It’s clear that ski season is totally upon us, with Mammoth mountain opening this weekend, and Boreal resuming operations. With another 2 foot dump of light champagne powder on Friday, there were plenty of people with the urge to ski. Ski racks are appearing on cars, and skiing and boarding has been the big topic around Truckee, fortunately giving people something to talk about other than the election.
The demand for skiing and boarding seems pretty strong this year after last year’s lackluster season. Reports are that the crowd at Boreal was pretty big for early November. The parking lot at Mammoth filled to lot D over the weekend, again admirable. More surprising was the number of cars bearing stickers or license plates from the Tahoe/Reno area. Lots were also quite busy at Alpine Meadows and Kirkwood, as many people chose to earn turns.
My selection this weekend went for quantity over quality. Although there were excellent powder conditions locally, it was time to get some real lift served skiing in. Mammoth opened more terrain as the long weekend wore on. It’s not often that they manage to open to the top on opening weekend. But by Sunday afternoon, skiers and riders were able to use the upper Gondola to reach Cornice Bowl, Wipe Outs, Scotty’s, Monument and the Paranoids. While there was powder to be skied, it was a risky scene as the top was still bony. Temperatures ranged from the single digits Saturday to the upper 30’s by Monday. There was plenty of space on groomers and a good variety of park features appearing. We spotted a number of Alpine Meadows regulars, including Cooper Davidson, formerly of the Alpine Freestyle team, now coaching the Mammoth Freeride team.
In the meantime, many people chose to earn turns locally. Reports from both Alpine Meadows and Kirkwood were that “business” was brisk. At Alpine, one rider estimated seeing 75 hikers on Saturday and again Sunday. At Kirkwood, a friend counted 66 cars parked near the chair 6 lift on Saturday.
There was plenty of reports of face shots, over the head blower pow and snorkel conditions. That said, most areas are now limiting this traffic as it interferes with mountain ops. There are still very real risks out there for submerged obstacles and weak snow bridges. It’s also important to note the increasing risk of avalanches as the pack builds and gets wind loaded. Some serious cornice development was reported in Alpine Bowl Saturday. So be safe out there if you’re chasing pre-season turns in uncontrolled areas.
Now for the confirmed rumors. These all started as rumors late last week, but since I brought no laptop to Mammoth, they all became fact in the last few days:
• Squaw Valley will open about 5 days earlier than expected. Operations will begin with Exhibition, Red Dog and the Resort chair this Friday, November 16th. Operations on Gold Coast and Shirley Lakes may begin as early as Thanksgiving.
• Northstar and Heavenly will begin operations on Wednesday, November 14th, likely to one up Squaw Valley
• Squalpine Gold & Silver passholders will get access to Sierra At Tahoe this season Sunday-Friday, non-holiday. Sierra At Tahoe passholders will get access to Squalpine until December 21st and after April 15th. During restricted times, discounted tickets are available. Presumably this new partnership is aimed at preventing a Vail Resorts monopoly in South Lake Tahoe. It will be curious to see if anything more comes out of this partnership in coming seasons.
And finishing up with one more pow shot from Alpine this weekend…apparently it was pretty good out there!
