Okay, we’ll be honest here. This trip report is from skiing that happened on July 3rd. We’re confident that there was still plenty of snow for the 4th too!
In a normal year, it’s easy to find snow in Tahoe on the 4th of July. In 2011, Alpine Meadows, Squaw Valley, Kirkwood and Sugar Bowl all offered lift served skiing for the holiday. In other years, it simply requires a short hike to Palisades, High Yellow Gully or Estelle Bowl at Alpine Meadows – or perhaps the Chutes at Mount Rose.
For this year, things are just a bit tougher, as the snow patches are already in more of an August state. We still found snow, at what some have started calling the Carson Pass Ski Resort. Snow patches on Roundtop and The Sisters can be accessed from the Carson Pass trailhead or the Woods Lake Campground. Either route requires an approximately 3 mile approach hike and return hike.
Our efforts were rewarded with creamy corn conditions that skied quite smoothly, given the heat and monsoon rains of the last week. We skied a collection of patches that my friends have named for members of the Wu-Tang Clan. Now I just need to locate one of those Keep Tahoe Wu stickers. The snow was soft enough to allow for efficient boot packing uphill, but firm enough to provide some nice turns on the way down.
This marks month 34 in a row for me. It was a great way to spend July 3rd…and likely the 4th too. For another interesting report – check out Sven’s report on July 4th urban kayaking over at our sister site UnofficialMtRose.com.