KT-22 @ Squaw Is Closed for the Season | Conditions Report:

Squaw Valley’s legendary KT-22 charilift closed for the season yesterday.  Losing KT is always a hard hit and is especially so this year as the best skiing on the mountain was on KT yesterday.  KT is the one place at Squaw where you can bang out laps while getting in a ton of vertical on great terrain.  KT, you will be missed.

“Our operations teams are putting in extra effort to keep as much terrain open as possible in these nice warm temperatures. And they are killing it! They’ve just confirmed that they will be able to keep Headwall, Siberia, Shirley Lake, and Granite Chief open through the weekend (longer as weather and conditions permit). They did everything they could to keep KT open as long as possible this season, but today was its last day.” – Squaw Valley

The main reason KT is closing, as far as we can see, is that the lower part of the mountain run is nearly melted out.  Only one small strip of snow remains and even that turned pretty much to gravel yesterday afternoon.

There is still plenty of snow on KT everywhere except for the lower mountain run and it’s been skiing exceptionally well.

Yesterday afternoon, KT was skiing great.  West Face was skiing long and strong, Chute 75 had 30-foot long crazy fun slarvy moguls, Tom’s Tumble and Red Dog Ridge were excellent, and guys were hiking across rocks to get to the Nose.  KT was the best skiing on the mountain yesterday.

Temperatures got up into the 60s and everything on KT was soft and chargable.  Moguls were slushy and rhythmic, open faces were slarvy and slashy, and you could jump off everything and land in soft snow.

Many of the KT hardcores were out on KT for the very last run of the season on KT yesterday at 4pm:  KT Cheryl, Big Andy, Tom Day, and more.  The most bummed of all may have been the patrollers as there is no greater joy nor honor than patrolling on KT-22.

KT-22 opened extremely late (the latest we know of) on February 14th this winter.  Now, it has closed for the year on April 14th giving it only 2 months to live this year.  That is simply not enough KT time.

Mother Nature will always simply do whatever she sees fit and we know that.  I’d be lying to you if I told you there was not a lot of buzz about the strong El Niño that is forming in the Pacific Ocean right now on the KT chair yesterday.  Hopes are high for a big season in Tahoe next winter.

Thanks KT.  Thanks Patrol.  Lets hope for a big winter next year and enough KT days to make up for this year.