There were some ominous clouds hanging over the lake this morning that brought intermittent darkness to the slopes. However, sunshine ruled most of the time. Overnight temperatures dipped into the 30’s, making thoughts of firmness on our first few runs top of mind. This proved to be more speculation than reality.
Slopes were basically soft as we made our first turns on Sunspot and then proceeded to Wolverine and Alpine Bowl. I found conditions to be variable with most of my turns completed on corn, but others in sticky snow that certainly slowed me down. After a few laps on the overnight groomed runs I headed off piste.
Personally I enjoyed Peril Ridge, D7, and Terry’s Return. These areas offered small moguls that were soft, but not mushy.
Traveling down The Face was a one time, must do, experience. The snow was just fine, but the moguls that seemed reasonable in size from the lift turned out to be super sized. I picked my way down from skiers right to skiers left and was able to avoid most of the huge bumps, but it was not my desire to repeat the experience. Sympathy was also pleasant as it seemed to have firmed up more than some other slopes. I was not on the hill very long, but the short morning was more than pleasant. There is still plenty of terrain to ski even with much of the mountain closed do to lack of snow or pending construction. Depth in most places was still acceptable as I was not worried about cutting up the bases of my skis sliding over rocks or dirt. Getting on Summit Chair lets you know that the season is nearing an end as the first thing you see is dirt.
I have been doing a little hiking and biking. The Western States Trail heading up from the bridge between Alpine and Squaw is bare to the base of the Wall. We walked up the Rim Trail from Tahoe City heading north (trailhead just up from the Chevron Station on Fairway) for about 2 miles before hitting snow patches. A friend walked up to Five Lakes which was bare most of the way.
Some golf courses in the area are set to open within the next week. The seasons are a turning, but there is still skiing to be done.
Enjoy your day,
Andy
