Heavenly or Northstar next week?

O

ondeadlin

New member
I'm going to have the chance to ski Tahoe next Wednesday afternoon, all day Thursday, and Friday until noon.

My Colorado pass will get me lift tix at either Heavenly or Northstar, and I've never skied either.

I'm more looking to get a feel for both places for longer future trips than anything else. I'm comfortable skiing just about anything in-bounds, but will stick mostly to well-trafficked terrain since I'll be skiing alone.

I'll definitely ski Northstar my first day, because I can get there faster. How do I spend my next two days? Are conditions better at one than the other? All thoughts would be appreciated.
 
Where are you staying? North Shore, South Shore, Reno...?

Might as well hit Heavenly for one of them if it's not a hassle (it's a huge place and can be confusing to get around to different sections if you don't know it). And then you could choose your desired one for day 3 after time at each?
 
At Heavenly, you cannot yet ski to either CA or NV base. http://www.skiheavenly.com/the-mountain ... tatus.aspx In NV, no Stagecoach, Boulder, or Olympic, let alone Mott's. That means you either have to come up from the CA base or the Stateline Gondola and ride the lift down. Is that because the snow is thin or because they are saving money by not running lifts? The other caution for Heavenly is that wind will affect lift operations much more than Northstar. If there much wind, the gondola and Sky chair will not open and that cuts off NV. Most of Heavenly currently open is low to medium intermediate, although some with great views of the Lake and NV. This could change by next week.

Since Northstar has Backside lift running, they have long, good fall line, strong intermediate runs (marked black) served by high-speed quad with 1,800 foot vertical.

I am returning to Squaw this weekend, but have friend with passes to Heavenly and Northstar and will try to get an update.
 
It's tougher to get terrain open at Heavenly than Northstar. I'd stick to North Shore areas given tseeb's comments about Heavenly. If you want to try something else, I'd recommend buying a ticket for Squaw, Alpine or Sugar Bowl over skiing Heavenly under the limited conditions described. Tahoe ski areas east of the Sierra Crest get 2/3 to 3/4 of the snowfall of the ones on the crest, so it's not an accident that Heavenly is more limited. Northstar is east of the crest also, but it's less steep and well sheltered so it can open more terrain. Kirkwood has the most snow but I suspect the logistics are too difficult for the OP given the limited time he has.
 
Thank you very much, gentlemen. I'll continue to monitor Heavenly, but for now will plan on skiing Northstar.

Kirkwood is extremely tempting, but given the limited window I'm there, I'm not going to try and do too much.

One more question: I've got options of staying on the Southshore (Worldmark timeshare), Truckee (cheap motel with bad reviews) or Reno (Marriott Courtyard). I don't really mind the drive, so I'm leaning toward the Southshore, even if ski Northstar. Am I underestimating the drive? How about from Reno?

Thanks!
 
I would never, ever consider staying on the South Shore if I intend to ski the North Shore. That's a long, slow, twisty two-lane drive. Suck it up and stay on the North Shore, or even in Reno for I-80 from Reno to Truckee ain't bad.
 
I did not say you should go to Kirkwood with your limited time on North Shore. But Squaw is reputedly half open, not that far away and if I were coming from out of the region I'd want to check it out for a day.
 
Heavenly reports the opening of Stagecoach Lodge and Olympic Express, including the Olympic Downhill run. That means you can now ski to and from and park at the Stagecoach Base. One of the Worldmarks is in that area and the another at Round Hill is not very far.

My friend with the Northstar (and Squaw) pass has been out of action due to a cold and is now in the Bay Area. I will try to call the guy who lives across the street from my family's So. Tahoe cabin to get a Heavenly report.
 
I missed that Mott's Canyon chair at Heavenly, which is steeper than anything at Northstar, is now running.
 
tseeb":sd760xg4 said:
I missed that Mott's Canyon chair at Heavenly, which is steeper than anything at Northstar, is now running.
Click to expand...
That surprises me a lot. It usually takes ~100 inches of season snowfall (of the usual Sierra Cement, not the fluff of Nov. 20-23) to get Mott open. I still wonder how much of that terrain is skiable. Northstar's Lookout area is not open yet.

I did a Season Progress Report on Wednesday, and tseeb is right about Heavenly's substantial lift/terrain expansion since then. ondeadlin should rely on tseeb's local friend's report to make the call on Heavenly.
 
I talked to the guy with the cabin across the street from my family's place at So. Tahoe. He skied Heavenly today with his two children and said it was crusty on some of the runs. He thought the may have made snow, that then froze. He said it was softer in the trees where there is good coverage, especially at the top. At 9:30 PM, it is above freezing with a mix and rain and snow. He also said The Face (1,700 vertical foot bump run at CA base under the tram) has been open since day one and has good coverage.
 
Well, it looks like a good chance of rain the next three days.

If I discarded my original plan to ski on the Colorado Pass, where would I be most likely to find snow at elevation?
 
ondeadlin":1b1az4bo said:
If I discarded my original plan to ski on the Colorado Pass, where would I be most likely to find snow at elevation?
Click to expand...
Kirkwood, Mt. Rose and the upper half of Heavenly.
 
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