FREE Family Fun Snowshoe Hike

Birds of a feather flock together and fly south for the winter, right?
Well…almost right. Did you know that there are actually some birds that stick around and tough out the cold, sierra winters? Are they a bit cuckoo or do they actually like snowstorms and frigid temperatures? You will learn the answers to this question, and more when you convince your parents to join you on a FREE family snowshoe hike sponsored by the Tahoe Rim Trail Association! We will explore the amazing world of winter and try to determine how birds and other animals survive the winter months, all while practicing our snowshoe skills. And…after playing and having fun in the snow, there will be some hot chocolate, hot apple cider, and treats waiting for you at the end.

This hike will wind through the trees and flat meadow. This program will go from 10 am – noon. Families with children, ages six and up, are encouraged to sign up for this hike. Please leave your cute puppies at home! Because it can be so cold and windy in the meadows, it is a good idea to leave very small children and infants at home with a family member or caretaker. The hike will not be strenuous, and will be broken up with games, stories, and other hands-on activities. Please be prepared for the temperamental weather of the  Lake Tahoe Meadows. Please do not dress yourselves or your children in cotton, as it will leave all of you damp and cold. Gloves, beanies, mittens, long underwear, warm socks, waterproof boots and winter jackets are necessary. Each person in your group should have a couple water bottles, because walking and active games work up a good thirst! If you are bringing your own snowshoes or are renting snowshoes, please practice putting them on before the hike, so you know how the bindings work! Note that the high elevation level (8740 ft.) can be a challenge, especially for those of you who live at sea level.

Date: Saturday, February 27th, 10am – noon
Meeting Place/Time: Tahoe Meadows non-motorized side, down by the tree-line, 9:45 am, meeting time
Distance: 3 miles, approximately
Level: Easy
Hours: approximately 2

More Information: 775-298-0012 or programs@tahoerimtrail.org

Top Ten Reasons the Roaming Gnome should should have broken his Cabin Fever in Tahoe rather than Utah in Travelocity’s Top Ski Destination contest.

1.     Ski in two states at the same time at Heavenly while looking at the deep blue of Lake Tahoe, even with your narrow gnome stance

2.     Go on a blind date with Tahoe Tessie (Lake Tahoe’s mythical resident “sea creature”).

3.     Depending on how the date goes, perhaps a quick wedding and an even quicker divorce in Reno.

4.     50 Tram laps at Squaw Valley USA to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first televised Winter Olympic Games.

5.     Tempt fate with a visit to the Donner Party museum,  just hope they don’t think you’re a chocolate filled gnome.

6.     Our drinks have personality with drinks like the ‘Wet Woody’, the ‘Scorpion’ and the ‘Flaming Kava Kava’. Gnomes keep your beards away from the flames!

7.     Forgot your skis?  No problem, where else but in Sparks can you get your skis, ride a Ferris Wheel and drive a NASCAR simulator in one mega sports store?

8.     Follow in the footsteps of Ol’ Blue Eyes and Marilyn Monroe in the tunnels at the historic Cal Neva Lodge

9.     Spend a little downtime at the spa before heading out for a long night in Reno

10.    Satisfy a late night hunger at what has been heralded as one of the best burgers in the country, the Awful Awful, awfully big, awfully good, don’t be scared my friend, you can do it.

Flights have been grounded, cars are stalling, power-lines are down and Reno Tahoe is all but buried under record low temperatures and snow, but all that won’t make a difference to this year’s Reno Santa Crawl which is expected to draw nearly 5,000 Santa-clad visitors this year for the weekend-long events.

In fact, the blizzard makes for an improved event and another surge in attendance if the pass remains open, says Matty Goedert, event founder and San Francisco based tax-attorney-by-day. “In our eight-year history we’ve lived through two huge snow storms, and the crawlers love it. This is the first year we’re doing Santa Skiing so if conditions continue, it will be the best fresh powder to kick off the season.”

Dubbed “Reindeer Games,” the weekend of Dec. 11-13 kicks off Friday night with a Santa Crawl Pajama Ball at Reno’s National Bowling Stadium. Then, all day Saturday, discounted Santa Skiing at Mt. Rose ski resort for those dressed as Santa.

The games come to head on Saturday night when more than 45 bars, pubs and casinos within a half-mile radius in downtown Reno host a flurry of Red, White and Beards for the eighth annual Reno Santa Crawl into the wee hours of the morning.

