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This is Mt. Tallac yesterday morning. I'd would defintely ski it. It offers fantastic views of Lake Tahoe and Desolation Wilderness (from the ridge top).

I wil be on Tallac Saturday and Donner Peak on Friday. I was not planning on bringing the skiis however. Snowcoverge looks pretty light just yet.

Tallac is a glorious peak to ski. Views, terrain, and variety abound. Fair warning, be ready for some manzanita thrashing unless there is a few feet of snow at lake level. December can be hit or miss for backcountry zones. Couple big storms, game on everywhere. Otherwise look to Carson Pass or Mt. Rose Summit for more skiable terrain under early season conditions. Enjoy!

Yep - not nearly enough to ski at this point. 2-3 more feet should do it. Even then, still need to be very careful. never know. some years can be done in December, some years no.

rdesota wrote:This is Mt. Tallac yesterday morning. I'd would defintely ski it.

rdesota wrote:Yep - not nearly enough to ski at this point. 2-3 more feet should do it

I guess I am confused... I am hiking it this weekend but don't intend to ski it. Are you saying you would go for it this weekend (post 1) or saying you wuld not (post 2)

Either way, weather looks terrific this weekend to get outside for some training!

There's about 6-10 inches on the ground at 7500 at the Heavenly Stagecoach Lift. Probably a bit more on Tallac.

IMHO, you are in the window where there's too much unconsolidated snow to conveniently hike (esp. with a talus summit) and not enough yet to effectively ski.

Sorry for the confusion. I would ski it whenever it is ready. It is not ready now. There is not enough snow. I meant that if one were to look for backcountry skiing opportunities, Mt. Tallac is a must do.

rdesota wrote:Sorry for the confusion. I would ski it whenever it is ready. It is not ready now. There is not enough snow. I meant that if one were to look for backcountry skiing opportunities, Mt. Tallac is a must do.

Just giving you a hard time! Tallac is one of my favorite descents in the area. I realy like Jakes and Maggies!

Not too worried about the lack of comsolidation. With the weather today and Friday it will be fine for a good workout.

Just got off the Donner climb. You could ski the top 1000" in 18" of suprisingly dry snow.

Thanks for all the great information so far Scotty.....did you get any pictures from your tour of Donner? Please keep me posted on the evolution of the skiing conditions down there....it has proven more than helpful so far.

Almost daily reports on backcountry skiing at Tahoe are posted on the ski trip reports forum at TheBackcountry.net and on the Telemark Talk forum at Telemarktips.com under the Sierra Ski & Snow Conditions topic. Going high to Carson Pass and Mt.Rose for good coverage is required most Decembers. Waterhouse, Round Top, Red Lake ,Stevens ,and other South Tahoe/Carson Pass peaks have lot's of choices on different faces. Have a great trip !

Palisades79 wrote:Almost daily reports on backcountry skiing at Tahoe are posted on the ski trip reports forum at TheBackcountry.net

That was mt very first reccd.

No pics to share, sorry. More of a training hike than anything.