Lake Tahoe, California | Is Heavenly California's most diverse ski resort?

Heaven on Earth: Skiing Lake Tahoe

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Last night was a bit of a kerfuffle. Our ferocious, six-pound guard dog started barking her head off around 12:15am, and I went to see what she was going on about only to come face to face with a burglar who could have been Jesse Pinkman’s doppelganger (with a piece of glass and about 10 feet separating us, but still). I screamed, he ran, SVV took off outside looking for him, and the police arrived moments later. Needless to say, I’m still a little shaken up but I’m thankful for Ella (who is still in bed at 5pm and will be served filet mignon on a silver platter tonight) for doing her due diligence, the cops for arriving within one minute of me calling 911, and Scott having installed both an exterior security light and four ADT cameras so we caught the perp on video. Here’s to hoping they’re able to catch that perp and throw his shady butt behind bars.

That said, let’s talk happier times, shall we?

Lake Tahoe, California

Last week, after a bit of travel turmoil—but what else is new?—I got back from Lake Tahoe, a place near and dear to my heart, where I spent a very quick 2.5 days with three people near and dear to my heart.

Lake Tahoe, California

During my California living days, we had season passes to Heavenly and Northstar—both Vail Resorts properties on the annual Epic pass—and also a cabin share on the south shore. As such, I didn’t often have to find lodging, so I had no idea where to start when we were looking for a three-bedroom place for the four of us convenient to the ski resort.

Lake Tahoe, California

Luckily, my pal Jenn knows the turf and recommended Aston Lakeland Village, which has multi-level, one-, two-, three-, four- and five-bedroom units and is not only lakefront, but a very quick trip (five minutes by free shuttle) to the base of the mountain where the gondola starts. For reference, this was a view from right outside our back door:

Lake Tahoe, California

And the resort is massive, too—19 acres!—and complete with a pool, hot tub and gym.

Lake Tahoe, California

Do you wanna build a snowman?

Of course, the real purpose of the trip was not just to hang out with Jade, Bob and Spencer, but also to log a couple days atop my favorite mountain with them.

Lake Tahoe, California

I may be biased because I spent so many days cruising the groomers at Heavenly, but it’s just one of my favorite spots as a skier. Why, you may ask? Let me tell you.

Lake Tahoe, California

There are 97 trails and 4,800 acres. While this would deem it a mid-sized resort in Colorado, it’s one of the biggest of the seven ski resorts that flank Lake Tahoe’s perimeter.

Lake Tahoe, California

It’s got the best grooming equipment of them all. The snow was coming down while we were there, despite a relatively mild and dry winter, so those groomers came in handy!

Lake Tahoe, California

The Tamarack Lodge. This was added toward the end of my time at Tahoe and is such a fun, convenient spot for meeting up for lunch. I hear their Unbuckle events every Friday and Saturday feature go-go dancers, but alas, we were just there mid-week. Still, it sounds like the perfect way to unwind after a long day on the slopes!

Lake Tahoe, California

The magical winter wonderland. Have you ever seen such pretty, snow-covered trees before? Smitten.

Lake Tahoe, California

Ropes courses, tubing, the works. We didn’t have a chance to check out the ropes courses which were added just last year, but I can’t wait to do that on my next visit!

Lake Tahoe, California

Those views, though. They’re real, I promise!

Lake Tahoe, California

Need I even tell you more? Most aptly named ski resort ever. Pure heaven.

Lake Tahoe, California

COMMENTS
  • March 13, 2015

    yikes! good thing you have those cameras handy. what a good dog! she definitely deserves that filet mignon you have waiting for her. 😉 and snow! so nice to see it when it’s been a pretty dry winter.

    • March 14, 2015

      Right? They told me I must have brought some of our snow and cold weather with me from the east (happy to leave that behind for y’all!) 😉

  • March 14, 2015
    Tara

    I absolutely love Steamboat Springs, but we’ve been talking about giving Tahoe a try next year. In your opinon, when’s the best time to go- for smaller crowds, good conditions, etc?

    • March 14, 2015

      I’d say on either end of Spring Break season: either early March or early April. Much later than that and you likely won’t have any snow! January/February is always tricky because the climate is mild and a lot of times they haven’t had snow yet.

  • March 14, 2015

    My goodness – that’s terrifying! Glad you have a good pooch and security around the place, but still I can understand why you’re rattled!

    • April 1, 2015

      They caught him and already tried him, so now I’m a little bit less rattled. 18-year-old kid from Ecuador.

  • March 16, 2015

    Love those blue skies backing up the white snow! And yay Ella. Studies show that having a dog reduces the occurance of break-ins, regardless of the size or breed of dog. She’s proof!

