Photo Credit Northstar California Resort

Lake Tahoe competitors did the region proud with a dozen of the Sierra Nevada’s best taking part in the 2012 Winter X Games held at Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen, Colorado January 26-29.

One of the most notable at the 2012 Winter X Games was two-time Olympic gold medalist Shaun White, whose home mountain is Northstar California, taking home his fifth consecutive gold medal in the men’s snowboard superpipe with an unprecedented perfect score of 100 on January 29.

Northstar California’s Elena Hight won silver in the women’s snowboard superpipe and Torstein Horgmo won silver in the snowboard big air.

Also outstanding was Squaw Valley athlete Nate Holland who claimed his sixth Winter X gold medal in the men’s snowboarder X January 28, bringing his total Winter X Games medal tally to nine with five consecutive gold victories from 2006 to 2010.

Jayson Hale, of Sugar Bowl Ski Resort on Donner Summit, proudly represented North Lake Tahoe, taking home bronze in the men’s snowboarder X on January 28.

North Lake Tahoe’s top women athletes were fierce competitors as well at Buttermilk Mountain. Squaw Valley athlete and Squaw Valley freestyle coach Brita Sigourney (a silver medalist at the 2011 Winter X Games) received a bronze in the women’s ski halfpipe and landed the competition’s only 1080.

All North Lake Tahoe ski resorts, both downhill and cross-country facilities, are open with snowpack averaging 30 to 50 inches. Resorts continue to crank out more snow nightly as low evening temperatures are making for optimal snowmaking conditions.

So why not ski and board North Lake Tahoe in the tracks of Winter X Games athletes?

First tracks at Diamond Peak.

Mother Nature is making up for a late arrival with 1 to 2 feet of new snow falling at North Lake Tahoe ski resorts’ upper elevations over the last two days.

According to meteorologists, the storm door has opened with a series of systems lined up and a possible six feet of snow falling above 8,000 feet by Monday. Can you say, “righteous!”

“North Lake Tahoe ski resorts have done a stellar job cranking the snow machines around the clock,” said Chief Marketing Officer Andy Chapman of the North Lake Tahoe Chamber/CVB/Resort Association. “It’s great to have Mother Nature lending a hand.”

Snow removal crews are making it easy for you to get up here too. Crews have been hired to keep the roads clear throughout the storm system making way for skiers and riders eager to catch all the fresh POW.

North Lake Tahoe lodging, restaurants, retail and non-ski activity providers are also gearing up…just for you.

So what are you waiting for? Pack your bags and get it to!

Get our latest deals online on Cool Deals.

Learning to ski at Homewood.

Grab your gloves and beanies… SnowFest is coming. Taking place March 2-11, SnowFest is a North Lake Tahoe’s 10-day carnival held at a variety of venues throughout the region.

In its 31st year, SnowFest, presented by the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association, is expected to draw thousands of attendees, with the majority of events free to spectators. New events have been added to this year’s lineup, including the Snow Fiesta in Kings Beach with its mariachi bands, authentic Mexican food served a la carte and piñatas; the Snow “What” Building Contest, where contestants build their most creative snow display; the Truckee River Winery Ice Carving Extravaganza with dynamic ice sculptures and games; as well as the adults-only Blind Pigs and Speakeasies: Prohibition Pub Crawl.

The annual favorites are back, along with expanded special events, including the Opening Night Ceremonies, Laser Show, Torchlight Parade and Fireworks at Squaw Valley USA (March 2, 2011), which has partnered with World Champion medalist and former alpine ski racer Daron Rahlves. Rahlves and his Olympic buddies will officially kick off SnowFest and the Rahlves’ Banzai Tour at the Opening Night Ceremonies. The tour, scheduled for March 3-4, 2012, is a race that combines mountain freeride action with ski and boarder-cross strategy in a mad-dash race with stops at regional ski resorts with the winner taking home a significant cash prize.

