MT ROSE’S NEW LODGE AND GOOD SNOW
By the Senior Skier
Up betimes and off for Mt. Rose to ski a bit and inspect the newly opened lodge on the east side of Slide Mountain. Weather looked lousy, the mountain tops swathed in clouds, the kind of stuff that induces vertigo in unwary skiers.
At the main lodge, the wind was howling, 25-35 mph, according to Kayla Anderson, Rose’s Web manager. Supposed to go up to 45 in the afternoon, so best to hit the slopes as soon as the boots are locked up (never my favorite part of skiing, the boot procedure). Then off for a warmp up run on Ponderosa lift, strictly beginner stuff but the wind was blowing and the snow falling and the sun invisible.
Then on to the six-pack and to the top the area. Not a complete whiteout, but close enough to make me hurry to get down below the clouds for a quickie on Kit Carson Bowl, where the snow was fine and the wind a little less intimidating. Back up and then down the east side of Slide Mountain; the snow was just right, not much powder — how could there be with all that wind?
A couple of runs into the wind and then a ski up to the new lodge, perched on a slight rise about 100 feet from the Zephyer quad. Outside it looks modern enough, flat planes and lots of glass. Inside, it’s about as good as it ever gets in mountain lodges. All new stainless steel kitchen, big windows looking out on the slopes as well as on Washoe Valley. This is gonna be awesome in the springtime when sitting on the deck is a demanding recreation.
There’s a spiffy bar tucked away over by the panorama windows, where seats allow one to sit and just admire the view, about as splendid as Tahoe gets (I know, the view from Heavenly’s Gondola is equally good and the one from Homewood’s lake-facing slopes pretty fine too.
Prices for food are in line with mountain resort prices (remember when we used to call them “ski resorts” before snowboarding came into being back when).
The crowd on Monday was bug, no empty tables at the main lodge but plenty at the new one. And parking seems to be easier at the new one, so that’s where I’ll start in the future.
But today I was glad to get out of the blasting wind, even if I did meet some old friends like the former owner of the Sporting Rage and the old ski coach at Carson High.
Mt. Rose has made a major step forward with this new lodge, and happily it hasn’t detracted from the skiing and riding. The Rose blooms.
