The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report

The sky is clouding over again with snow forecast for Friday and Saturday

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
The sky is clouding over again with snow forecast for Friday and Saturday. The amounts and snow levels are not clear at this point in time, but the lovely sunshine that we enjoyed today is gone. It snowed Tuesday evening leaving another new coat of snow on the mountain Wednesday morning. The snow consistency was erratic on Wednesday varying from a couple of inches over crust on the south facing slopes (God’s Knob and portions of South Face at Sherwood) to six inch deep powder over a firm, but smooth surface, to heavy wind packed snow, and finally to excellent ten inch deep powder. North facing slopes appeared to have deeper powder and more consistent snow than the south facing slopes. It certainly was an enjoyable day with runs in the Outer-Outer Limits area from Lakeview to the road below Sherwood Chair and a primo, untracked powder run from Lakeview Chair to Snowcrest through Field of Dreams. Today the snow and visibility proved to be excellent in the morning hours. We took our boards out and played around on the lower mountain with an out-of-town friend riding over perfectly smooth groomed corduroy, nicely skier packed winter snow. Locals reported excellent powder snow on the north facing slopes of High Traverse that was closed on Wednesday and in Subdivision Bowl where the snow was holding up nicely in the trees. Warmer air temperature and sun will change the consistency of the snow tonight, but skiing should remain very good over the next few days, especially with more new snow forecast for the weekend.
Randy Salzman requested I included a copy of an email he sent to me regarding a fund raiser for the Adaptive Ski School this weekend. This is a great program and anything that you can do to support it is very welcome.
I'm writing because I'm going to do a fundraiser this weekend to help support the Tahoe
Adaptive Ski School at Alpine. I was hoping you might include info about this in your next
missive to your faithful readers. Below is a copy of a post I made about it on an online
board. Folks can either follow the instructions for making donations, or they can bring me
a check Saturday morning. I'll be at locker #260 in the First Aid locker room (right behind
the picnic table) around 8:30 getting ready.

Enjoy your day. Andy

1.

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 04:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The weekend that just passed certainly turned out to be an

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
Email: andyw@sierra.net
Office website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
The weekend that just passed certainly turned out to be an
interesting couple of days. I did not get out to ski either day, but
those of you who hit the slopes on Sunday were treated to a glorious
event. Saturday was a windy, snowy, day with poor visibility and few
lifts running. Most people chose to stay inside and enjoy the storm
while reading a good book in front of the fireplace. A few folks
braved the storm to make a limited runs, but not many ventured onto
the hill. The storm blew itself out overnight, and Sunday the sun
rose into a clear blue windless sky. The reports I gathered were all
very positive about the skiing on Sunday. Plenty of fresh tracks
were sketched into the virgin hillsides by a multitude of skiers and
riders. Traffic was backed up for long distances in the morning as
guests attempted to find parking in Alpine and Squaw. Lines were
longer than normal, as every skier in the area seemed to head for the
slopes Sunday morning. Skiers lined up at special tickets in the
Alpine lodge to purchase the $99 spring pass. Some may have been
waiting in line all day to purchase the spring pass and missed much
of the great ski day. This year, with all the snow, the $99 pass
seems to be a huge hit. According to my sources, we are only 2.5
inches of snow away from setting the all time monthly snowfall record
at Alpine Meadows (at least since 1970). The record for the most
snow to fall in any winter month is 188 inches. Forecasters are
calling for a foot of snow tomorrow. This should easily break the
all time record for a single month.
This morning we experienced a mixture of sun and thin cloud
cover. A moderate wind was blowing over the ridge tops. However,
the clouds moved in and out all morning bring flat light followed by
blue sky. Visibility was pretty good and the winds not menacing. The
snow consistency today was generally that of chalk on the northern
slopes. Wind packed or skier packed snow that held an edge easily
covered much of the north facing portions of the mountain. The south
facing slopes were not icy, but a little crunchy early in the
morning. As the sun warmed the snow the consistency changed to the
soft spring snow that many of us love. It was not warm enough to
create corn or mush in the areas that I skied, but it was pleasant
skiing. We had fun on High Yellow Face. It was smooth, cold, wind
packed snow, and on Peter's Peril that was similar with a few bumps.
The groomed runs were very nice in the morning, although some lower
areas had a few spots covered with death cookies. Palisades was a
delight, portions of The Face were lovely and not covered in deep
moguls, and Waterfall was similar to The Face. Lower Yellow Face,
Deer Camp, D7, D8, and Peril Ridge were all filled with nice friendly
moguls. Keyhole, Open Slope, and the Sherwood Cliff looked good, but
I did not make it to them today.
New snow is already falling, so the slopes will change again
soon.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 08:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Spring temperatures are causing water to drip off my roof

