February 9, 2018 Northstar

Northstar was the second resort in the Lake Tahoe area that we went to with our Epic Passes. It was another sunny, groomer day. It has been 7 years since our last visit. I wanted to park the camper near the " Home Run" trail where it meets the parking lot and then ski to the campervan at the end of the day. Well, this is a 'no snow on the trail' area, plus they have a 'new to us' Highlands Gondola there. You can take a shuttle bus to the base area or walk down all the steps to the base. There you find a 'wagon' and load up your skis, poles, pack, helmet, etc. and walk through the village to the Big Dipper Express Gondola entry. The lifts running were: Big Spring, Tahoe Zephyr, Arrow,Vista, Comstock, Backside, and Martis Camp - all express lifts. The groomed trails were in great shape with no rocks, but you do not want to ski off piste. Every groomed trail has coverage from the snow making machines. Also their groomer drivers are fantastic - they did a great job with little snow!. Hillary, Dale, Jill and I were impressed with the snow team. Since our last visit Northstar has grown with even more real estate. They have excellent steep terrain with snow-covered trails on the Backside and at Lookout Mountain. It was warm with spring conditions, no lines, and only small crowds..

Thanks for Report. We will be staying at the Stagecoach Base of Heavenly. Deciding if it's worth the drive to go to Kirkwood and Northstar or just ski right outside the lodging. Sounds like Northstar is holding up.