We’ve really had an amazing run of great ski conditions, lasting about 6 weeks. We have had numerous deep and light powder days. I’ve lost count how many times someone has claimed “it’s the best day of the season”. In writing ski reports over the last 15 years, I can’t recall such a streak. But all of that changed as a warm storm moved in yesterday evening.
Snow levels went up even higher than expected last night, literally soaking every bit of snow that has fallen in the last couple of weeks. If you look at the base area total over the last 24 hours on the Remote Data page, it peaked at 170 inches yesterday before dropping back down to 160 inches today. It’s not likely that that much snow melted. It’s more likely that most of that loss is due to consolidation of the snow pack. It’s not light fluff anymore. It certainly wasn’t a surprise to me, or anyone that has paid attention to this blog, or the official blog over at Palisades Tahoe over the last few days.
As I was coming up Donner Summit yesterday afternoon, I noticed there were still a few Jeep bros and BMW’s loaded up with skis, dreaming of big powder days due to the huge storm. Those people may have been shocked by the announcement via Twitter this morning that both mountains would be closed today. All of the Epic resorts had already called it yesterday. It made sense for Palisades Tahoe to hold off on the announcement after the shenanigans with opening and closing announcements last Wednesday. Kudos to teams to getting the word out earlier than ever, sending out the Tweet at 6:24 am. I actually saw the notice on the PT app about 10 minutes earlier. Obviously, it was pretty important to make sure that skiers and riders did not show up anywhere near Alpine Meadows this morning.
If you haven’t seen the Buried movie yet, the preview is below. It tells the tale of the lead up and aftermath of the Alpine Meadows avalanche in 1982 that killed 7 people, including several mountain operations staff. You can also read my post about that avalanche, written for the 40th anniversary last year. I already mentioned this week how we are somewhat paralleling the snowpack and weather conditions of March 1982. The movie is available for online streaming from Apple and Amazon.
So when avalanche safety restrictions are in place for the Alpine Meadows lodge and parking lot, you know there are serious concerns for risk. I applaud the decision to keep the public out of harms way today, as well as minimizing the risk for mountain staff.
Over the next 48 hours, conditions are not expected to be quite as intense. Snowfall is expected in reasonable amounts. The snow levels are expected to run right at about the base area elevation at Alpine Meadows. The winds at Palisades reached up to 177 mph at the top of the mountain this morning. It’s obvious that something is up with the Ward Peak sensor again, as it was showing much lower measurements. Winds over the weekend are expected to not exceed the 80 to 100 range at the top of the mountain. (Actually 120 mph is the predicted peak gust…I had already written this paragraph and then read the latest forecast discussion)
The operations blog did say today that they hope to offer skiing and riding at both mountains tomorrow. The slate of operations for Alpine Meadows for tomorrow is Roundhouse, TLC, Sherwood, Meadow, Subway and Big Carpet. I am not shocked that Summit, nor Scott, is not being considered. I am beginning to wonder if we will see Lakeview, Kangaroo or ABC again this season. It’s that time where J1’s start leaving, leaving the mountain even more short staffed than ever. Scaling back operations has become the norm at this time of the year.
I suggest minimal expectations for tomorrow. With the amount of water in the snow and around the mountain, it’s going to take a lot of extra time to return to safe operations. With snow levels riding about 6500, it will not be a “powder day”, it will be a Sierra cement day. Unless you are the bionic man with knees of steel, off piste skiing is unlikely to be a great experience, especially without Summit being open. Groomed runs will likely offer more skiable conditions. That said, if you have ever watched a groomer try to groom slop, you’ll be understanding if the corduroy is not the perfection we have seen for much of the season.
The next big AR event moves in for Monday into Tuesday. I have watched the ensemble models really pump up the precipitation amounts over the last dozen runs. This run shows the potential for 60-90 inches of snowfall late Monday into Tuesday. Snow levels are expected to be slightly above the last system, so snowfall will likely only occur across the crest of the Sierra. Yeah, that would definitely put us into very extreme avalanche danger should that pan out.