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Spring temperatures are causing water to drip off my roof and skiers to hang out at the Ice Bar. Temperatures exceeded fifty degrees today at Alpine, however the skiing was excellent. As of this morning the north facing slopes were still in good winter condition with soft surface conditions. South facing slopes are in the transition mode and have not turned to corn yet, although Sherwood may turn soon. I skied Open Slope, High Yellow Face, Palisades, D7, The Face, and a few other runs this morning before noon and found excellent soft winter snow, moguls that were easy to turn around, and a flat wind buffed surface (especially on High Yellow Face). Skiing was really very good today. The warm sun made it better, and the excellent visibility did not hurt. Thin clouds are coming in late this afternoon with the promise of more on Friday and possible snow Friday night and Saturday. Snow levels will begin high and potentially drop to 5000 feet on Saturday. More powder may be on the way that will put spring off for another day or so.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 04:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Spring is in full swing in the Sierra as of today.

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
Email: andyw@sierra.net
Office website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Spring is in full swing in the Sierra as of today. Warm sunshine flooded the area after overnight temperatures that were in the twenties moved into the forties. A group of us took advantage of the beautiful day, and some free tickets, and skied at Northstar today. We were lucky enough to grab an early parking space in the lowest free parking lot near the steps leading to the new Village. As we walked up and down steps, and through the village, with all our gear in hand and on foot, we were reminded how lucky and easy it is to have a locker at the lifts in Alpine. The new Village is impressive and the construction that is going on reminded me of downtown San Francisco. Cranes and concrete and steel seemed to cover the area in all directions. Grooming on the hill was perfectly smooth and delightful. We made a number of runs on the Backside Chair speeding down the groomed runs and breathing hard in the moguls under the chair. Rapids, the run, under the chair was really very good in the afternoon. The warm sun had softened these reasonably, spaced, and sized moguls, making it possible to enjoy the long line of small hills from top to bottom. Lookout Mountain was just as sweet today with groomed steep slopes that made for fast GS turns and soft moguls in the more narrow areas.
The day was going really well until we stopped to grab a bite to eat at the Summit Lodge on top of the mountain. We were stunned to find hot dogs priced at $7.00 and soda priced at $3.00. Maybe we just have not been eating at the ski areas lately.
Today was one of the best days of skiing I have had on the slopes of Northstar. Of course, I have not skied very many days at this resort over the years, but today was very nice. The only problem I have with this area is that the variety of runs is rather limited. Many just seem to be copies of the adjacent slope with a lack of real open bowls, cornice drops, or narrow chutes. On a powder day it appears obvious that skiing in the trees would be great. The views were spectacular today of the surrounding mountain ranges and Lake Tahoe.
I understand that the skiing at Alpine was just as good today with excellent soft spring snow putting happy faces on many guests.
The next couple of days are supposed to be repeats of today with even warmer days to help us tan our faces.

Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 06:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The sun has come out, and it looks like spring has arrived in Tahoe

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
The sun has come out, and it looks like spring has arrived in Tahoe. The overnight temperatures were in the teens. We received between two and four inches of new snow overnight giving the mountain a lovely white coat to wear this morning. Winds were blowing yesterday during the storm, so the new snow was on the dense side this morning. South facing slopes were littered with firm crusty coral heads hiding just under the new snow. Some north facing slopes created a bumpy ride as we turned from powder in the troughs, to firm on the ridges of moguls. The great visibility was a welcome site for those of us who have been skiing blind over the past weeks. I did find some very nice powder where the terrain had not been tracked over the previous days. Low Beaver offered up some beautiful soft turns as did the untracked snow in the Lower Saddle. A few of us ventured out beyond Field of Dreams this morning and headed for O’Henry’s. This involves a little more hiking than skiing my version of Field of Dreams, as you head down toward the top of the old Powder Bowl Ski Lift. However, the line through the trees down this steeper slope, that is longer than the slope of Field of Dreams, was just perfect today. The north facing shaded slopes were untracked and mostly undisturbed under the newest layer of snow. We painted curvy lines down these slopes in foot deep powder bringing smiles to everyone’s faces.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 02:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We received up to a foot of nice powder overnight,

