Tahoe ski conditions: Lackluster snow fall means little open terrain Christmas weekend
Mother Nature doesn’t appear to be cooperating with those wanting to hit the Lake Tahoe slopes this holiday weekend.
The wet weather in the Sacramento valley this week has not led to much snowfall at the ski resorts in the Sierra Nevada mountains, which points to little terrain being open to ski or snowboard with Christmas Eve coming Sunday.
According to OnTheSnow.com, only two resorts saw natural snow Wednesday and Thursday following rain in the central valley during the week. Sugar Bowl just off the Donner Summit received five inches and has 18% of its trails open while Heavenly saw three inches and remains just 3% open, with 15 of 114 trails available.
That puts the onus on the resorts to generate man made snow in non-ideal conditions. Highs in the Tahoe area are expected to be above freezing in the mid-30s and 40s over the next week.
Most of the larger resorts, as of Thursday, have little terrain open. Northstar is 4% open, Palisades is 2% open and Sierra-At-Tahoe is 2% open. The most open resort in the area is Mt. Rose with 32 runs open, or 48%, thanks largely to having the highest base elevation in the area a large snow-making operation. Mt. Rose is northeast of Lake Tahoe beyond the Nevada border roughly 10 miles beyond Incline Village.
And unfortunately for skiers and riders, there is no imminent snow in the forecast. The National Weather Service indicates a “slight chance” of rain or snow after 10 p.m. Friday and 20% chance Saturday morning before 10 a.m. The next round of precipitation isn’t expected to hit Northern California until next Wednesday, two days after Christmas Day.
The current snowfall is considered 48% of normal, according to OnTheSnow.com. The meager totals come a year after historic numbers in the region last December when some resorts saw as much as 12 feet before New Years. For now, it appears the snow needed to open the majority of ski runs in Lake Tahoe won’t be coming until January.
This story was originally published December 22, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
