by Jonathan Friedland 

     With another dry, disappointing ski season winding down, several Tahoe resorts are still open with surprisingly decent spring skiing conditions, considering the remarkably low snowfall totals.To date, Northstar has accumulated 159 inches of snowfall, far below its average of 350 inches. Similarly, Squaw Valley averages 450 inches of snowfall, but has only received a mere 198 inches, with the last snow falling on March 26. However, Squaw Valley still remains open, even operating some if its most famous advanced lifts such as KT-22, Headwall, and Granite Chief.

     The quality of the snow, icy in the mornings and soft and sometimes slushy in the afternoons, is on par with this time of year . Junior Olivia Pla commented, “the snow was better than I expected and the warm temperatures were a sharp contrast from the usual Tahoe cold air.” Due to the abundant snowmaking systems on intermediate and beginner runs, almost no unmarked obstacles, such as rocks or tree branches pop up from under the snow. Yet, more advanced runs are utterly different as the lack of snowfall sometimes requires people to take off their equipment and walk across patches of dirt.

     However, that does not detract from the fact that lifts are still spinning and there is still snow to ski on. Those thinking of putting their skis and snowboards away for the season should head up before the end of Spring Break as decent spring-skiing conditions will not last long.