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
We received up to a foot of nice powder overnight, and then the storm disappeared. Forecasters were calling for heavy snow through today with up to another foot of snow about 7000 feet, but the snow has stopped dropping from the sky and blue is visible above my office. It appears that the clouds have moved north or south of us and left us with a lovely day. Visibility was poor at the top of Summit Chair early this morning, but it is improving with time. The roads are dry, thus the trip up tonight should not be difficult. Perhaps we will have a nice sunny weekend. The snow more dense this morning than it has been, but it skied light butter and was deep enough to give me a face shot or two on the steeper runs. There were not too many skiers waiting this morning at the base of Summit Chair, so fresh tracks were easy and plentiful to find for until later in the morning. I was lucky to have fresh lines down D7, Wolverine, Sunspot, and Low Beaver/Sisters as well as Our Father and Gentian Gully. The temperature is not on the low side, so I assume the snow will set up fairly quickly as the day moves along. The mountain is packed with snow making all runs easy skiing and not as steep or narrow as they were earlier in the season. With over 200 inches of snow at the mid mountain stake, skiing should be good well into May.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 11:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Guess what? It is snowing again in Alpine

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Guess what? It is snowing again in Alpine. Light snow is falling from a gray sky this afternoon. I skied over the weekend, and then was forced to leave Tahoe for a couple of days for some culture, at least that is what my wife claims when we spend time in San Francisco. This trip came at a rather unfortunate time, as I missed three powder days while shopping in the city. As you must know, Alpine was hit with a big snow storm that left two or three feet of new snow on the ground on Wednesday morning. Skiing on Tuesday during the storm was limited with high winds, dumping snow, and limited operations. Wednesday was a blue sky day with deep powder (evidently not as light as the Friday before) but still extremely good. The mountain was fully open and plenty of people road and skied the mountain into the late hours of the afternoon. I missed the face shots under the clear blue sky and the numerous untracked turns that I love so much, but tomorrow looks like another good powder day. Today the visibility was not very good, the winds were rather strong with Scott on wind alert and Lakeview not operating. We did have a couple of very nice powder runs below the road that returns a skier from Sherwood to Hot Wheels. I found some untracked, deep, light snow, in the trees in this area below Expert Shortcut. The cut up snow was not bad and the groomed runs were smooth and fast. We did not ski long today, so I cannot report too much, except to say that there is plenty of snow on the mountain to last into May. I understand Squaw has announced it will remain open through May. Someone mentioned that we have received 155 inches of snow in March thus far. This is not a record, but approaching one that we once called the Miracle March.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 02:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Before reading the following take out a handkerchief,

