February 1, 2017 Boreal and “The Castle”

We spent the night in the parking lot at Squaw Valley. The snowbanks there are higher then the snowbanks at South Lake Tahoe(SLT). Years ago SLT piled the snow in the middle so that it divided traffic in different directions. The storms hit the resorts at the northern end of Lake Tahoe harder than at the southern end. During the night while we were asleep there were a couple snowplows and payloaders that kept working on the huge snow banks and filling gigantic dumptrucks. They worked all night, but I was happy with my earplug and Jill just got used to the noise. Snow bulletins are warning of the next storm with winds of 80MPH plus, and the ski areas are planning for upper lift closures.

We drove up to Boreal which is next to I-80. We used our MAX Passes and walked 50 feet to the lifts. Boreal has a “fenced”entry area where you show your ticket once and that's it for the day, i.e. no one asking for or scanning your ticket. We were here last spring and the snowpack was low, and the only lifts operating were near the lodge. Today they had all the lifts operating. Yes, Boreal has only 500 vertical feet runs, BUT we almost had the place to ourselves. The 4 speed quad operates each day, but the other lifts (Cedar Ridge, 49er and Dutchman) are only open during the winter when there's enough coverage. Boreal is near the summit of Donner Pass so it can be windy. The 3 lifts I mentioned are old and go up to the ridge, but they go up through the trees so you are protected from the wind. At Boreal is Woodward Tahoe which is a sports facility setup for snowboarders, skiers, etc. They have 8 Parks and Pipes.Plus, an inside park with instructors, and the Boreal Inn.

We have a photo of “The Castle” which is across from Boreal and I-80. Jill and I have toured at the Castle and we used to park at Boreal, but those parking places are long gone (although you can park at the Snow Park). When you look at the Castle, off to the left is a Sierra Club lodge. A group of splitboarders were just coming down from the lodge as we left the area. At the top of the Dutchman lift you look south and you can see the Donner Ranch, Sugar Bowl and Soda Springs ski areas. We were taking photos and heard a train but could not see it. Later in the day as we were driving east we could see another train along the ridge. There is a “crazy” line from Sugar Bowl out of bounds that drops down to Donner Lake, jumping the train track along the route. It was a fun morning and we saw only a few other skiers/boarders. We spoke to the lifties for more info and one was from Argentina. We told him about our trips there with our backcountry gear, and he was excited to talk to someone who'd been to and enjoyed “his” home country..

Photo 1 Castle

Photo 2 Donner Ranch ski area and backside of Northstar on left side

Photo 3 Sugar Bowl

Here are the other 2 pictures, hopefully...

Im shocked anybody anywhere asks you to check your pass. "Yeah which one do you want,I got em all"
Meanwhile some nice freshie storms here for us shut ins.