Below the snow level, that is another huge shot of moisture incoming. There’s been a lot of talk about town regarding clearing snow from roofs, as all of that water adds a lot of weight. Unfortunately finding diggers is a challenge. There’s far more demand than what is currently available for diggers, in particular if you’re looking for licensed and insured help. I have seen some ridiculous numbers thrown about on Next-door and Facebook groups regarding profiteering from the situation. I was super lucky to find that my son had shoveled our roof yesterday while we were down the hill. What a guy! Challenging times for mountain operations staff…and challenging times for homeowners.
Alterra Announces Ikon Pass Pricing For ’23-’24 Season
It’s that time of year where we have to start considering where we want to ski next season. There’s a lot of factors that are a part of that decision. Will the huge increase in traffic make some people forego a pass next year? Will the amazing powder and snowfall this season mean that even more people want a pass for next year? Will the constant shoveling and ice dam issues of this winter cause a lot of people to decide that the mountain life is way tougher than they thought? Will the luster of the shiny new boxes have worn off? Lastly there is the price of the pass…which hardly seems to matter, as the costs continue to rise, and more people keep buying passes.
Pass prices go up by about 7% for next season, for both the full pass and the base pass. The full pass is now up to $1159 for the season, or $1059 for renewal. Oh yeah, there is also that HUUGGE $10 credit for the COVID season being shortened in 2020. As for me, I am generally getting the cost of my pass down to somewhere between $7-8 per day since I ski a lot. The Base Pass is $330 cheaper.
Sadly, I think Alterra missed an opportunity here to really make a significant dent in overcrowding at Palisades and Alpine Meadows. This would have been the perfect time to set a limit on the number of days that Base Passholders get at PTAM. Either it would have made a real difference in the numbers of people that show up every weekend during the core season… or it would have encouraged (Ka-ching!) increased sales of the full Ikon pass.
Since they did not choose to utilize that option, that means that it is increasingly likely that we are going to see more in the way of paid parking, parking reservations or ski reservations in the coming season. Sadly, Heavenly announced today that they would be implementing some sort of plan for next season. That is really going to be a PITA for those of us that just want to show up and go skiing a lot.
There are so many issues to overcome with such systems. One of the big ones is that families that have kids in team programs and people with reservations in company owned properties or reserved for ski lessons are automatically in. Those of us that live locally and have already passed our kids through team programs and now have an empty nest will have to deal with the stupidity.
Sugar Bowl has been marketing heavily over the last couple of weeks, trying to get a piece of the Epic and Ikon market. Love that mountain but hate that drive…but if you have been coming from points west, you may consider it. $89 tickets are available to passholders from other mountains.
Sorry…when I don’t get to go skiing for two days in a row, I have time to ruminate on these things. Here’s to hoping that we can ski tomorrow without placing anyone in excessive danger.
Pretty big slide on the Alpine side of KT this morning (now that I can see it!). Down close the bottom of the 5 Lakes trail. Not sure if it made it down to the road, but close!
FYI, Teams are already cancelled for Saturday. Can’t recall another time when they cancelled in advance (maybe once during the Christmas/New Year’s storm this year) Usually they are adamant about waiting until morning to make that call.
Those that don’t learn from their past are bound to repeat it.
Having worked/lived through the ’82 season/avalanche, I’m surprised to see the effort to get Alpine back in operation. Who knows what the management incentives must be to spin Subway as soon as possible.
Your son is super awesome!
I would assume it would a better idea to announce a reservation, ticket or parking mandate prior to a sale offering not after . Reservations for those areas that require them have already been stated on their website . Imagine the fallout and refunds that would be issued after the fact .
Please explain how 1″ of water falling as rain is worse for my roof than 1″ of water falling as snow. Media didn’t pay attention in physics class.
“One of the big [issues to overcome] is that families that have kids in team programs and people with *reservations in company owned properties* or reserved for ski lessons are automatically in.” Those five words, “reservations in company owned properties” pretty much say it all, speaking as they do to the Aspenization of skiing, where locals and people who spontaneously choose to go skiing for a day are kicked to the ice-encrusted curb.
Reading your blogs this season has been a real eye-opener on how these macro-economic forces are impacting people who just love to ski, as contrasted from those angling to profit from the “out of boot” experience, while giving not a hoot how overcrowded and overstressed the slopes, parking lots and local roads become. I appreciate your reporting.