Tahoe ski resorts offer respite with restrictions

Editor’s note: A statewide travel advisory discouraging people from traveling more than 120 miles from home or leaving the state, except for essential travel, is currently in effect. In the period described in this story, Californians were under a less-restrictive travel advisory that did not include a prescribed distance. Before making plans, check the latest restrictions at bit.ly/3a77fAs

At Diamond Peak Ski Resort in Incline Village, Nevada, Paige Mazzoni of Windsor and her son, Matt Ostheimer, took a break from skiing to enjoy lunch on the outdoor patio of a mid-mountain lodge with stunning views of Lake Tahoe.

A snowstorm the previous day had covered the mountain in fresh powder. Now, however, the sun shined brightly and there wasn’t a breath of wind.

“Gorgeous,” Mazzoni said of the springlike conditions.

Up in the crystalline air, skiers and snowboarders were finding some respite from a world beset by the terror of a pandemic and, at that very hour, shocking news of the nation’s Capitol being besieged by an insurrectionist mob.

Signs posted at entrances to lifts, lodges and elsewhere at Diamond Peak reflected the reality of the times, reminding visitors to wear face masks and to socially distance. The rules are among the many implemented by resort operators as they negotiate the pandemic’s tricky slope of public health and a $20 billion industry.

Although Sonoma County and California leaders lifted stay-home restrictions on Jan. 25, a statewide travel advisory discouraging people from traveling more than 120 miles from home or leaving the state, except for essential travel, remains in effect. People who must travel are advised to quarantine for at least 10 days on arrival.

That means, for now, Lake Tahoe is off-limits for North Bay snowbirds who are inclined to follow the state’s guidance. The 120-mile advisory went into effect Jan. 7, the day after Mazzoni and her family wrapped up their three-day Tahoe getaway. At the time of their trip, Californians were under a less-restrictive travel advisory that did not include a prescribed distance.

Mazzoni, CEO of Santa Rosa-based Canine Companions for Independence, noted that she and her family stayed in their Incline Village condominium and only ventured out to ski.

She also reported feeling very safe on the mountain. Diamond Peak staff had been “incredibly hospitable and nice” and “bending over backwards to make it a good experience for people,” she said.

Some full-time Tahoe residents have complained about Bay Area visitors flouting pandemic travel guidelines and potentially bringing COVID-19 to the mountains with them. Ski resorts, in the meantime, remain open and are an alluring draw for urbanites desperate to get away from their hemmed-in lives.

The fact that Lake Tahoe straddles two states, each with different pandemic restrictions, can make it a challenge to know what is allowed and what is not from one jurisdiction to the next.

Paul Raymore, marketing manager for the Incline Village General Improvement District, which operates Diamond Peak, said the agency isn’t “in the business of providing advice” on how people should navigate COVID-19 travel restrictions.

“We are in Nevada, and our stance is that our state regulations — and California’s — allow ski resorts to be open and operate with protocols in place to ensure the safety and health of our guests while they are here,” Raymore said.

Michael Reitzell, president of Ski California, a Petaluma-based industry association representing more than 30 California and Nevada resorts, acknowledged travel restrictions complicate the decision about whether to hit the mountain this year.

For those who decide to make the journey, Reitzell’s message is “know before you go.

“It’s not the year to decide the night before to go skiing and pick the place you want to go in the morning,” said Reitzell, who lives in Petaluma.

Resorts require daily lift tickets to be purchased online in advance of an outing; many are foregoing selling season passes to encourage daily visitors. Resorts also are capping the number of visitors on any given day.

“Saturdays are popular days. I think that has a lot to do with day travelers,” said Jon Slaughter, director of marketing and sales for Sugar Bowl Resort.

The resort, off Highway 80 west of Truckee, is popular with Bay Area day-trippers. But due to the pandemic, Sugar Bowl closed its 27-room hotel, which is accessible by a gondola ride, and implemented a raft of other changes, including limits on how long guests can be inside one of the resort’s three main lodges.

That underscores another point: Visitors should consider packing everything they need for the day, including food, and plan to spend more time in their vehicles than they might otherwise were lodges and other public spaces not subject to restrictions.

Most resorts require guests to reserve rental equipment online. Lessons are available but class sizes are limited.

All Ski California resorts require face coverings when physical distancing is not possible. That includes outdoor and indoor spaces, such as lift lines and lodges, except when eating or drinking. Health officials also recommend riding chairlifts only with members of your household.

COVID-19 policies for Ski California resorts are available at skicalifornia.org.

“Our hope is once you get out on the mountain and off the lift and have all that open space around you, it will be about as normal as anything right now,” Reitzell said.

Resort staff say business has been surprisingly brisk this winter despite the myriad challenges of the pandemic, limits on visitors, travel restrictions and a relative dearth of snow. Many resorts typically close down for the season in April while others, depending on conditions, keep the lifts running until the Fourth of July holiday.

At Diamond Peak on this January day, bartender Shaun Smith, 40, poured Bloody Marys and other cocktails for the lunchtime crowd basking in the sun at Snowflake Lodge.

“You can tell it’s a pandemic,” Smith said, “but it’s still busy. Not as busy as it could be, but still.”