Lake Tahoe snow update: With the weather changing, will the resorts open more slopes?
The calendar turns to December on Friday edging the Lake Tahoe area further into ski season with some resorts opening at modest levels and others opening for the first time.
For those hoping to hit the slopes this weekend, snow on the way could improve ski conditions and allow for more runs and chair lifts to open. Six of Tahoe’s 12 resorts remain closed with a handful of resorts opening last week and others waiting for more snow to fall.
But the National Weather Service is predicting possible snow showers Friday and throughout the weekend that could see more runs open up throughout Tahoe’s ski resorts.
“With more cold temps and models showing snow later this week, we’re hopeful Mother Nature will keep delivering cold and snow to allow us to continue opening more terrain and to also kick things off at Kirkwood with some great early season first turns,” said Ashlee Lambert, a senior communications manager for Vail Resorts in Lake Tahoe, in an e-mail to The Bee.
Lack of snow
Northstar through Wednesday had less than 5% of its runs open. It’s a similar story at Heavenly (3%) and Palisades (two open runs total). Mt. Rose has been one of the most open mountains in the area, with four lifts and 10 runs thanks to running its artificial snow making operation since late October. Boreal Mountain and Soda Springs, two smaller resorts West of Tahoe, have two and six runs open, respectively.
Kirkwood, one of Vail’s three resorts in Tahoe, is scheduled to open Friday, although the number of runs open remains to be seen. Sugar Bowl is also scheduled to open Friday. Diamond Peak and Sierra at Tahoe are slated for Saturday. Donner Ski Ranch and Tahoe Donner are scheduled to open Dec. 8. Homewood Mountain Resort is set for Dec. 15.
Weekend forecast
The NWS is predicting a 40% chance of snow fall on Friday night through Sunday in South Lake Tahoe. In Truckee, 0.5 inches to 1.5 inches could fall on Thursday with new snow accumulation of less than an inch possible Friday and Saturday.
The Tahoe region was expecting a powder dump earlier this month, but the storm did not meet expectations. Overall, it’s unclear how much snow is coming this winter after last year’s historic snowfall. But experts have expected El Nino conditions for this winter, which generally produce above-median precipitation levels in just over half the cases, according to a study done by Palisades Tahoe’s Bryan Allegretto.
The National Weather Service wrote earlier this month that above-average sea level temperatures across the equatorial Pacific Ocean indicate El Nino conditions will have a chance to last through April and June. It all points to a chance of good snowfall during peak months of December and January why ski season gets into full swing.