Beginning with only a handful of participants, the crawl has steadily grown each year. At the onset of the recession in 2008, organizers experienced a significant and unexpected surge when attendance doubled from 1,500 to 3,000 participants. This year, they are expecting close to 5,000.

In true holiday spirit, proceeds from the event go to the Hashimoto Widows and Orphans Fund for the families of fallen law officers of the Reno-Sparks area.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

(Squaw Valley, Calif.) – In an effort to jump start the winter spirit around Reno-Tahoe, Tahoe TV has launched the “Show Us Your Snow Dance” video contest, inviting viewers to submit video of their best snow dance for a chance to win up to $500 in prizes.

“We felt this would be a fun way to pump some energy into the preseason and also encourage support of local businesses,” said Eric Brandt, president of Tahoe TV. “We’re hoping to see some great videos and get the mojo workin’ for winter.”

Videos may be submitted online at www.tahoetv.com through Dec. 18. Each video will be rated online by viewers and also judged by a panel. On Dec. 22, the top-rated video will be awarded $500 in certificates to local businesses and aired on Tahoe TV’s daily local information program, Get Out! Tahoe around the lake and in Reno and Carson City.

Snow Dance videos can be elaborate or simple, and involve individual or multiple snow dancers. Participants are encouraged to be creative and show energy and appeal to the snow gods. Each video must be less than 90 seconds and under 50mb to be uploaded. For information, visit www.tahoetv.com.

Check out this snow dance video Alpine Meadows put together.

Cold-fronts, jet streams and el nino are all well and good, but in Reno-Tahoe we don’t leave anything to chance when it comes to winter powder:

Now that the ghouls and ghosts are going into hibernation until next year, it’s time to start thinking about ski season. Lake Tahoe has been getting snow for a couple days. Here’s the first video “snow report” from Alpine’s Errol Kerr (also a member of the Jamaican National Ski Team):

After enjoying a month of summer time down south in Argentina– tele girl is back! It’s so exciting to see (and experience) the powder and new snow in Reno Tahoe! Yeah!!!

Since we got back, we’ve been out a couple of times and it’s been awesome! First we went to Thomas Creek with our 18 month old girl and had a blast.

But last Sat got even better. My friend asked if we wanted to go out on a date she would watch Cielo, so I said “how about Sat morning so we can go skiing?!” and she agreed. So we went up to the Tahoe Meadows and hiked up and teled down while snowing the entire time. It was like heaven! Even though I am pretty pregnant (due in 4 weeks) I love to get out and earn some curves!

Reports of amazing winter weather are coming in from all over Reno-Tahoe. Our first hand investigators confirm EPIC powder everywhere you turn! And the powder on the ground is being rapidly covered by even more POWDER!!!!!

• “I can’t believe how hard it’s snowing right now,” said Alpine Meadows spokeswoman Rachael Woods. “This kind of snowfall definitely sets up the Sierra for great spring skiing conditions and really helps with our water situation.”
• “Everybody’s ready to ski,” Kauffman said. “They missed out last year, and this last Saturday and Sunday were excellent. The snow is very deep, powdery dry, like Colorado and Utah,” Kauffman added. “We don’t get that too often.”
• “We did get hammered up here,” said Greg Murtha, spokesman for the resort [Sugarbowl], which has 71 inches of snow at its base, 104 on top. “It was hard to tell when one storm stopped and the next one started.”

Here in the Reno-Tahoe Region we pride ourselves on the fact that no matter the season or weather, our landscape ain’t no one trick pony!Case in point: These guys, who live a stone’s throw south in Carson City won’t let a little snow cut their mountain biking season short. Although the gentlemen in this picture seem to be gazing a bit lustfully over at Heavenly…Still, once the snow melts down on the valley floors it will be perfect for road and mountain biking, hiking and golf if you like to get more than one sport in for your holiday season vacation.All of the ski resorts are open now with a good and growing base, and the backcountry ski season is off and running!-MTB

Cloudy skies, freezing temps and FROZEN precipitation: It’s a beautiful day in Reno!A few weeks ago our friends JT Holmes, Shane McConkey, Miles Daisher and Jesse Hall did a little Snow Dance Ceremony in Downtown Reno to show those delicate flakes just how to go about floating down to the ground. It worked. IT’S SNOWING!!! Here’s a short video Dan Dominy made of that little ritual…

-MTB