Also scheduled for 2012 is the Mamasake Extreme Food Challenge for those with a strong stomach; 22nd Annual Gar Woods Polar Bear Swim in Tahoe’s frigid waters; SnowFest Parades in Tahoe City and Kings Beach; Sunnyside Luau on the West Shore; the Great Ski Race, a 30-kilometer cross country race from Tahoe City to Truckee; Tahoe City’s Wacky Winter Human Bowling with snow saucers and inflatable pins and “Dog Pull”; the Dummy Downhill at Diamond Peak in Incline Village; the highly creative and 24th Annual Snow Sculpture Contest at Tahoe City’s River Ranch Lodge; Special Olympics Polar Plunge at the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe; and the 4th  Annual Ta-Hoe Nalu Arctic Standup Paddleboard Race in Kings Beach.

Click here for full event schedule.

For more information about SnowFest visit www.tahoesnowfestival.com. You can also follow the event via Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Credit Homewood Mountain Ski Resort

What do Tahoe, Croatia and Space all have in coming? Well all three, along with 42 other exotic locations, made the
New York Times “45 Places to Go in 2012.”

That’s right, between all of the improvement projects at the ski resorts and the fact there is something here for everyone, Tahoe is one of the paces to go this year… number 30 to be precise.

Below is what writer Cindy Hirschfeld had to say about our lovely destination:

“30. Tahoe, Calif.
New lifts, lodging, trails and snowcat rides.

Lake Tahoe’s seven major ski areas have been undergoing a dizzying slate of improvements that will eventually tally at least $100 million. Most notable is Squaw Valley’s November merger with adjacent Alpine Meadows; at 6,000 acres, it now offers the most ski terrain in the United States. Guests can take a free shuttle between base areas and will find, among other upgrades, new ski school services, expanded terrain parks, a kids’ snow-play area with mini-snowmobiles, and new restaurants, including Rocker @ Squaw, a burger joint where skiers can upload their own helmet-cam videos to TV.

Improvements at Northstar, recently acquired by Vail Resorts, include a quad chairlift and an on-mountain restaurant with stellar views of the Pacific Crest. Advanced skiers can explore 170 acres of new gladed terrain or hop a snowcat to ski the Sawtooth Ridge. Likewise, Sierra-at-Tahoe introduced snowcat rides to Huckleberry Canyon. Kirkwood renovated its Mountain Club hotel and Heavenly added three trails, a children’s ski school center and a kids’ trail. CINDY HIRSCHFELD” Credit New York Times

Click here to see the original article.

 So we have to ask, when will we be seeing you in 2012?

January – Learn to Ski and Ride Month

Now is the perfect time to learn how to ski or ride. Squaw Valley, Alpine Meadows, Homewood Mountain, Diamond Peak Ski Resort, Sugar Bowl, Mt Rose and Boreal Mountain Resort are all celebrating this month offering special discounts and deals to get the whole family on the mountain and ski or ride like pros.

Grab Tahoe Eats… and Drinks!

Well 2011… it’s been great, but 2012 is sure looking tempting.

Check out 12 ways you can party it up this weekend in North Lake Tahoe, of course in no particular order. They are all fabulous.

1. Cal Neva’s Black and White Ball
9:00 pm

There will be three rooms of sound and spectacle for Saturday’s New Year’s Eve revelers at the fifth annual Black and White Super Ball in the Cal Neva Resort at Crystal Bay.

Tickets are $40 in advance and $50 at the door. Music begins at 9 p.m. and ends on New Year’s Day morning. 21+

2. Northstar California’s “Fire & Ice” Spectacular
1pm – 9pm

Celebrate all that was in 2011, while ringing in all that will be in 2012 at The Village At Northstar this New Year’s Eve. From 1-9pm, The Village at Northstar will be alive with DJs, ice-skating, food & drink specials, a 2-hour live performance by “Led Zeppelin 2″, and much more. And then… The Big Show: Fireworks Spectacular at 9pm! A great night out for family and friends.

