Ski Resort Receives Over 11 Feet of Snow to Celebrate its 35th Anniversary -- Perfect for Your Ski Vacation
By Daniel Pistoresi |
Tue, 13 May 2008
Ski Vacation Lake Tahoe at Kirkwood for Best Snowfall
KIRKWOOD RECEIVES OVER 11 FEET OF SNOW TO CELEBRATE ITS 35TH ANNIVERSARY
Near Record Snowfall Increases Resort’s Base Depth to 122” Ranking it Among Highest in North America
(Kirkwood Mountain Resort, Kirkwood, Calif.) – Kirkwood Mountain Resort celebrated its 35th Anniversary this past weekend with near record snowfalls of over 11 feet falling over a four day period. The resort experienced snow accumulations of up to six inches per hour and guests are now enjoying a settled base depth of 122 inches making Kirkwood a frontrunner this season for most snow in North America. Forecasts are calling for continued snowfall throughout early January meaning conditions at Kirkwood will be ideal for the upcoming holiday travel seasons. With over 100 days of skiing and riding still left in the season, Kirkwood is encouraging guests to take advantage of its affordable season pass rates. For more information and updated conditions, log onto www.kirkwood.com or call 877 KIRKWOOD.
“I’ve never witnessed anything like this before!” said weekend guest Frances Lord from Philadelphia, PA. “The resort looked like someone covered it with gigantic marshmallows! By Sunday, the snow was so high, we could barely see out our condominium’s sliding glass door!”
The California Transportaion Department and Kirkwood Mountain Operations crews worked around the clock performing snow removal duties to insure guests could safely travel to and from the resort. Highway 88 from Tahoe remained open throughout most of the storm with only a temporary closure of approximately four hours to perform necessary avalanche reduction work. Similarly, Kirkwood’s Ski Patrol and Lift Operation crews worked long hours with many employees staying at the resort the entire weekend to cover shifts. In fact, a few hardy employees even weathered out the storm in patrol cabins located on top of Kirkwood’s chairlifts in an effort to perform predawn snow safety work and open chairlifts as soon as possible. All of these efforts paid off with Kirkwood able to turn chairlifts every day of the storm. As additional lifts and terrain were opened throughout the weekend, guests were treated to powder stashes of up to 132” of new snow with the entire mountain and all base facilities back in full operation on Monday, January 7th.
“Dynamic weather of this nature creates unique challenges for our resort and I applaud the hard work and teamwork exemplified by both Kirkwood’s employees and Cal Trans crews to insure guests could enjoy these incredible conditions,” said Chip Seamans, the resort’s General Manager. “Our location atop the Sierra Crest requires us to stay abreast of forecasts and plan ahead for these types of storms and last weekend’s happy crowds are a testament to Kirkwood being accustomed to snowfall of this magnitude.”
Kirkwood has received more snow than any other Lake Tahoe resort this season and has been 100% open since mid-December with over 2,300 acres of legendary terrain. The Timber Creek Base Area, recently named “Top Ten Places to Learn to Ski” by USA Today, offers some of the best conditions for beginner skiers and snowboarders along with convenient facilities for lessons and rentals. Kirkwood also has a new Skier/Boarder Cross Course open to complement its three existing terrain parks and halfpipe.
The Cross Country and Snowshoe Center offers over 80km of groomed trails with stunning views of the Sierra Crest and surrounding lakes. This Saturday, January 12th is Winter Trails Day with free cross country skiing lessons, free snowshoe demos and REI Outdoor school seminars. This one day event is geared towards families, hikers and other recreational enthusiasts as both sports can be enjoyed by participants of all ages and ability levels.
For more information, please contact Kirkwood’s Cross Country and Snowshoe Center at 209.258.7248.
Expedition: Kirkwood (California’s only education program designed to take skiers and riders beyond their boundaries and teach them new ways to navigate the mountain) is taking advantage of these great conditions to offer a Burton Learn To Ride (LTR) Powder Clinic. One of only two such programs nationwide, Kirkwood is teaming up with Burton to offer this revolutionary program designed to capture the euphoria of riding powder! This program will give you the insider's perspective on powder-specific equipment, where/how to find the powder stashes and teach you the skills and abilities necessary to feel confident in the deep stuff. Registration is $160 ($130 for passholders) and includes equipment rental, lift ticket and clinic costs. For more information, log onto www.kirkwood.com, contact expedition@kirkwood.com or phone 209.258.7360.
