Diamond Peak opens, Alpine Meadows events and snowshoe briefs

Diamond Peak Ski Resort opened Thursday morning, its scheduled starting date. Interested skiers and riders should visit www.diamondpeak.com to view the resort's hours of operation, season pass rates, daily lift ticket and rental rates and more. Diamond Peak Ski Resort, Your Tahoe Place for Kids, is located on 1210 Ski Way. For more information and current conditions, call (775) 832-1177 or visit the Web site.

A "Diamond Peak is Open" party will take place from 7 to 10 p.m. tonight at the Hacienda de la Sierra. There will be giveaways, raffle prizes, drink specials and music by the Jason King Band during the party.



Demo Day at Alpine Meadows

Alpenglow Sports has partnered with Alpine Meadows Ski Resort to provide a free telemark and alpine touring demo event for residents of the Lake Tahoe Basin and beyond.

The event will go from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Jan. 5 at Alpine Meadows Ski Resort. The goal of the event is to provide a forum to perpetuate the passion and excitement surrounding telemark and alpine touring skiing in the Tahoe area.

All major sales representatives will be on hand with their affiliated demo fleets. Participating companies include K2, Black Diamond, G3, Atomic, Rossignol, Scarpa, Garmont, Dynafit and Karhu.

Demos are free, but a drivers license and credit card are required for a deposit. A free raffle for demo participants will take place at Alpenglow in Tahoe City after the event. Prizes include skis, bindings, clothing and avalanche safety items.

Contact Alpenglow Sports at (530) 583-6917 or brendan@alpenglowsports.com for more details.



Winter film series helps charities

Alpenglow Sports, along with local climber Dave Nettle, have organized a community event, the Alpenglow Winter Film Series. Held at the Sawtooth Ridge Cafe in Tahoe City, the programs will spotlight world-class athletes and their latest adventures. Each show will also be a benefit for local and global charities.

There is no charge for the shows and everyone is welcome. There will be an optional raffle for great prizes with all proceeds going to the charities.

"We are really excited to support this event," said Don Fyfe, owner of Alpenglow Sports. "It is a great way for me to show my appreciation to everyone who has helped Alpenglow Sports grow in this community, I know that the shows will inspire us all to go out and plan our own adventures."

The series will cover a variety of topics including alpinism, mountaineering and backcountry skiing, as well as the adventure of travel to remote and far off places.

"I'm super psyched to be a part of the film series," said Dave Nettle, local mountaineer, skier and slideshow presenter. "It's an event that everyone can enjoy, from Tahoe's most active adventurers to armchair enthusiasts of all ages."

The series includes the following shows at 7 p.m.

• Andrew McLean, Dec. 20, fundraising for Sierra Avalanche Center.

• Mike Libecki, Jan. 24, fundraising for Access Fund.

• Jimmy Chin, Feb. 21, fundraising for Tahoe Women Services.

• Dave Nettle, March 6, fundraising for Adventure-Risk-Challenge.

Please call Shelley Pursell at (530) 583-6917 with further questions.



Free ski and snowshoe tours

Free ski and snowshoe tours are offered for winter 2007/2008 in the Lake Tahoe region by winter recreation advocate Snowlands Network. Snowlands On Snow (SOS) Tours will go to Donner Summit, Mount Rose, Pole Creek (near Squaw Valley), Hope Valley, and Highway 88. The season kicks off Dec. 15 and 16 with ski and snowshoe tours on Donner Summit, near Truckee, in moderate terrain off Interstate Route 80.

The full schedule is below. Note that weather may cause changes in route or date.

• Sat. Dec. 15: Ski Donner Summit - Leisurely tour to Flora Lake and Lake Angela. Four miles. Advanced/Beginner.

• Sun. Dec. 16: Snowshoe. Same tour as Dec. 15.

• Sat. Jan. 5: Ski Tour. Luther Pass/Hope Valley loop off Hwy. 89. Six miles. Intermediate.

• Sat. Jan 12: Ski Tour - Shealor-Silver Fork Ridge, Hwy. 88 near Silver Lake. Six miles. Intermediate.

• Sun. Jan. 13: Snowshoe tour. Two Sentinels and Castle Point, Hwy 88. Six miles. Intermediate.

• Sat. Jan. 26: Ski Tour. Pole Creek to Bradley Hut below Sierra Crest. Six miles. Intermediate.

• Sat. Feb. 2: Snowshoe talk at Orvis in Reno and two-hour tour of Tahoe Meadows. Beginner/Intermediate.

• Sat. Feb. 9: Snowshoe tour at Castle Peak off I-80 with "CathyWorks," noted Sierra snowshoe guide. 4 hours. Beginner/Intermediate.

For more information, visit www.SaveOurSnowlands.org.



Tahoe Rim Trail winter trails

Join the Tahoe Rim Trail Association in 2008 for its third Year of Winter Trails snowshoe programs. The snowshoe events are great for new timers, old timers and the entire family to try snow sports and to discover the great fitness and social benefits with the easy-to-learn winter sport of snowshoeing.

All snowshoe programs are accompanied with TRTA staff guides and TRTA volunteer guides, and they are free.

The 2008 Winter Trails snowshoe program kicks off on Saturday, Jan. 12 with National Winter Trails Day. It will take place at Tahoe Meadows, and TRTA will partner with Tahoe Backcountry Ski Patrol for a fun-filled day of snowshoeing and an educational demo on winter safety.

To find out more about the winter trails program go to the calendar of events at www.tahoerimtrail.org, or contact Alexis at (775) 298-0231 or alexiso@tahoerimtrail.org.