive Sunday and could roll into Monday.
SNOW REPORT: Here’s a look at what some Lake Tahoe ski resorts were reporting Saturday morning.
Mt. Rose: The resort off Mt. Rose Highway in Nevada got 19 inches at its base and 24 inches at higher elevations.
Mt. Rose is reporting 22 inches at its base (8,200 feet) and 48 inches at its summit.
Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows: Squaw received 15 inches at its summit and nearby Alpine got hit hard as well with 10 inches from Friday’s storm. Squaw reportedly won’t open upper mountain lifts until 11 a.m. today. Roundhouse, Hot Wheels, Meadow and Kangaroo were open at 9 a.m. Summit will be closed today.
Heavenly: Although the resort was shut down Friday, the good news is it received 8 inches of new snow. Heavenly has delayed openings this morning on Sky, Tamarack and Dipper Express due to heavy rime on cable.
Northstar: The Village at Northstar was painted white Friday afternoon and the snow continued to accumulate throughout the evening. Northstar is reporting 10 inches of snow.
Sugar Bowl: Located off Interstate-80 at the Norden exit, the historic resort received 6-10 inches of snow. Among the lifts reportedly open today are Lincoln, Nob Hill and Christmas Tree. The Sugar Bowl website says Old Highway 40 is closed coming from Truckee.
Kirkwood: The resort was closed due to high winds Friday, but the snow kept coming, dropping 9 inches.
Kirkwood is reporting diminishing winds today, though still blustery at times.
Sierra-at-Tahoe: Located off Highway 50 east of South Lake Tahoe, Sierra reported 10 inches of snow on its summit.
Diamond Peak: There were snow flurries throughout the day at the resort at Incline Village, which was one of the few Tahoe resorts open Friday. The good news was Diamond Peak got a foot of fresh snow and opened four more tails Saturday, bringing the total to five lifts and 15 trails for the weekend.
Jeffrey Weidel can be reached at skiweidel@gmail.com. Visit his winter website at www.tahoeskiworld.com
