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Lifts & Terrain

Alpine Meadows Ski and Snowboard Terrain Sometimes a set of circumstances conspire against having a truly great time at a ski hill. During the Powderhounds visit to Alpine Meadows, 6-8 feet of snow fell over three days. Whilst the howling storm raged, Alpine Meadows was essentially shut down. Avalanche hazards and strong winds spelt trouble for the resort. The feeling of frustration at not being able to ski was only slightly balanced out by the anticipation that comes when Mother Nature is absolutely puking its guts out.

On the morning following the storm, the ski hill was draped in more powder than you’d find on Kate Moss’s dressing room table. Sadly though, as a result of all that snow and the associated avalanche hazard, the access road was closed and no resort staff could get to work on the hill. The Powderhounds found themselves in the bizarre position of being in a powder laden resort at 8.30am (after staying at the Stanford Alpine Chalet), and no one to operate any lifts. When the first lift finally opened, a veritable riot broke out. Rude, pushy people flailing elbows in the lift line, jeers at any empty chairs, skis and stocks used as weapons of line reduction................. At least there was powder to satiate the savage beasts – just. Relief only came when our nasal passages ceased to function due to powder ingress. Mmmmm, powder ingress.

Sadly for boarders (and some skiers), Alpine Meadows has too many long flat run outs and traverses. Some of the resort’s signature terrain also suffers from inconsistent or interrupted fall line. Whether that means much to you when in three feet of fresh is up for debate.

Alpine Meadows Lifts An odd mix of the old and new, the lift system is a bit like Squaw Valley in that it has many lifts that are simply redundant and/or duplicitous. The most important lift on the hill is the Summit Six. It provides access to the majority of the terrain. Most of the rest of the lifts don’t really matter.

The Backside is accessed via the Summit Six (+ High Traverse and hike) or the Sherwood chair (the second most important chair). The Backside is an area of mainly advanced and expert terrain and comprises cornices, bowls and steeps. Some intermediate terrain is accessible from the Sherwood chair.

Other chairs that service additional terrain are the Lakeview (which is great for a lake view) and Scott. The Alpine Bowl Chair services some interesting terrain and is the closest to Ward Peak – Alpine’s high point (8,637feet). Utilising this saves a lot of major long run outs to the base area.

Lift Tickets Alpine Meadows has a shared lift ticket with the nearby Homewood ski resort. Combined, the two resorts offer the best of both Lake Tahoe ski worlds – gorgeous sheltered gladed skiing at Homewood on the blizzard days, and high alpine steeps and bowls at Alpine meadows when the weather clears up. Compared to other major ski resorts, tickets are relatively cheap. Cheaper lift tickets are available widely, particularly via the internet and from local accommodation providers. On the net try www.skilaketahoe.com for deals such as cheap ‘six packs’ which include Alpine Meadows and other nearby resorts.

Snow and Weather Conditions Alpine Meadows gets around 500 inches of the white stuff annually. That’s a lot! In fact it’s just as much as Niseko Japan and Snowbird Utah (to mention just a couple!). But all that snow doesn’t mean it’s the same as Japan or Utah, because it’s not. Big dumps of snow (6 to 8 feet when the powderhounds visited) are common, but then so are long periods of that nasty big red orb in the sky. The powder is a lot heavier than Utah or Colorado, but you know what, if you find yourself in 3 feet of Lake Tahoe powder instead of in Utah – are you gonna complain?

Beginner Ski Terrain A couple of chairs near the base area are dedicated to beginners. They service essentially flat terrain appropriate for absolute rank starters. The Subway chair is the first stop, with the longer Meadow chair seen to be the next progression, then the Hot Wheels chair.

Intermediate Skiing and Snowboarding A fair bit for the intermediate here, particularly as the ticket is combined with Homewood resort. At Alpine Meadows the Roundhouse, Yellow, Lakeside and the Summit Six chairs provide the real intermediate terrain. Much of it is reasonably mellow.

If you want to learn to ski trees, head to Homewood ski resort. It has to be one of the best ski hills in the world to do it - perfect for intermediates just starting out in the woods.

For the Family/Kids The frontside groomers are all family friendly. Taking a ride up the Lakeview chair will provide a lovely family photo moment on a sunny day.

For the Shredder Go somewhere else. Otherwise a small park under the Kangaroo chair might amuse you for a while.

For the Advanced Skier There is a lot of joy for the advanced snow rider at Alpine Meadows, but long traverses and some flat exits can become rather tiresome. That whinge aside, there is a heap of advanced terrain mainly centred on the Summit Six and Scott chairs, and also the vast Backside. Don’t be afraid to hike here. Some of the best terrain is only a few paces away!

Expert Skiing and Riding Cornices and steep chutes plus a few rocks and cliffs make for some expert fun at Alpine Meadows. A few of the better areas require some short hiking. There are no real thigh burning challenges but enough high angle terrain and air to give one a case of the yips. Cornices are everywhere and can be hucked ‘til your hearts content.

For some challenging steeps try the area far skiers’ right off the top of Alpine Bowl Chair (ABC) near the Pallisades and Keyhole, plus skiers’ right off the Scott Chair.

For the Powderhound Get in line early on a powder day at the Summit Six. It’s likely not much else will open for a bit, so traverse skiers’ left and start cutting laps. You can continue cutting laps skiers’ left by traversing (and hiking) further and further around the mountain and dropping in where there are freshies. If you make it all the way out to Bernie’s Bowl and the Buttress, you’ve done well.

If you get left behind on a powder day, you’ll find yourself following the tracks of some VERY serious skiers all day long. The best thing you can hope for is that Squaw Valley opens a lot of its terrain on the same morning. This might reduce the crowd numbers.