3. Squaw Valley’s Fireworks Extravaganza
9:30pm

Ring in the New Year at Squaw Valley with a New Year’s Eve Fireworks Extravaganza. The show starts at 9:30pm and is viewable from the Base Area. Grab a hot cocoa and find a seat as you take in the New Year with an amazing firework display at the bottom of the mountain. The show is plenty early accommodate the families that will be ringing in the New Year at High Camp to give them time to get down and celebrate in the base area.

4. Squaw Valley’s Party at the Olympic House
9pm to 1:30am

Those looking to bring in the New Year with style can head to the huge party in the Olympic House. Check out the biggest party on the North Shore and party like it’s 2012. Rock out to the 8 piece funk band Mojo Green in the Plaza Bar before heading over to check out DJ Zeb Early in Bar One.

Entry is $10 at the door (cash only) and guests must be 21 & older with a valid ID.  Doors open at 9pm. Drink service until 1:30am.

5. Jackie Gree with Jabe Beyer + After Party with The Whitney Myer Band  at the Crystal Bay Club Casino
9pm

Jackie Greene began performing at the age of 20. He has performing and making records for nearly a decade. He lives in Northern California and is gracing North Lake Tahoe with his musical talent this New Year’s Eve at Crystal Bay Club: the Red Room at the Crystal Bay Club. Tickets cost $20 in advance, $23 day of show.

6. Celebration at The Ritz Carlton, Lake Tahoe’s Manzanita
8:30 PM to 1:30 AM

Ring in the New Year on this magical night with a four-course prix fixe tasting menu with a champagne toast, music, dancing, and party favors.

Call for pricing and reservations. (530) 562-3000

7. Pre-New Year’s Eve Cocktail Party at Alpine Meadows
2pm-5pm

Plan your new beginning at the Alpine Bar this New Year’s Eve! The Pre-New Year’s Eve Cocktail party is the perfect way to jump-start the countdown to midnight. Featuring festive cocktails, delicious appetizers and live music by Peter Joseph Burtt, skiers and riders can celebrate a resolution, bid 2011 farewell, and ring in 2012.

8. New Year’s Eve Bash at Hyatt Lake Tahoe
9:00pm

Ring in the New Year with a top 40 DJ, drinks, and dancing all night long in Cutthroat’s Saloon.

Call 775-832-1234 for more details.

9. Live Music at Tahoe Biltmore Casino, Crystal Bay, NV
10:00 am – 1:00 am

Live on the Tahoe Biltmore, “The Robeys,” Dane Rinehart and Paul Covarelli Trio are offering a variety music – a mixture of everyone’s favorite classic rock, oldies, top 40, blues, jazz, reggae and country songs, from the 1930′s to the present.

10. New Year’s Eve Celebration at Jake’s, Tahoe City
5:30pm

Come early with family for an Ala Carte Menu (also served in Bar), or come later for a 3-course Prix Fixe menu, and ring in the New Year with party hats, a champagne toast, & dancing. Guaranteed reservations required. For more information and reservations please call (530) 583-0188.

11. Lone Eagle Grille New Year Celebration with DJ at Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe, Incline Village, NV
5:30-12:30am

Have a classy blast listening to the DJ in the lounge then Dine on the regular dinner menu from 5:30-7:00pm or opt to enjoy a 5-course meal from 8:00-10:30. Either way you choose, this New Year is going to be fashionably stylish and a lot of fun in the Lone Eagle Grille.

Call 775-886-6899 for more details and reservations.

12. CHILLLLLL

Kick your shoes off, make yourself a hot toddy and chill at home by the fireplace to prep yourself for an epic 2012. Hit the slopes the next day, and the next day and the next day…

Credit by Diamond Peak Ski Resort

2011 has become the year of snowmaking and Diamond Peak continues to make record amounts of snow and provide some of the best conditions in the region.

Did you know that it was actually the first resort in Lake Tahoe to install snowmaking?  And they continue to try to improve the process. Using good foresight (and a little luck!), the resort increased their snowmaking capacity this year by 35% allowing the resort to provide excellent snow coverage and 1,840 feet of top-to-bottom skiing and riding. It has already made as much snow this year as they normally do in a full season. Snowmaking has run for 18 straight days.

