Rewriting a fish tale at Lake Tahoe

Rewriting a fish tale at Lake Tahoe

If the road to hell really is paved with good intentions, it’s easy to surmise where those who thought it a good idea to introduce nonnative species to Lake Tahoe will end up.

Then again, with wildlife biologists and others working feverishly to re-establish Lahontan cutthroat trout (LCT) in the lake, maybe another road is being paved for those who committed the earlier misdeeds.

LCT are Tahoe’s only native trout. They are on the federal engendered species list.

Logging, overfishing, dams and other water diversions along with the introduction of nonnatives led to the demise of the Lahontan cutthroat in the 1930s.

Other native fish at Lake Tahoe include tui chub, Tahoe sucker, mountain whitefish, Lahontan reside shiners and speckled dace.

Mackinaw, also known as lake trout, were first introduced here in the late 1800s. To this day one of the things they dine on are the LCT.

Millions of dollars are being spent on re-establishing Lahontan cutthroat trout to Lake Tahoe and other nearby lakes. (Image: California Department of Fish and Wildlife)

This century the feds along with both states have been working to bring LCT back to Tahoe and its tributaries, as well as to Echo and Fallen Leaf lakes. Nevada Department of Wildlife since 2022 has stocked Tahoe with 100,000 LCT.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service proposed the reintroduction of the native species to Fallen Leaf Lake in 1999, with the first stocking occurring in 2002.

The USFWS hatchery in the Carson Valley is the main source of LTC that are stocked at Tahoe and other Sierra lakes.

“In part we are trying to fix the problem we created,” Sam Sedillo, NDOW fisheries biologist, said.

The purpose to stock Tahoe, he said, is for sport fishing. The fish are tagged, with the hope people who catch them will report data back to his agency for their research purposes.

While Sedillo is optimistic about the studies going on at Incline and Third creeks in Incline Village, he said it’s too soon to know if LCT will be successfully re-established in the basin.

2012 was the first time Lahontan cutthroat reproduced naturally in the Lake Tahoe Basin in more than 70 years.

The goal is to have Third Creek be home to spawning cutthroat without rainbow trout able to make it up the same passage.

“We are not taking rainbow out of tributaries,” Sedillo explained. “What NDOW does with rainbow trout at the structure is we tag them. We will spawn fish onsite, take them to the hatchery, and release them back to Tahoe downstream so they are not moving into the tributary to spawn.”

Cross breeding of rainbow and LCT would eventually lead to the demise of the latter.

Lahontan cutthroat trout is Nevada’s state fish. The largest one to be reeled in—41 pounds—was in 1925 at Pyramid Lake.

Nevada and California’s wildlife departments are the main agencies working on LCT; however it’s a collaborative effort that includes the Washoe Tribe, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, USFWS and Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.

“For TRPA, recovering this native species is both a goal of the environmental threshold standards for wildlife and a major project of the Lake Tahoe environmental improvement program,” Jeff Cowen, TRPA spokesperson, said. “The biggest challenges for the recovery effort include reconnecting habitat by removing fish passage barriers in streams and rivers like bridges and culverts installed during Tahoe’s development. Also, hybridization with rainbow trout which share spawning ground and predation by Mackinaw trout which sometimes feed on their eggs.”

A West Shore project could be good news for the LCT. Caltrans is replacing the bridge at Meeks Bay, which ties into the tribe’s restoration of Meeks Meadow, while the Forest Service is removing the historic marina and making improvements to the creek. A goal is LCT will spawn again in Meeks Creek.

Tens of millions of dollars have and are being spent on getting Lahontan cutthroat trout to call Lake Tahoe and its tributaries home again. It’s all for sportfishing and to restore the wrongs committed years ago.

Zach Gordon, a boat captain and guide for Tahoe Sportfishing, calls the efforts wasteful and unsuccessful.

For years there has been a concern that LCT will decimate the rainbow trout population, which would impact the sport fishing industry.

Common nonnatives in addition to Mackinaw and rainbow trout include brown trout and Kokanee salmon.

Other fish seen and caught in the lake that are obviously are not native include goldfish being dumped from personal aquariums. Some have grown to 15 inches long. Largemouth bass, bluegill and crappies are other species the natives have to compete against.

What no one plans to do is remove the nonnative trout and salmon.