    • April 1, 2015

      She’s vicious. Just you wait till June. She will lick you to death…

  • March 16, 2015

    that looks like an amazing trip!! i’ve actually never been skiing or snowboarding. also, i’ve never owned a selfie stick. my life is clearly in shambles…

    • April 1, 2015

      Selfie stick is really only a necessity if you dive or do snow sports. (Maybe you should start so you can justify one? 😉 )

  • March 16, 2015

    I have never been to Tahoe but my family lives in California and its on my list! It looks so gorgeous, especially in the snow. Im a new reader to your blog but I love the destination facts at the top!

    • April 1, 2015

      Thank you so much, Laura! And welcome =)

  • March 16, 2015

    Oh – how unsettling about the break-in. Horrid stuff. On the other hand…ski-ing with a selfie stick? Impressive!

    • April 1, 2015

      Ha! It’s more difficult than I expected (mainly because I also had a set of ski poles to hold onto!).

  • March 17, 2015

    Amazing photos. You can really see for miles from the top of the slope

  • March 17, 2015

    Oh my goodness how scary! So glad you are all OK and your dog was by your side!

    • April 1, 2015

      Thank you! And they caught the guy thanks to our video footage. He’s going to jail, hurrah!

  • March 17, 2015

    Yikes, that’s crazy, but you have to love a good pooch to sound the alarm. The pics from the top of the slopes are incredible. I had Heavenly on my list of places to visit last year, but the dry winter made me put the trip on hold. Definitely need to ski Heavenly!

  • March 18, 2015

    Yay Ella! She’s a little hero!

    PS – I’m so not a ski bunny, but your pictures are making me reconsider…

    • April 1, 2015

      You’d be so cute all bundled up in ski clothing sipping a (spiked) hot chocolate in the lodge 😉

  • March 18, 2015

    Oh, Heavenly! I want to go so badly!

  • March 22, 2015

    Those beautiful photos makes one decide to go there right away although it’s 1000s of km away from where I am. I enjoyed the scenery and could feel the adventure in your post!

    • April 1, 2015

      Yeah, I’d say you’re a wee bit far from Tahoe, hehe =)

  • April 1, 2015

    You have a incredible Great skill in photography , all angle are awesome! me to i want to improve my skills to photography.. and i will wait for your next adventure. Thanks.

  • April 1, 2015

    I have been looking at South Tahoe for the past 2 months. I won’t have time to ski this year, but wow: those mouth-watering shots above are awesome! You shoot all of them with a GoPro, or?

    Thanks for sharing!

    • April 1, 2015

      OInly the two with the selfie stick were GoPro; the rest were from my iPhone 5s!

  • December 26, 2015

    Wonderful Post:) Great pictures.

  • January 31, 2016
    Peter

    Just found your blog looking for comparisons of ski resorts. I’m in southeastern PA looking to take a trip west for snowboarding. It will be my first trip ever out west for this, and I’d say I’m just starting out so heading towards intermediate skill level. I made a reservation with points to Marriott Timber Lodge. What are your thoughts on this ski in, ski out hotel, and what do you mean by walking the top to get from Nevada to Cali? I want more time going down the slopes, than across. Good doggy, btw. Thanks! Pete

    • January 31, 2016

      I’ve actually never stayed there as I think it was built after I moved away from California a few years ago, but personally I LOVE the ski-in, ski-out option. We did it last year in Breckenridge and it’s so convenient!

      Re: California vs. Nevada side, if you’re skiing Heavenly multiple days, I’d check the conditions and pick one side per day. You can tell when you look at a map of the mountain but Heavenly is huge and if you’re in Nevada trying to get across to California (or vice verse), it’s a pretty long and flat catwalk between the two; for boarders, it takes ages to get across. So I’d recommend picking a side of the mountain each day and staying there.

      Also, a lot of times on some of the ski sites, there are great multi-resort passes that allow you to tack on a day at Kirkwood or Sierra-at-Tahoe. You’d have to drive to get to either of these but if you’re staying for a long time (more than four or five days), I think it’s fun to see a change in terrain and both of those resorts are much smaller and off the beaten path and would be fun for a day.

  • February 23, 2016

    I miss lake Tahoe. I use to live out in Plumas Co CA and the lake was my stomping grounds. Thank you for sharing the photos and bring back some great memories 🙂

    • February 23, 2016

      I miss being so close to the slopes, too! We don’t even have a ski destination within driving distance from us in Tennessee.

  • February 22, 2017

    Your pitures are heavenly.

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