Currently Diamond Peak is providing more vertical feet of skiing and riding than Squaw Valley / Alpine, Sugarbowl, Mt. Rose, Sierra-at-Tahoe and Kirkwood. 100% of Diamond Peak’s beginner terrain is open with the Child’s Ski Center and Adult Ski /Snowboard School in full operation. Beginner Learn-to-Ski or Snowboard Packages are just $75.

The view from resort is also pretty epic. Crystal Ridge Run, at elevation 8,540, offers the some of the best views of Lake Tahoe and is accessed by the Crystal Express Quad. Snowflake Lodge overlooking Lake Tahoe is open daily with stunning views of the lake on its expansive deck.

Diamond Peak also offers impressive value for our region. Adult All Day lift tickets are $54 everyday including holidays. Children 7-14 are $20. Kids 6 and under are free.

So ignore those rumors that we don’t have any snow up here because our resorts are open for riding!

But how good are your dance skills? Maybe you enjoy the Running Man. Maybe the Chicken Dance does it for you. Well, we challenge you to show us your most creative, ridiculous, fall-on-the-floor laughing videos of what you think it takes to bring us some fresh snow. We will even reward you for your efforts…

Our Snow Dance Contest, currently live on Facebook, is running until Friday, December 30, at 2:00 pm PST. The participant with the most creative and entertaining dance will win a 4-pack of  complimentary winter 2012 Ski Tahoe North’s interchangeable lift tickets, accepted at the following seven alpine ski resorts:

◦  Alpine Meadows
◦  Diamond Peak
◦  Homewood Resort
◦  Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe
◦  Northstar-at-Tahoe
◦  Squaw Valley USA
◦  Sugar Bowl

Estimated retail value of the prize starts at $272 and goes up to $360 pending on the resort. The winner will be announced on Facebook Friday, December 30, at 5:00 pm PST.

Get your dancing shoes on and show us what you got.

Credit Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe

So what do you do when Mother Nature doesn’t deliver fresh powder? You make it.

North Lake Tahoe ski resorts are blowing millions of gallons of snow this season, creating a solid base that has most resorts open for some solid skiing and riding.

Northstar-at-Tahoe is open top-to-bottom (that’s 2,280 vertical feet) due to significant improvements in snowmaking – 11 lifts, 19 trails and tons of acres for beginners, intermediates and advanced winter enthusiasts. This North Shore resort currently has the most open ski resort terrain in the Lake Tahoe region, and plans to open Martis Camp Express this Saturday, which will provide access to Lookout Mountain.

Northstar-at-Tahoe’s Pinball Park, which offers a wide variety of jibs and snow features with everything from street rails to boxes along with tabletops, step-downs, hips and rollers, is also open with 31 features available.

Boreal Mountain Resort was the first resort to open in California, opening for business October 28, and also offers top-to-bottom skiing and snowboarding.

Credit by Boreal Mountain Resort

So far, Boreal has blown more than 32 million gallons of snow this season – that’s an all-time record for the resort. It only took over 500 hours with an automated Snow Machines Inc. gun system. It cost $2.5 million over the past three years, but this has actually saved 40% of their snowmaking operation costs annually and reduced carbon output by 300 tons annually.

Both Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows Ski Resort opened on time, with Squaw making snow as early as Halloween and Alpine Meadows starting the guns in November.

Diamond Peak Ski Resort (originally Ski Incline) was the first ski resort in the West to have snowmaking, which has come a long way since its opening in 1966. Over the past 11 years, Diamond Peak has continuously upgraded it snowmaking system.

Cold temperatures over the last month have allowed them to produce snow in record amounts and open with top-to-bottom skiing and riding a week earlier than expected. They plan to have five out of six lifts available by Christmas with or without natural snow.

Mt. Rose – Ski Tahoe probably wouldn’t have been able to open without snowmaking, but the resort pulled through with the Northwest Magnum lifts and Ponderosa lifts turning 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily accessing the Kit Carson Traverse, Kit Carson Bowl and Ponderosa Trails. Luckily with cooler temperatures this week, the resort was able to operate snow guns practically non-stop and are planning to get the Flying Jenny surface lift and more trails on the Ponderosa lift open by next weekend.

