Snowy Fun Day on the Lower Mountain
As of 5am this morning Squaw Valley picked up 6″ of snow overnight and Alpine Meadows received 5″ at higher elevations. Snow levels remained lower than anticipated throughout the day and we saw heavy snowfall at the bases of both mountains. Alpine Meadows is already reporting a foot of new snow since 5am! Wind gusts on the ridges and upper mountains remained high, so we were unable to safely run upper mountain lifts. Check out the NOAA wind sensors here:
At Squaw Valley, Red Dog, Squaw Creek, Far East, Exhibition and KT-22 spun with slightly delayed openings due to snow safety. Once the lifts opened, skiers and riders had free refills through the afternoon! KT-22 and Exhibition closed at 3pm due to increasing avalanche hazards. Check out Michelle Parker enjoying the powder off KT-22:
At Alpine Meadows, our crews were able to open Roundhouse, Meadow, Subway, Hot Wheels, Yellow and Kangaroo. The Alpine Meadows Road closed from approximately 2:30-3:15pm for avalanche control. It is now reopened.
Here’s a glimpse of the snowy conditions at Alpine Meadows today:
The Snow Continues
According the National Weather Service Forecast, heavy snow will continue tonight and through tomorrow along with very high winds. We could see 14-20 inches overnight and 5-9 tomorrow.
Tomorrow’s Operations Outlook: February 21, 2017
Following the rapid snowfall in tonight’s forecast, our ski patrol teams will need to perform extensive avalanche control first thing tomorrow morning. In addition to snow safety, crews will need to reset safety boundaries and markings, dig out chairlifts, remove ice from chairlifts, and rebuild safety access roads and loading & and unloading ramps. This will likely cause some delayed openings. Upper mountain lifts are scheduled tomorrow and we are prepared with staff to run them, but high winds remain in the forecast. It is likely that operations will be similar to today’s – with upper mountain lifts at both mountains on wind hold. Please check our app and lift & grooming status page for real-time updates from our dispatch teams. We also encourage you to check our Mountain Operations Twitter for real-time updates. And as always, please obey all posted signs and warnings on the mountains!
CalTrans Road Conditions
The roads to and from Palisades Tahoe may be affected by the storms. Please check status for chain control, road closures and be sure to take it slow and drive safely!
