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Tahoe skiing: 8-13 feet of snow recorded in four days at upper elevations

Cassandra Walker
cwalker@sierrasun.com
@cass1snow
A skier slashes through fresh poweder snow Thursday at Northstar California, which reported on Thursday 96 inches of new snow from this week's storm.
Courtesy Northstar California |

3 fun facts about this week's snowfall

Over the past 45 years, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows’ January snowfall has averaged 70 inches. With 177 inches in the first 12 days of 2017, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows is already at 254% of the January average.

The resort’s record snowfall for the month of January came during the 1981-82 season with 175 inches. In the first 12 days of January 2017, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows has received 101% of that accumulation.

The average annual snowfall for Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows is 450 inches. As of Jan. 12, the resort is at 63% of average for the entire winter.

Source: Liesl Kenney / Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows

TRUCKEE, Calif. — Picturesque North Lake Tahoe and Truckee is covered in feet of fresh snow, which resort officials say will deliver top-notch conditions for skiing and snowboarding over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend.

“The first two weeks of January will be one for the record books,” said Mike Pierce, President of the group Ski Lake Tahoe and Director of Marketing for Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe. “This will be an unforgettable winter for those visiting Lake Tahoe, as the destination is currently boasting some of the best conditions in the entire country and the bottomless snowpack ensures skiers and snowboarders will be making turns late into spring this season.”

As ski resorts — like the rest of the region — dug out Thursday after two straight days of intense snowfall, officials began updating snowfall totals online and through social media.



On average, 8 feet of snow has been recorded as of Monday this week at upper elevations throughout the region, with some resorts reporting 10 feet or higher.

Taking the cake, just west of Donner Summit, Boreal Mountain Resort reported a 4-day total of 157 inches — that’s more than 13 feet.



“We received 96” in four days at Northstar California, which is setting us up for an incredible holiday long weekend,” said Marcie Bradley, Northstar senior communications manager, on Thursday. “There were happy faces of skiers and riders across the mountain today enjoying the storm of the decade.”

This comes after the region received roughly 7 feet of snow heading into the weekend of Jan. 6 due to a strong weather system last week.

Below is the Sierra Sun’s storm total roundup of all the numbers we could dig up as of Thursday afternoon.

Please note that inch counts and totals will change Friday after the storm passes; further, some resorts report totals differently than others — visit your favorite resort’s website or call the snow lines for updated information on snow totals, terrain and more.

Storm totals (“ = inches)

Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows

Base Depth: 144”

Storm Total: 88”

24 hr. Total: 9”

Northstar California Resort

Base Depth: 55”

Storm Total: 96”

24 hr. Total: 14”

Sugar Bowl Ski Resort

Base Depth: 131”

Storm Total: 103”

24 hr. Total: 8”

Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe

Base Depth: 148”

Storm Total: 123” – 128”

24 hr. Total: 8”

Diamond Peak Ski Resort

Peak Depth: 96”

Storm Total: 81”

24 hr. Total: 6”

Homewood Mountain Resort

Upper Mountain Depth: 104”

Storm Total: 81”

24 hr. Total: 13”

Tahoe Donner Downhill

Base Depth: 60” – 85”

Storm Total: 143” – 165” since Jan. 2

24 hr. Total: Unknown

Boreal Mountain Resort

Base Depth: 210”

Storm Total: 157”

24 hr. Total: 60”

Donner Ski Ranch

Base Depth: 105” – 125”

Storm Total: 100”

24 hr. Total: 6”


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