Epic Pass Battle In Lake Tahoe | KIRKWOOD vs HEAVENLY vs NORTHSTAR
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- Опубліковано 8 чер 2024
- Got yourself an EPIC PASS and thinking of making a trip out to Lake Tahoe to ski or snowboard the world class ski resorts which call this region their home? The good news is that there are three major resorts to choose from, the hard thing might be choosing which resort to visit or even base yourself at as they aren’t exactly close to each other. Combined the resorts offer over 10,000 skiable acres, have unlimited access on range of epic passes, each roughly see the same amount of snowfall as well as sunshine per season and offer terrain which is suitable to all skill levels. But, not all skiers and snowboarders are made equal and nor are the ski resorts. So in this video we are going to take a look at some key categories and tell you which of the three resorts come out of top to help you choose which resort you should visit for your next ski trip out west.
We visited all three resorts in February of 2023 which was a record breaking snow season and lead to some incredible days on the mountain, plus we are from Australia so the resorts in Lake Tahoe blew our mind and we were just happy to be riding during the Australian summer.
Chapters:
1:25 Resort Size
2:33 Lift System
3:53 Snowfall
5:20 Beginner Terrain
7:30 Intermediate Terrain
9:55 Advanced & Expert Terrain
12:40 Lodging
14:35 On Mountain Facilities
17:00 Conclusions
#kirkwood #heavenly #northstar #laketahoe #california
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Missing the two most important considerations, IMO.
* Crowding - Northstar is an absolute madhouse on weekends. Saturday you can easily wait tens of minutes for a lift, and Sunday isn't much better. Heavenly on the Nevada side is a little better than the California side, but both are still miserable on weekends. Kirkwood fares best here, even when the parking lot is full (though the TC lift is especially crowded). If you can ski weekdays they're all fine, but on a weekend Kirkwood is the only sane option (and it's barely sane).
* Weather - Heavenly is particularly bad here. When there's any wind, the upper mountain closes and you can be stuck on mundane (and extra crowded) lower runs. You'll be pinned to just one pod because you can't cross over (not Boulder Stagecoach, much less CA NV) unless the upper mountain lifts are running. Northstar's Lookout Mountain (aka Martis Camp) pod is infrequently open (weather? not sure why), which is too bad, because it's the only way to escape crowds.
These are very good points, we visited Northstar on a saturday & sunday in Feb and it was sort of busy, but mostly the central and beginner lift. Backside and Martis Camp was no more than a 2-3 min wait.
Heavenly does get wind affected pretty bad however if you have a car just part at one of the bases, typically the gondola stops running in high wind.
I’ve been skiing Tahoe for the last 25 years regularly, and this review was great! Right on target.
Thanks James! Glad to know we could nail it for a local 😄
Love this video, so much detail ❤
Thanks for this video! Flying into Reno in February and this video is exactly what I needed!
Thanks for the comment, glad it has helped and this is exactly why we made the video.
As a local，I would pick Mtn Rose
Great overview, very informative!
Thanks Sean ✌️
Heavenly's layout is really cut up. Doesn't flow well and too crowded. Kirkwood is my favorite of all Tahoe resorts and I'm an Ikon skier.
Kirkwood is a pretty amazing resort, heavenly is great if you pick a side to spend the day on.
Alpine meadow
Based on mountains only with none of this season pass Sh.t. restrictions. My list is based on experience from the 1960 thru. present although skiing is now not much of a priority anymore. Assuming ideal conditions> 1: Palisades ( Squaw) Without a question. It has it all! , 2: Sugar bowl, great mountain and atmosphere, 3: Alpine, good terrain and atmosphere, 4: Kirkwood big mountain with extreme runs if that is your thing. snow when others have rain. 5: Bear Valley. This ranking is assuming the Grizzly chair is running and snow conditions are perfect. The accessible terrain in-bounds and out of bounds that Grizzly offers is like nothing else I have ever skied. And on a powder day, when they finally open the gates at 10:30 or 11:00 to this lower mountain it is on and everyone gets several runs of untracked. If you know the mountain well you can have untracked all day. My most vivid memories of epic powder days and runs are all at Bear Valley! Word of caution...If Griz. is not open the mountain is not so great. 6: Mt Rose/slide mt. just a fun mountain with a small time vibe. 7: Homewood Again small time vibe with fun runs and hidden secret stashes of Powder. Good times to be had and somewhat protected on windy days. 8: Dodge Ridge fun family resort. Can hold your interest for one day but not multiple days in a row. 9: Boreal. Same as dodge ridge. No comment on Incline or Sierra At Tahoe. And would not entertain skiing at either Northstar or Heavenly although skiing down Gun Barrel with moguls is great.
