Superstitious snow dances are no longer needed. Tahoe ski resorts have been getting pounded with snow, so much that locals probably wouldn’t mind it stopping for the remainder of the Christmas holidays.
However, snow subsiding through the end of 2021 has about as much chance of happening as people resorting back to snow dancing, a ritual that is performed with the hopes of bringing snow in the winter months.
As of Friday morning (Dec. 24) with the addition of 22 inches, Mt. Rose had the most snow this season among Tahoe ski resorts with 204 inches. That’s several feet more than 10 other Tahoe ski resorts.
The Mt. Rose total is also far more than it received in a trying ski season last year when the resort got a dismal 171 inches. Mt. Rose typically averages 350 inches per year.
Boreal Mountain has the second most snow with 194 inches, followed by Palisades Tahoe with 176 inches.
“We received 26 inches of new snow in the last 24 hours on Palisade Tahoe’s upper mountain. And this storm is only getting started,” said Palisades spokesperson Alex Spychalsky.
Palisades (formerly Squaw Valley) says it has received 7 feet more snow than it had at this point in the 2018-19 season, which was the region’s last major snow season.
Diamond Peak had the most one-day snow of any Tahoe ski resort, reporting 3 feet Christmas Eve morning.
Sugar Bowl had 28 inches and the resort believes it might get 2 more feet by Christmas morning. Northstar California was reporting 26 inches this morning.
Homewood Mountain received another 20 inches, prompting a note on its website: “Our best holiday present has arrived, SNOW!”
It’s been an amazing reversal for Tahoe ski resorts. There was no November snow in the Lake Tahoe region and by the second weekend in December there was only one non-beginner lift (Boreal Mountain) operating among all the Tahoe ski resorts.
However, that changed quickly on Dec. 13 when a sizable snow storm arrived that was desperately needed.
Four days later, Tahoe ski resorts had received between 4 to 8½ feet of new snow, and practically every resort was officially kicking off their 2021-22 season.
CHRISTMAS WEATHER: At least one downside of the heavy snow and high winds is it combined to shut down or delay lifts Christmas Eve at multiple Tahoe ski resorts.
Driving conditions on Interstate 80 and Highway 50 – the two main arteries into Tahoe – has been treacherous, along with driving locally. The Mt. Rose Highway was closed early Friday before reopening.
On Christmas Eve, the National Weather Service is forecasting heavy snow at times throughout the day and into the evening in the Lake Tahoe region. The snow may drop to lake level and perhaps dip to the 2,000-foot level Sunday.
Christmas Day will likely have more heavy snow and daytime temperatures likely in the high teens to the low 30s.
Weather forecasters are expecting as much as 9 feet of snow from this week’s storm.
TAHOE SNOW REPORT (season totals, Dec. 24)
- Mt. Rose: 204 inches
- Boreal: 194 inches
- Palisades: 176 inches
- Northstar: 170 inches
- Sugar Bowl: 167 inches
- Homewood:154 inches
- Kirkwood: 144 inches
- Soda Springs: 140 inches
- Diamond Peak: 136 inches
- Heavenly: 117 inches
- Tahoe Donner: NA
- Granlibakken: NA
