Paddle Boarding, A Winter Sport?

As I write this, the snow has mostly melted at lake level. But we still have over 4000 vertical feet of white stuff above us on the mountains that ring the lake. Actually, 4600 feet, when you look up at the summit of Freel Peak on the South Shore, or Mt. Rose on the North Shore (the mountain on the far right of the picture below).

But what better time to go paddle boarding? The view is gorgeous. The weather is often gorgeous. And there is very little boat traffic to get in your way.

The Great Lakes Of U.S.

I remember as a kid learning that Lake Superior was, by surface area, the largest fresh water lake in the world. I don't recall talk about volume. When volume enters the picture Superior is only #3 behind Baikal (in Russia) and Tanganyika (in Tanzania).

Along with Superior are the other U.S. Great Lakes, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, five lakes that are too big to see across.

That makes five big lakes that are very deep. Superior, for example, has a maximum depth of 1,333 feet. And an average depth of 483 feet. That's a lot of water.

But what comes after the U.S. Great Lakes? What lake is #6 in water volume?

You guessed it. The 6th largest fresh water lake by volume in the U.S. is Tahoe. How could a relatively small lake be on the list of most-voluminous lakes? Because it is very deep, with a maximum depth of 1635 feet and an average depth of 1000 feet! That's a hole deep enough to hold a lot of water. (Yes, Tahoe's volume is substantially less than most of the Great Lakes. But #6 is still significant.)

On the list of voluminous lakes, Tahoe stands out as #1 in one way - possibly of all the substantial lakes in the world - and that's its purity of water, meeting many standards for distilled water.

A special lake indeed.

Will Tahoe Skiing Go Through April? Try JUNE.

When will resorts close this epic 2018-2019 ski season?

Nearly all of the Tahoe resorts plan to be open through next Sunday, April 21st. Some, like Mt. Rose and Donner Ski Ranch, will be open through April 28th.

But Heavenly has announced that they will be open every day through the 28th and, after that, they will be open weekends through Memorial Day.

And get this all you Colorado aficionados, Squaw plans to be open until JULY 7! Of course, they can't guarantee the weather will cooperate. But that shows how much snow they have.

Enjoy!

What To Do In April?

While April is a winter month in Tahoe, it is a glorious time for spring skiing. We have massive amounts of snow, but the weather is relatively warm. So grab your boards and come up the mountain.

This photo is the view looking south from the North Shore. On the left are the ski runs of Heavenly, Tahoe's highest resort at 10,067 feet. On the right are the scree fields of the Freel Peak Massif, which, at 10,886 feet is the highest mountain on the lake. (If you go a little south of the Tahoe Basin - toward Yosemite - you come to many higher peaks.) Freel's scree fields are long tracks of crumbling rock in the summer. They look like ski runs in the winter. And they are sometimes skied by serious back-country skiers. But beware, they are also avalanche paths!