What is your ranking of these resorts?
Dang, no terrain park ranking is involved in these reviews? I feel that is a large oversight, at least when it comes to what I'm looking for.
Thanks for the content.
We tossed around the idea of this however had very limited footage of the terrain park offerings, plus Northstar kills the other two when comparing terrain parks. Kirkwood has a tiny park and heavenly the same, Northstars offering is world class.
@@snowstash Thank you... sitting at a house on the lake right now... now I just got to convince my group that we need to go to Northstar in the morning, not Heavenly. Wish me luck! haha.
I’m not much of a chairlift person. Which resort had beginner gondolas or carpets?
Hi Jon, your best bet is Northstar as a beginner as they have both carpets and a gondola in the beginner zones.
It seems hard to choose which resort but based on this I think I’d like Northstar the best.
Northstar is a pretty amazing resort.
Ur actually sleeping on palisades, it is an amazing option.
Hey Izzy, thanks for the comment, Palisades is one of our fave resorts in California but this video is focusing on Epic Pass resorts. Palisades is on the Ikon Pass.
Been skiing Tahoe for over 30 years, here's my two cents:
Of the three, Kirkwood is the standout if you're expert level.
If you have a group that's mixed levels, Heavenly is the best option as there's great blues and blacks on the same (or close-by) lifts.
Northstar is for rich, intermediate skiers.
30 years means you have seen a lot of change in the region :)
@@snowstash
It's like a different world now.
As a local, heavenly is garbage and overwhelmed with people on the weekends. Northstar is the best overall. Kirkwood has a crazy road and if the parking lot is full you're F'ed
Your missing the fact that Northstar is packed with people as well and has boring terrain. The road to Kirkwood is not even bad and the parking lot only fills on powder days.
@a-line2636 it's packed if you stay on the greens and blues. I got atleast 20 runs in on mlk weekend
@ghettokilluh Northstar is pretty amazing, we found Heavenly to be awesome in the higher terrain zones but more so on weekdays when the crowds died down. We drove out to Kirkwood on a bluebird day so cant speak to the crazy road conditions.
@a-line2636 Northstar on a weekend with a few inches is PACKED 😬
Don’t you dare say that about heavenly. Those runs are worth the lines and if your advances\d just do killbrew canyon, Mott canyon,and pinnacle
Best resort in Tahoe by far is Homewood. Homewood has best views, good prices, and hardly any crowds. Northstar is a complete joke and waste of money, ideal for Rich stupid, fucking tourists, Alpine is a great resort, too, but expensive. Best bang for the buck by far is Homewood.
Homewood sucks, don't tell anyone it's the best. It's the locals' secret. I always find endless powder late in the season there.
What a joke, I know you guys mean well , but from a local, the best resort by far as Homewood, Northstar is a complete joke, crazy crowds, very expensive, no views. Heavenly has great views, but expensive and crowded, you guys really missed the mark by not choosing Homewood, you should really take this video down
Hey Robert, thanks for your comment, this video is specifically about Epic Pass resorts, we are sure Homewood is a fantastic resort but it’s not on the Epic Pass.
Yeah, I was about to say. Some people dont know how to read or something. Unless we're stupid, I didnt know Homewood was part of Epic.
Op, maybe take your comment down instead. 😅😅😅. Dont be offended now, I know cali people are weak with their feelings.
That's crazy - Homewood is tiny, like. parking lot !
@@snowstash Pretty sure Squaw is bigger than Heavenly with the new expansion... we stick to N. Tahoe and go to Homewood during crowds, then NS and Squaw on certain days then hit up Tahoe XC if it's too crowded... S. Tahoe is too much like San Fernando Valley and ruins the vibe, so we've actually never gone there and never felt like we were missing anything... people have religious experiences at Homewood. Then you have Sugar Bowl down the road... and then there are other little resorts, so you can really go your whole life and never even go to some of the resorts, I probably won't go to all of them in my life. I've never been to Sugar Bowl but the little village looks cool.
NS has a great village but the runs are boring, there is a view at the top but a small lake view only... it's cool to go there just for the variety and I'm no pro so who am I to complain about boring runs. It's got great views of the mountains out the other side, I think it's the Truckee side.