If there is one thing we have learned this season, it’s to go into each day with the lowest expectations possible. Using this strategy, you almost always come out thinking that things were much better than expected. This is far better than going into each day thinking it’s going to be rainbows and unicorns and then getting porcupines and banana slugs.
The expectation for today was that it was going to be cold and potentially rainy, snainy or possibly a dust on crust day. Also there was confusion about whether or not Sherwood would open today, including the High Traverse terrain. As we waited in line at Summit this morning, the Palisades Tahoe app still said that Sherwood was closed today. One patroller came by and flipped some signs indicating the upper bowls would be closed and High Traverse would be open. That would be tricky if Sherwood were indeed closed, but we have learned to expect that the Palisades Tahoe app is wrong more often than it is right. Then a second patroller came by and flipped High Traverse to “closed”. Alrighty then…
Run number one on Sunspot was just as expected: loud, firm, crowded and with über flat light. Switching to Roundhouse solved all of those problems. The snow was softer, the light was better and with more options available, you could stay out of the path of kooks on a high speed mission to maximize their vertical before they end their season. Still, I found myself tired of groomed snow and started experimenting with ungroomed and off piste terrain off of Roundhouse. By 9:30, much of that terrain was skiable and by 10:00 I was even using the term “good” to describe our laps on Yellow trail. That kept us entertained until about 11:40, when we finally decided to follow up on rumors that Sherwood had indeed opened.
Not only was Sherwood open, the light was pretty good and all aspects of Sherwood Face were skiing great. Although I did not ski the Sherwood groomer, the traffic there was light and there was still corduroy around noon. High Traverse closed about 12:30 and Sherwood was closed around 1:00. That was appropriate as the runout from Sherwood Face was getting the icky stickies. That was not on my bingo card for today.
There was not any movement at Scott, and the last of my 9 skiing buddies I started with today was calling it quits at 1:10. So I bypassed Scott and slogged my way through the Trail Of Tears, remembering that I hadn’t waxed today, expecting only boilerplate conditions.
They Still Say A Storm Is Coming
The winter weather advisory is still in effect from 5pm this evening until 11am Sunday. If anything, the storm totals have been ramped up a bit over the last few model runs. Previously it looked like most of that snow would fall tonight and tomorrow morning. It looks more like it will now fall mostly tomorrow morning through Sunday morning. Below is a GIF showing the “model trend” for total snowfall by Sunday according to the short range NAM.
Note the increasing amounts of purple in those last few frames, indicating the potential for more than a foot of snowfall. The point forecast for mid mountain at Alpine Meadows has also bumped upwards, now showing the potential for 8 to 17 inches of snowfall above 6000 feet. Those point forecasts are volatile, updating with each model run. I feel like 8-10 inches by Sunday is a reasonable expectation. As of now, the Winter Weather Advisory only mentions winds to 60 mph with this system, hopefully keeping Summit and the upper mountain at the Northern Annex open.
Update: The latest model runs are weaker again tonight. They now show 3-8 inches of snow possible. It’s been that kind of season 🤷♂️
One thing I have been doing over the last few days is scoping out areas to see where it will be safe for skiing off piste once there is new snow on the ground. Caution is advised as there may be a lot more rock under that new snow than you remember from your last trip to Tahoe. It’s definitely late season conditions, even with new snow falling. Best I can tell, Sherwood and Scott will be open on the rotating schedule this weekend and those are areas where the most caution is advised. That said, there’e plenty of trouble spots right up to the top of Summit.
I said goodbye to some of my favorite Alpine Meadows employees today that are not scheduled for the weekend. This end of the season feeling is getting very real. See you out there tomorrow…
The Deals Are Out There
• Tomorrow is the Tahoe Sports Hub Customer Appreciation Sale from 3-6pm. No matter how much I think “I don’t need anything”, I always find something that is a screaming deal that gets my attention. Last year it was the Smith Nexus MIPS helmet that I thought I would never buy until owner Rob Cavallo made me a deal I just could not turn down. I still love that helmet. Free beer and free food plus great deals on ski and snowboard gear will help you forget about this crazy economic world we are enduring….
• I noticed that Moment Skis has started their Spring Sale on their website. It looks like all skis are now listed at 20% off and the selection is still quite good. Usually that slims down very quickly. Moment skis are not all that expensive to start with, so the discount brings most of them down to around $660. I wrote a glowing review for the Deathwish 104 a couple of months ago and man, I still love those skis.
We saw your group skiing Yellow and joined in on the fun. Thanks for the guidance!