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Before reading the following take out a handkerchief, you may want to cry, unless, of course you were skiing in the Sierra today.
We have had an epic day this past week and some specific epic runs, but nothing as good as today at Alpine. Today was an historic powder day at Alpine Meadows. I have skied Alpine for more years than I care to mention, and today was as good or better than any day I can remember in the past. The snow was light with cold temperatures and not effected by winds. Snow was mid thigh deep and even waist high on me in certain areas. I was not alone in my description of the skiing today. Everyone I spoke to had the same reaction. Awesome, incredible, epic, unbelievable, never better, or the best I can remember were popular themes today.
It is still snowing and has been most of the day. I understand that more is on the way for the weekend. The roads were free of snow an hour ago, but now they are turning white again. Smiles were pasted on faces long after skiers quit for the day. Beards were white and frozen, hats and helmets were covered with snow, goggles and faces were generally white, and ski suits looked as though the persons wearing had fallen into the deep fluff.
The truth was that the snow was flying into their chests, over their shoulders, into their goggles, and over their heads with ever turn. We found some very light and very deep snow in the Art’s Knob and Expert Shortcut areas, on South Face at Sherwood, and in and out of Low Beaver Bowl. Alpine gets credit today for opening on time with all lifts turning at 9:00. There really was not a bad run on the mountain today. We managed to ski Scott Chute in the deep stuff, Chute that Seldom Slides with few tracks, D7 and the Face with snow flying into our faces, F Tree with almost a clean shot to the bottom, South Face with light snow like never before, Expert Short Cut with snow well over my head, and Low Beaver where friends said they saw a whirlwind of snow racing down the slope with not a sign of the skier that passed them showing. That was me of course, completely
covered in snow as I turned blindly down toward the top of Kangaroo Chair.
Cold temperatures are forecast for the weekend with more light powder falling each day. Skiing is epic. Remember to close your mouth while skiing when snow is flying into your face.
Enjoy your day, if you can. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 04:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Here comes the next snow storm

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Here comes the next snow storm. It is snowing very lightly late this afternoon at Alpine. Today was a blue bird day at Alpine with plenty of bright sunshine and zero wind interference. We spent most of the day tracking up the remaining untracked powder in the High Traverse areas with the best foot deep light powder way out under Grouse Rock, and in the out-of-bounds areas known as Field of Dreams. The snow was excellent again today with plenty of super snow to pound against my chest and occasionally fly over a shoulder. Palisades was awesome with soft cut up powder making it easy to slide down this filled in slope. Toward the end of the day I noticed the snow changing consistency and crusting over just a little in the areas facing the sun or in the trees.
In addition, the soft snow on some well packed skier runs, such as Yellow Trail were well bumped by late afternoon and rather a challenge for the tired legs. There were plenty of smiles and yahoo’s going around all day today. It was just an awesome day of skiing today.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 05:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The only thing I can say about the skiing today was that it was fantastic

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
The only thing I can say about the skiing today was that it was fantastic. Snow fell again last night piling up another eight inches powder for this mornings opening bell. Additional snow fell all morning covering tracks as fast as we could make them. Visibility was variable, as were the winds, but the snow was perfect and crowds were out of site.
I had the best run ever in the Chute that Seldom Slides off the Scott Chair early in the morning. We had first tracks in the uncut powder and turned our way down the chute and through the trees in awesome snow that flew into our chests and over our shoulders. Gentian was slightly tracked when we hit this peaceful slope, but still offered plenty of pristine fluff to make our hearts pound and our lips crack into big smiles. Off to Sherwood, my new favorite chair. Uncut in the trees down Standard Run on way to Sherwood offered more deep fluffy turns with the exception of the first three turns at the top which were a little rough as the wind may have blown snow off this section of the ridge. For the next two hours or more we rode up and down the fast Sherwood lift, along with a handful of other people making turn after turn in consistent foot deep powder. Yelling could be heard in the distance on occasion from excited powder hounds, but it was mainly a quiet peaceful morning of unending fresh turns on the South Face slopes of Sherwood, in the trees of Sherwood Forest, down the very deep snow of Expert Shortcut, and over the windswept slopes along the power lines heading to the base of the chair. I have had a number of calls from people that were on the hill all of whom claimed today to be the best day of the year. Office mates, other delinquent realtors, and everyone on the hill today all agreed it was epic, fantastic, awesome, and even more than words can describe. Tomorrow should be another great day followed by days of cold dry powder that is supposed to be coming our way.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 06:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Last night I was watching the weather report on some television

