For the team at Palisades Tahoe, it has been a year of learning and change. We are so grateful to our friends and partners, the Washoe Tribe, for their interest in continuing to work with us beyond the act of removing the resort’s old name.
That’s a wrap on the incredible 2022/23 winter season. After an unbelievable 723 inches of snowfall and skiing that lasted into the month of July, it feels surreal to finally be saying goodbye to one of the most historic and memorable seasons we’ve ever had. The huge amount of snowfall (our season average is only 400 inches!) made for some extreme working conditions, but our teams persevered through every obstacle: digging out their own homes, driving in treacherous conditions, and working throughout every blizzard to keep these mountains open. We are ALL excited to have a few months of sun, and a break from digging out.
As you may have noticed, we have a huge pile of snow in our Palisades Tahoe parking lot. 723″ of snowfall and counting this 2022-2023 season covers a lot of our parking lots and without the help of snowplows we would still be buried under all of it. But why do we stack it up versus blowing it into the Wa She Shu Creek where it could wash away?
Glossy photos of spread eagles, daffies, power-infused cliff drops, and powdery rooster tails have long frozen the kinetic artistry that is skiing. Tahoe skiers are some of the most artistic on the planet, but it’s the photographer who stands in the cold, balancing on the mountain’s edge, composing and then capturing the perfect millisecond moment in time. It is an art unto itself, and for the last three decades, the art of photographer Hank de Vré has helped define the ski culture of Lake Tahoe.
Sometimes it’s the little things that can make a difference. Traditional ski wax can contain harmful chemical compounds that leach into the soil and groundwater, but the wax used in Palisades Tahoe’s ski shop is made from plants. Here, we use Wend Wax, sponsor of the US Ski Team, a plant-based, all natural wax made from Meadowfoam.
The Military to the Mountains program at Palisades Tahoe aims to introduce wounded warfighters, veterans, and first responders to the healing effects of skiing and snowboarding after 9 weeks of personal training.
Read about Palisades Ski Patroller Jaime Tibbo as part of our Women’s Month Spotlight for International Women’s Month. Jaime has been on Patrol for six seasons, and she has some great advice if you’re interested in being a Patroller, too!
Read the story of Sonja Davis, our Assistant Manager of Lift Operations at Palisades. This feature is part of our Women’s Month spotlight series.
What a turbulent but exciting month March has been so far! The snow depth on our upper mountain is upward of 18 feet, and we are at 166% of total average snowfall. We started the first day of March off with 3 feet of snow in 24 hours. Then, after a small break in the weather, we received snow (and at some elevations rain) every day between March 5th and March 15th! Our season-to-date snowfall total is now sitting at 662 inches, or just over 55 FEET of snow. 14 of those feet have fallen in March alone!
Read an interview with Eva Graves, the Alpine Dispatch Manager and Mountain Operations Administrative Assistant as part of our Women’s Month Spotlight.
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