Stories

Chip Lambert’s remarkable journey through 57 seasons at Alpine Meadows is a testament to his enduring passion for skiing and commitment to sharing the sport with as many people as possible. His journey is an inspiring narrative of a life deeply intertwined with the mountains he loves.

Read about Mountain Sports School instructor Kara Strehle as part of our Women’s Month series. Kara is a Lead Trainer and Snowboard Instructor at Palisades Tahoe.

This past weekend, the Lake Tahoe region was pummeled by the biggest storm of the 2023-24 season. The storm brought more than eight feet of snow to the upper mountains at Palisades Tahoe, resulting in three consecutive closure days as resort staff worked to recover from the extreme weather event. It has been a harrowing, exciting five-day period, full of pre-storm anticipation, awe at mother nature’s power, and many sore muscles from shoveling.

Gael Williams is the longest-running member of the Palisades Tahoe Ski Patrol. In fact, this year marks his 41st season as a patroller. Known as a kind, knowledgeable, easy-to-talk-to mainstay on the mountain, Gael has been here through decades of change and excitement. What never changes for Gael is how much he loves these mountains (especially KT-22) or his drive to be the hardest worker on the hill. From sun up to sun down (and often in the darkness, too) Gael gives his life to one of the most difficult and rewarding jobs on the mountain. For the past three seasons, there has been another factor upping the fun for Gael as well: His son, Zach, is now also a member of the Palisades Tahoe Ski Patrol.

Our staff pastry chef, Cortney Hadley, is in the running to take the title of the Greatest Baker! If you’ve had a pastry while visiting, there’s a good chance it was made by Cortney. The Greatest Baker virtual competition is hosted by Cake Boss Buddy Valastro. If Cortney wins, she’ll get a $10,000 prize, a feature in Bake from Scratch magazine, and the chance to meet Buddy himself. You can vote for Cortney in this round through 7pm on Thursday, January 4th. Cast your votes, and read on to learn why Cortney is such an integral and creative part of our team at Palisades Tahoe.

In the final days of February 2023, 146 inches of snow fell on the slopes of Palisades Tahoe. It was our biggest storm of the season to date. It was also timed exactly with our biggest event of the season, the Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup, a stop on the 2023 Audi FIS Ski World Cup tour. The Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup was set to be back on the legendary Red Dog racecourse at Palisades after a 6-year hiatus. As our teams watched the weather forecast, we had no way to guarantee that we’d be able to pull off hosting the international race. You see, while we were excited for the epic powder days to come following the storm, ski racing requires a very specific, firm surface — a surface that is in stark contrast to fresh powder.

It certainly has been a memorable year: historic snowfall events, pulling off the near-impossible Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup, skiing into July, completing new snowmaking lines, kicking off another winter season… the list goes on and on! As we look forward to creating more cherished memories together in 2024, let’s take a look back at the highlights of the unforgettable 2023.

This season marks the 50th year that Jimmy King has been working at Palisades Tahoe. Jimmy is our Mountain Manager on the Palisades side of our resort, a role he has held since the early 90s. We caught up with our well-loved, fearless leader about what it has been like to dedicate 50 years to this mountain, and what he’s looking forward to this winter.

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.