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Last night I was watching the weather report on some television channel when I noted the green blob being described as a huge, cold, snow event about to hit the Sierra for two days moving north not east. This often means that the big storm predicted is not materializing. I am not pretending to be the great predictor of weather, but this morning the ground was covered with three inches of new snow, not feet of snow. We did receive a few additional squalls during the day, but nothing like the winter storm warning that was supposed to last until 4pm
Tuesday. The sun was shining this afternoon and the temperature was in the mid thirties, but not it is snowing again. My theory is that we are not going to get three feet of light dry snow, but may a foot.
Today the winds were blowing again and rather strongly at the top of Summit. Scott was closed during the morning and Lakeview was shut all day. Not many people showed up to ski today, but the snowing was excellent. The mountain was “wind packed butter”, a phrase taught to me by a ski buddy. The well packed six inches of snow that fell during the wind storm last night was soft and smooth. Most of the mountain was the same consistency. We did find pockets of deeper and softer powder in the trees at Sherwood and in the area of Expert Shortcut. Tiegel Chutes were great again today for short untracked powder runs as was Sunspot and Gunners. Sympathy followed right along as did much of the rest of the mountain. The lack of skiers really afforded us an entire morning of fresh tracks. This wetter wind blown snow created plenty of small avalanches, so be careful in the backcountry.
Today’s tip, encase you have not realized it, is that Sherwood is now running on storm days when Summit, Scott, and Lakeviw may be shut down. I found this out last Friday when the entire mountain, with the exception of Roundhouse and Yellow was shut down for various reasons. There was not an announcement or sign declaring Sherwood to be open and accessible via Hot Wheels. I quit skiing when the line for Roundhouse got to be outrages as Summit closed. If I would have known that Sherwood was open, I might have headed over the hill for a few turns. Today, although Summit was open, I thought Sherwood was closed. We checked and found it to be open and headed over to try out the snow. We ended up staying all morning with a few other people making run after run in the fresh snow.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 05:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I think we can describe today as epic at Alpine

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
Email: andyw@sierra.net
Office website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
I think we can describe today as epic at Alpine. All lifts were running, the sun was shinning, and new snow lay softly over the entire mountain. Yesterday’s tricky deep fluff that reached up and seemed to grab my tips forcing them downward disappeared or just compacted, leaving us with good easy powder skiing. A crowd of people showed up unusually early and stood shoulder to shoulder in the Summit line. Another crowd was in line at Roundhouse before the opening and a third smaller group of people waited at the bottom of Scott. I suppose they walked up to the lift from the lodge. A friend who was in the Summit line and rather tall, reported face shots as he descended from Summit. I headed for Sherwood and was happily making run after run on South Face with a small group of skiers. The snow was deep enough to hit my chest and a little more wind packed than the north facing protected slopes, but darn good. Art’s Knob and Expert Shortcut were deep and light, as was Seldom Slides. High Traverse proved to be just as good as the rest offering up more untracked turns. Today was filled with great skiing and beautiful weather. I think we can call it epic.
My little pocket dictionary is not always correct. Powder is defined as: A deep layer of nice, fresh, light, fluffy snow that falls a week before you arrive at a ski resort or the day after you leave.
If you were at Alpine today, a weekend, with plenty of other riders, then you can say that you got the powder and stuck it. We don’t always miss the perfect day.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It has been dumping at Alpine all day.

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
It has been dumping at Alpine all day. We received over a foot of snow during the early morning hours, and I think we are up to 2 feet at the base area as of this afternoon. Alpine is reporting 3 feet of new snow at mid mountain and above. The new snow felt light and should have been with the low temperatures that existed this morning (in the mid twenties). Alpine’s snow phone mentioned the possibility of a late opening, so there were not too many people waiting in line at 9. Roundhouse, however opened on time with Summit opening later. The snow turned out to be deep and not the easiest to maneuver. If your tips dropped at all, you were soon stopping with snow piling up to your waist. We needed steep runs, but those were few and far between. I heard a number of people talking about the same problem. We needed fatter and longer boards this morning, especially on Roundhouse. The skiing actually got a lot better as the slopes were cut up. Summit opened and off we speed to the top where winds were whipping snow all over the place (mostly at the ridge top) and visibility was poor. We did have a few good untracked runs in the Sunspot area of Alpine Bowl and in the trees of Peril Ridge. The Face was good as well. Unfortunately, the winds or the heavy snow created conditions that caused Alpine to close Summit mid morning, as well as Scott and Lakeview. The line on Roundhouse was too much for me, so I headed home. Evidently, Sherwood was open most of the day, but there was not way of figuring that out. With all this new snow skiing will be great this weekend. The new snow will settle down and tomorrow should be epic. I did manage to get plenty of good, facing wetting, turns in this morning. If you really want to know the truth, my best turns were in Tiegel Chutes (not long, but just steep enough, and not so deep as other areas. We had a couple of epic runs in these hidden areas).
The sky is clearing. Take care on the snowy and slippery roads tonight.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 03:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

View image
Photo of the Truckee River at Alpine Meadows.
Forecasters called for snow overnight and into today.........

