Squaw Valley USA Alpine/Downhill Resorts Resort (Are you this resort?)

General Comments/Likes

Squaw Valley is everything you’ve heard and more. Jaw-dropping steeps, tight chutes, abundant snowfall and now with a season pass that’s a cool thousand dollars less than it used be, what else could you want from a legendary ski area? Squaw has a 2,850 foot vertical drop on 4,000 acres which means you’ll never run out of new things to explore whether you’re a novice or an extremist. And unlike most ski areas where the beginners are relegated to the lower part of the mountain, Squaw’s novice terrain is 2,000 feet above the base. Experts and beginners can both start their day by riding the Funitel or the Cable Car to the Gold Coast, where the new skiers can enjoy the wide open gently rolling terrain while the more experienced skiers and riders can hit the steeps of Siberia Bowl. Then there’s the famous KT-22, often called the best chair in North America, it could be a world famous ski area unto itself. Like skiing the trees? How about dropping some 40 degree pitches through giant redwoods off of the Red Dog and Squaw Creek chairs. And all of this is just a short 45 minute drive from Reno, Nevada.
Favorite runs: Siberia Bowl, Johnny Moseley’s Run, 75 Chute, Rock Garden and the trees below Champs Elysees.
Squaw Valley should be on every Skier and Rider’s bucket list.

Dislikes

Did Squaw Valley really need to have an Intrawest style artificial base “village”? Haven’t we had enough of this crap? Squaw can get crowded on the weekends, but once you get past the base jam there’s plenty of acreage to spread out. Weather can be an issue I’ve been there when it was raining at the base and puking snow on the upper mountain, which translates into zero visibility.