The Lake Tahoe ski season just got a nice jolt this week from Mother Nature with a sizable snow storm.
Many of Lake Tahoe’s ski resorts have received 12 to 32 inches from this week’s snow storm and it’s dumping pretty good today (March 29).
The National Weather service is reporting a 90-100 percent chance of snow today and 20-40 percent through Tuesday for both Truckee and South Lake Tahoe.
Sugar Bowl ski resort, which is located off Interstate-80 at the Norden exit, has accumulated 32 inches from the latest storm. It’s snowing pretty hard today at the 6,900-foot elevation and above, making for another powder day.
“This skiing and riding is excellent right now. And today we reopened Royal Gorge for cross country skating and striding,” said John Monson, spokesperson for Sugar Bowl. “Better late than never! We have a base of 87 inches, and this should make for exceptional spring skiing and riding.”
Sugar Bowl will remain open for skiing and snowboarding through at least April 20. Its 2014/15 season passes go on sale Monday. If purchased, pass holders ski free the rest of this season.
Not every Lake Tahoe ski resort has been that fortunate. It’s been a tough season for several of the mid-to-smaller ski resorts.
Homewood Mountain ski resort is closed for the season. Both Donner Ski Ranch and Tahoe Donner haven’t been operating for much of this season. Granlibakken’s one ski hill is shut down as well.
However, family-friendly Diamond Peak ski resort remains open, currently has fresh snow, and has an assortment of spring events scheduled in early April.
Among Tahoe’s larger resorts, Squaw Valley ski resort has enjoyed good spring skiing and is reporting 23 inches of fresh snow from the storm, while neighboring Alpine Meadows has received 14 inches.
Despite the lack of natural snow this season, Northstar California has experienced better conditions than most Lake Tahoe resorts, due to its large snow-making capacity. Northstar has added to its base this week, receiving a foot of new snow in a three-day period. The forecasts are predicting up to one foot of additional snow through the weekend.
“Despite the transition to spring, the recent snow has offered incredible powder and trail conditions for skiers and riders,” said Bill Rock senior vice president and chief operating officer at Northstar. “The snowfall has added to this month’s snowmaking, ensuring a phenomenal snow experience, as well as Northstar’s classic spring events.”
On Tahoe’s south shore, Sierra-at-Tahoe ski resort has been treated quite well by the storm with 24 inches this week. Heavenly Mountain was reporting 9 inches of snow from the current storm.
Kirkwood Mountain ski resort, which typically gets more snow than most Tahoe resorts, is reporting 23 inches storm total and more on the way today. Boreal Mountain has gotten 21 inches and Soda Springs has 19 inches.