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Forecasters called for snow overnight and into today, but not much had happened by six this morning. We received a couple of inches of snow in the early morning hours, but then the sky opened and snow fell at a steady rate until about two this afternoon. Temperatures were in the mid to high twenties, but the snow that fell was light as a feather. Winds were stiff at the top of Summit, but not unbearable. Alpine was late opening Roundhouse and Summit Chairs, as the quick dump of early morning snow took the avalanche control boys by surprise. Visibility was not perfect as falling snow and low clouds combined to flatten the light. I am not sure why Scott, Lakeview, and Sherwood were off schedule today. Perhaps the winds were blowing faster at the top of these lifts than some of the others. I may be paranoid, but I see a pattern emerging at Alpine for stormy days when not too many skiers are showing up to hit the slopes. On a number of recent occasions, Scott, Lakeview, and Sherwood have been closed for the day when it appears as if they could be open. The problem may be that Scott cannot run on certain windy days and they close the others because of the access problems. I will have to wait and see how things progress in the future.
Not many skiers were on the slope this morning, but enough to track out the fresh snow rather quickly. This did not really matter today, as the falling snow covered up first tracks quickly. Today was really the best, or at least one of the best days of the year. The light snow was at least a foot deep and it was difficult to find moguls or icy patches under foot. Snow consistently flew up to my chest height and continued over my head on a number of occasions. We had plenty of fresh tracks all morning with some of the better runs in the Sunspot Area and D7, Sympathy, Tiegel Chutes, Gunners Knob, Sisters, and various routes down Yellow Trail. Almost every run was deep in light powder all morning.
With more snow on the way tomorrow, skiing should remain excellent to fantastic for the next few days.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 03:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Wind and snow fell most of yesterday finally

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
Email: andyw@sierra.net
Office website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com

Hello skiers,
Wind and snow fell most of yesterday finally letting up in the early evening. I imagine we received about a foot of snow between Monday and Tuesday evening. The winds scoured the ridgelines leaving an icy surface on many exposed areas. A few mogul tops remain exposed and shine with rough ice, as do some upper elevation areas such as CB’s. The sun was shinning this morning over much of the area, however Ward Peak remained in a foggy cloud for a good portion of the morning hours. The wind driven snow was well compacted on many slopes, but very skiable. We made turns in fresh untracked on South Face, Yellow Trail, Standard Run, Scott Meadows, Expert Shortcut, and the lower section of Sun Bow in the High Traverse area. We tried CB chute, but found narrow streams of powder sitting between fields of rough ice. A group of snowboarders traversed across the upper section of CB’s continuing around the corner toward South Face in an effort to find snow. The sound emanating from their boards as they gently moved across the ice field reminded me of jets taking off and landing at a busy airport. I have never heard anything like it. I spotted part may down the run to watch them move across the ice and listened to the incredible sound coming from their collective boards. After negotiating the ice patches 1/3 of the way down CB’s, the snow turned back to soft, easy turning fun. We found good powder in the trees where the wind had not treated it to compaction. The trees at the top of Sherwood were delightful, as were the turns in Gentian Gully and Standard Run off Scott. Sympathy was just right, but God’s Knob was a quilt of ice. I had a lot of pleasant turns on Yellow Trail. We never really skied Summit today, but it looked just fine watching people dive into Idiot’s Delight or Upper Beaver Bowl. Today was a very good day. We just had to pick our runs with a little care. Of course, the groomed areas were very good.
Forecasters are giving various reports from the next couple of days from blizzard conditions with feet of snow to shower activity and not too much accumulation. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens next.
Here is another description of skiing from my pocket dictionary. Skiing: The art of catching cold and going broke while rapidly heading nowhere at great personal risk.
Enjoy your day. Andy

Posted by Andy Wertheim at 06:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)