Snowboarding Kirkwood and Sierra at Tahoe

After getting up at 4:00 a.m., we packed our snowboarding gear and headed to Kirkwood Ski Resort near South Lake Tahoe, California. The drive was surprisingly smooth, with me arriving at Kirkwood around 8:00 a.m. (a 3.5-hour drive). The roads were clear; there were no snow or highway restrictions, i.e., 88, 89, 50.

Since we arrived early (at around 8:00 a.m.), we decided to get breakfast at Kirkwood's Monte Wolfe Mountain kitchen. We selected two muffins, two hot chocolates, and one yogurt with granola - for $30! Crazy expensive!

We picked up our lift tickets and returned to our Sienna minivan to change into snowboarding riding clothes. Alex was excited to try his new Morrow Fury 155 snowboard with Sapient Stash bindings.

Alex and I took the Cornice Express (#6) quad chairlift to the top of Kirkwood for our first run of the day. We skied down Zachary and Lower Zachary trails (black diamond trails). Alex hesitated to board down Zachary and complained about the speed and responsiveness of his snowboard. Alex took a few runs to become comfortable with his brand-new snowboard.

We continued skiing down Zachary and Lower Zachary for a few runs and then tried some blue trails. For that, we took the Solitude (#5) chair and skied down Mokelumne - a gently sloping run. By this time, Alex started to get hungry, so we decided to get lunch.

Since we did not like Monte Wolfe, we decided to try dining outdoors at The Wall restaurant (with a beautiful view of Kirkwood). Alex ordered the Clam Chowder soup and Caesar salad while I enjoyed the Tuscan Chicken Sandwich. The lunch entrees were ok (a bit overpriced) and were slow to come (it took me 40 minutes to get my sandwich). However, the waitress was friendly and kept our coffee and lemonade going. It was a very sunny day, and I got sunburned from sitting there for the whole hour.

After lunch, we decided to try skiing down the famous backside of Kirkwood. I have never been there, and it took some planning. We first took Snowkirk's (#1) chairlift and immediately skied down Hay Flat to Caples Crest's (#2) chairlift. 

We skied down Herringbone Straight to the Sunrise (#4) chair lift. Snowboarding on the backside was a lot of fun, as the snow was generally better, and there was more exciting terrain, with some trees, cliffs, and flats. We stayed here for a while until we got bored.

Returning to Mountain Village took some work as we followed Larry's Lip to Thunder Saddle - a steep black diamond run. 

Alex was very proud of himself for going down such a steep slope. From there, we returned to the Mountain Village. Since Alex's toes hurt a lot, he needed a rest and a snack. I left him there while I took Cornice Express for a few more runs down Lookout Janek. I liked the half-pipe and crevices, and this run was one of my favorites (once the snow melted a bit).

We had a great time in Kirkwood and decided to return to South Lake Tahoe at around 3:30 p.m. When we got to the minivan and changed, it was already 4:00 p.m. We drove to South Lake Tahoe's Paradice Motel (where I had reserved one night) in about 55 minutes. Going there, I wondered at the beautiful snow-covered landscape. It was so beautiful.

We checked in to our Paradice Motel around 5:00 p.m. and decided to look for dinner. South Lake Tahoe was quite busy, and we made reservations at two eateries: California Burger and Basecamp Pizza (both highly rated on Yelp). The wait was expected to be one hour for each. In about 30 minutes, California Burger called us to let us know that our table was ready. Alex and I walked a few blocks and got to our table next to the solo musician playing a set of tunes.

I ordered the Californian Burger (avocado, tomato, spinach, onion, jack cheese). Alex decided on the Caprese Burger (tomatoes, basil, mozzarella). Our burgers were not bad at all. I also ordered a Bear Republic Racer IPA beer (a very light beer). Alex finished his dinner with a chocolate milkshake.

Alex liked that Heavenly was so close and wished we could try it someday. Next time. Exhausted, we headed back to our Paradice Motel and fell asleep.

Sunday, March 12, 2017

I set the alarm for 7:00 a.m. to have enough time for breakfast before our drive to Sierra at Tahoe. We quickly got up, dressed, and drove to the nearby IHOP for a few morning pancakes. I ordered my tried and true Swedish Pancakes with Lingonberries, but these were not as good as last time. Alex ordered banana pancakes and enjoyed them a bit.

It took us about 35 minutes from IHOP to reach Sierra at Tahoe's parking log, which was already filling up with all the incoming cars. We were able to find parking in Lot B, which was reasonably close to the slopes.

I picked up the tickets (I pre-ordered them online), and then we took the Grandview Express Quad chairlift to the top. The snow was still hard and crusty, so we first rode the Sugar 'N Spice green run. Sierra-at-Tahoe was much more crowded than Kirkwood. Ski trails were much busier, and the line to get on the Grandview Express Quad chairlift was much longer.

Here is a high-definition video of our snowboarding session at Sierra at Tahoe.

I enjoyed jumping multiple small ramps on many trails. The weather was fantastic and even too warm - almost 50 F. The snow started as icy in the morning and became slushy in the afternoon.

For lunch, we decided to try the new Solstice Eatery. I don't recall seeing it before, so it must have been a relatively recent addition. I selected baked Salmon with Mac'n Cheese, while Alex chose a slice of pizza. The food was expensive and tolerable - not of Whistler's Roundhouse Lodge quality.

After lunch and a bit of rest, we resumed our snowboarding. The resort was getting quite crowded now, and the lines on the Grandview Express Quad chair lift were now quite crowded, with a long wait time.

We snowboarded more, did jumps, and tried a few blue runs. It was fun but a bit boring since the snow was so crusty in the trees and other black diamond areas that we would have enjoyed it so much.

By about 2:00 p.m., we decided to get a snack (Alex selected some chocolates), and then we decided to head back home, as we were both tired and not really enjoying the snow conditions anymore.

Overall, we had a great time at both Kirkwood and Sierra at Tahoe and hope to be back again.