The weeklong storm that brought 4.5 inches of rain to Santa Cruz last week, brought 46 inches of snow to Heavenly Mountain Resort in South Lake Tahoe. That’s good news for anyone who enjoys strapping a plank of wood to their feet and sliding down a mountain.
I took the four-hour trip north to sample Heavenly’s epic pow-pow and, let’s just say, I wasn’t disappointed. All but one lift was running and 85 runs were open as a light snow continued to fall both Saturday and Sunday at Heavenly. Nearly every trail was well groomed and ice free, tree riding was pristine and powder packed, and the terrain parks boasted 57 features, including 40-foot-jumps, slide rails and quarter pipes.
Story continues after slideshow. All photos by Curtis Cartier and Jenn Ireland.
Saturday saw enormous crowds coming in from all corners of the globe – but mostly from the Bay Area and Sacramento. Lift lines were hellacious, but the 4,800 acres of ridable terrain and feather soft powder more than made them bearable.
Sunday was decidedly less congested and that much more enjoyable, with many folks retreating home, possibly to catch the NFL’s NFC and AFC Championship games. Driving back to Santa Cruz, however, was a certified freakshow with an impossibly long line of snow-chain-equipped cars snaking up Highway 50 at a snail’s pace and turning the four-hour-jaunt into a nearly seven-hour trek back home. That said, a weekend full of riding in waist deep powder while taking in the gorgeous vistas of Lake Tahoe’s majestic blues and greens, makes nearly any journey worthwhile.
More snow is predicted at Heavenly and resorts all around Lake Tahoe for the rest of the week, with Alpine Meadows, Kirkwood and Squaw Valley boasting the biggest bases so far this season. Check out http://www.skilaketahoe.com for a comprehensive snow report and info on your favorite Tahoe area mountain playgrounds.
