Warm Weather Delays Ski Resort Openings Across Tahoe

LAKE TAHOE, CA — The holiday season may be upon us, but the ski season is running a little late.

Warm, dry weather forced ski resorts from Big Bear to Lake Tahoe to push back their opening dates this week. Some resorts announced new tentative opening dates in early December — a date likely to be pushed back again to mid-December if current weather patterns hold.

Others refrained from announcing an opening date so as not to push it back repeatedly.

The weather forecast for Big Bear Mountain, Mammoth Mountain and Lake Tahoe was the same through Dec. 1: sunny days with highs in the mid to low 50s, according to the National Weather Service.

As of Tuesday, just a handful of California ski resorts welcomed skiers and snowboarders, thanks in large part to a surprise October snowstorm that dumped 3 feet of snow in some parts of Tahoe.

Palisades Tahoe, Boreal Mountain and Mammoth Mountain enjoyed rare October openings. But the optimistic start to the season gave way to a waiting game throughout a dry and warmer-than-usual November.

Palisades and Boreal remain closed as they await cooler temperatures.

"We are currently closed for skiing & riding," Palisades Tahoe's website said. "Daily lift operations are scheduled to open in early December, weather and conditions permitting."

Boreal Mountain will also reopen as soon as weather permits, according to the resort's website.

The heat has left other resorts out in the cold, too.

On Tuesday, Sugar Bowl resort scrapped its plans for a Friday opening. The resort did not announce a new opening date.

“We had held onto hope as long as we could but with a forecast calling for more mild and dry weather in the week ahead, we must delay the start of our winter season,” the resort said in a statement posted to its website.

Vail Resorts’ Heavenly and Northstar pushed back their planned openings last Friday. They, too, waited for signs of a cooldown before publicizing a new opening date.

"A new opening date will be announced shortly after the Thanksgiving weekend," the Heavenly resort announced.

Diamond Peak’s projected opening day for the 2021-22 season was Dec. 9, weather permitting.
Though La Niña tends to make for an unpredictable ski season in Lake Tahoe and poor seasons further south, many skiers and snowboarders refused to be deterred after more than a year of pandemic-hampered seasons.

This season, resorts were optimistic they’ll be able to pack their slopes.

For the most part, the masking requirements and social distancing capacity limitations of last season will be gone Mike Reitzell, president of the Ski California Industry Association told The Mercury News.

“That was challenging both for the guests and the people enforcing it,” Reitzel said.

“This year,” he said, “we’ve again worked really hard as an industry to offer a consistent message about what to do when you go to a resort. What’s important is that people need to check with the resorts on their social media and websites. There may be some places where indoor dining is extremely limited or very basic grab-and-go. Bars may or may not be open. Everything is fluid; much can change as the season goes on.”