Credit by Sugar Bowl Ski Resort

Sugar Bowl Ski Resort, near Boreal on Donner Summit, has taken advantage of the recent cold temperatures running their snow guns 24 hours a day, resulting in the opening of additional terrain at the resort. Starting Saturday, December 17, Sugar Bowl will operate seven days a week. The resort will spin Jerome Hill Express, Nob Hill, Christmas Tree Express and White Pine this coming weekend, providing sufficient terrain for all levels of ability. Sugar Bowl also plans to open the Caboose Terrain Park this weekend, with medium and large features accessible via the Emigrant Gap run.

Not sure where to head this weekend? North Lake Tahoe ski resorts open for business are Alpine Meadows Ski Resort, Boreal Mountain Resort, Diamond Peak Ski Resort, Homewood Mountain Ski Resort (opening December 17), Mt. Rose – Ski Tahoe, Northstar-at-Tahoe, Royal Gorge Cross Country (opening December 17), Soda Springs, Squaw Valley USA and Sugar Bowl Ski Resort.

So while we continue to do our snow dance for sweet Mother Nature, at least we can do it riding down the side of the mountain on some snow of our own.

Seventy feet of snow last winter combined with a massive amount of improvement projects underway and planned for the near future in North Lake Tahoe, has visitors to the area pumped with anticipation of what the 2011/12 season may bring us. And we aren’t just boasting with pride of our mountains. Advance bookings are actually up 35%* compared to the same period in 2010.

This “bounce effect” (although we would like to think we are unique to this spike in numbers; we are indeed labeled and sorted into a category with like others) occurs after a phenomenal snow year. We also refer to this as “FOMO” – a condition of suffering from the “fear of missing out.” Consumers are making lodging arrangements early for this winter based on last year’s banner snow conditions – and we all know that La Niña brought us some epic days on the mountain last year. 

But it’s not just the snow bringing our outside friends. There is also $100 million in improvement projects focusing on just our ski region. Between Vail Resorts acquiring Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort and Squaw Valley owners KSL Capital Partners purchasing Alpine Meadows, North Lake Tahoe is seeing both resorts upping their game and enhancing their products. Millions more are soon coming to North Tahoe with proposed redevelopment plans for Homewood Mountain Resort and the historic Crystal Bay casino corridor.

Who wouldn’t want to come see what all the fuss is about? It goes on…

In addition to Vail Resort’s $30 million, which has already been implemented this season, KSL Capital Partners $50 million, five-year capital revitalization commitments and $20 million spread across other Lake Tahoe ski resorts and community projects, JMA Ventures – owners of Homewood Mountain Resort - are one step closer to creating a pedestrian friendly village on the scenic West Shore that would not only help our friends in economic development but would also create another robust playground for our tourists.

The redevelopment plans include a five-star boutique hotel with up to 75 rooms at the resort’s North Base, as well as a full-service restaurant, spa, fitness facility, meeting space and 15,000-square feet of retail space, in addition to underground parking. The first phase of construction is slated for some time between 2014 and 2017, with the second phase beginning and ending between 2018 and 2020.

On the Nevada side of the North Shore, Boulder Bay is also moving forward on approvals for creating a vibrant, cultural village that will transform the existing Tahoe Biltmore casino property in Crystal Bay into an environmentally sustainable, yet affordable wellness resort. Updated plans, revised based on community feedback and input, call for a 275-room hotel with a 10,000 square-foot casino, 59 whole-ownership units, 14 on-site affordable housing units, 10 off-site affordable housing units, a spa and other amenities. Start and completion of construction is to be determined.

So although we threw a bunch of numbers at you, it’s clear that North Lake Tahoe is gearing up for 2012 and securing its seat at the popular table for winter destinations. Are you suffering from FOMO yet?

*North Lake Tahoe’s booking numbers come from the Mountain Travel Research Program, which provides lodging performance benchmarking to mountain resorts throughout the western U.S.