Over 14 feet of snow in 11 days
by Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows on January 11th, 2017
It’s true. Last night’s snowfall: 42″ in 24 hours at Alpine Meadows and 37″ in 24 hours at Squaw Valley as of 6am, this brought us over the 13 FEET mark and we couldn’t be more excited. Patrol just called in an additional 7″, which brings us up to 14 FEET!! Today we experienced a regional power outage, therefor both mountains were closed.
But after a regional power outage, blizzard conditions, and historic snowfall we are planning on delayed openings and limited operations at Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows tomorrow. With power restored at Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows, let’s take a look at what’s in store for Thursday, January 12:
Squaw Valley Operations Plan for January 12
Safety is our TOP priority. Please be patient as we work through these dynamic times and standby for more information as it comes in via our app or website.
- 9am Projected Lift Openings
- First Venture
- SnoVentures carpet
- 10am Projected Lift Openings
- Squaw Kids carpets
- *10:30am* Projected Lift Openings (shooting for 10:30am, but will be dependent on conditions assessment in the morning)
- Red Dog
- Squaw Creek
- Unknown operations until we assess conditions further
- Exhibition
- Far East
- KT-22 (still needs control work and access road for snowcat, which no longer exists due to heavy snowfall and wind. This zone needs a full setup and boundary setup. To give you an idea, setup alone takes our mountain ops teams a ½ day in great conditions)
- All of upper mountain is not planned and will not occur at all tomorrow, Thursday Jan 12. “Things remain uncertain on the upper mountain. We haven’t been able to access terrain fully due to blizzard conditions, power outage and significant snow” – Mike Livak, VP of Operations
Alpine Meadows Operations Plan for January 12
Safety is our TOP priority. Please be patient as we work through these dynamic times and standby for more information as it comes in via our app or website.
- Unknown time for opening in the morning, but these lifts are on the schedule for tomorrow
- Roundhouse
- Hot Wheels
- Subway
As always, stay tuned to our website and app for real-time resort information and we encourage you to use the below resources before you travel to the mountain.
Weather And Condition Resources
- Weather forecast from the National Weather Service
- Road Conditions from CalTrans
- Real-Time Resort Information
Photos from the field today, January 11
Employees digging out sidewalks today at January 11, 2017
Lift electricians going up KT-22 on auxilary power to start clearing the lift of snow.
Squaw One buried in snow on January 11, 2017
Headwall Express buried in snow, January 11, 2017.
Weather Update as of 3:11am on January 11
“Unsettled weather continues through Thursday night with snow levels lowering to valley floors. Additional snow accumulations are likely Thursday and Thursday Night especially from Interstate 80 southward.
The Sierra is digging out of yesterday and last night`s blizzard, with many locations reporting impressive amounts of snow in the last 24 hours. Many locations around Tahoe and the rest of the Sierra have seen several feet of snow in the last couple days, with a few mountain locations reporting up to 8-11 feet of snow above 7000 feet. Interstate 80 is finally open again this afternoon, now that crews have gotten a chance to clear off the many many miles of snow covered interstate. As of this writing, there are still closures on Mount Rose Highway, Highway 89 around DL Bliss and Emerald Bay, as well as Highway 88 over Carson Pass.” – NOAA Weather Discussion