“We are not going to permit or go out and haphazardly remove sport fish in the lake for something that isn’t guaranteed,” Sedillo said. “An effort to remove nonnative fish is not worth it any shape or form, and it would not be successful either.”

Note: A version of this story first appeared in the Tahoe Mountain News.

SCOTUS knocks vote by mail option

SCOTUS knocks vote by mail option

In a truly democratic society it would seem like the powers that be would make it easier for people to vote instead of taking rights away.

The regime in the majority in the United States is hellbent on taking away rights. It makes me wonder if this is even a democracy anymore.

On Aug. 24, the Supreme Court in an emergency order upheld the president’s executive order to limit who can use mail-in ballots. This is likely going to affect the midterm elections in November.

NPR wrote: “Trump’s order calls for the Department of Homeland Security to develop state lists of adult U.S. citizens and for the Postal Service to obtain lists of eligible mail voters from states. According to the order, USPS is supposed to deliver mail-in ballots only to people on those lists. All election officials would also be required to have certain barcodes on their mail ballot envelopes.”

Elections are supposed to be run by the states, not the feds. How does the Supreme Court not know this?

More details affecting mail-in voting could be forthcoming from the Supreme Court in the days and weeks ahead.

I still don’t understand how all these elections throughout the country can be rigged when it’s Republicans who hold the majority. They seem to only have a problem if they lose, but not when they win. They are selling the American people a bunch of lies about our elections.

How is it that Trump can vote by mail, but he wants to pull that option from others? Just this month he voted by mail in the Florida Republican primary. He also cast a vote by mail earlier this year in a special election in Palm Beach County.

“Mail-in ballots are inherently corrupt,” Trump said in July.

There is zero proof of this.

I have been voting by mail for longer than I can remember. This is how I always want to vote. There is no reason not to vote by mail if one wants to.

While other states are following the orange man’s lead, as well as the court’s, to dismantle voters’ rights, California is taking aim to uphold them with several bills in the current legislative session.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s response to Monday’s ruling was: “The Supreme Court just let the Trump administration move ahead (for now) with its plan to disenfranchise voters across the country. California will be suing again to block these Orwellian rules from being implemented.”

Autumn colors beginning to show

Autumn colors beginning to show

Grape vines in Chico look more like fall than summer in August. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Hints of yellow are appearing sooner than usual. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Fall is in the air, or at least on the leaves, and it’s only August. November seems to be peak foliage season in Chico, but it might be earlier this year based on seeing hints of color in the last couple weeks.

Chico is spectacular in the fall with all the trees aglow. With it being known as the City of Trees, it really is magical in autumn.

I couldn’t find anything online as to why the color change might be coming earlier this year in Chico. It could have to do with the spring being warmer than usual and the winter rainfall sporadic.

I know most all of the harvests in Northern California have been sooner, so why not the deciduous trees getting in on this as well?

The small vineyard near one of the tennis courts where I play looks like fall. Tippy tops of some trees are changing to yellow and orange.

While the daytime temperatures still scream summer, the evenings seem to be cooler than years past. This must play into the trees thinking the seasons are changing.

Autumn is my favorite time of year, so no complaints if it lasts longer this year.

Fishing captures another side of Lake Tahoe

Fishing captures another side of Lake Tahoe

Jack Johnson, from left, Mike Behrens and Scott Olson start the day fishing before the sun is barely up. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Music. It’s what makes a fish bite. Just ask Tyler Chia.

While everyone else had dinner chilling on ice, he didn’t have so much as a nibble.

Then Capt. Zach Gordon asked Chia what tunes he wanted to listen to. The country got eighty-sixed, as it wasn’t helping anyone. Drake was Chia’s answer and the solution to his fish drought. Within minutes Chia was working two lines. A massive grin filled his boyish face as he stood on deck on this cool June morning with a Mackinaw in each hand.

Fifteen Mackinaw, also known as lake trout, were hauled in that day by the six men aboard Tahoe Sportfishing’s largest boat, the Prophet. Most of these weighed less than 6 pounds, but still plenty of meat for dinner. Everyone was planning to take their catch to MacDuff’s Pub for the restaurant to prepare three ways—beer-battered, blackened and sautéed.

Lake Tahoe doesn’t have a minimum weight for fish pulled from its water. The main rule is no more than five total per person. It can become catch-and-release if people have more than they can consume.

On this excursion only Mackinaw were biting—no Kokanee salmon, no brown or rainbow trout.

Robert Aronsen, who was a resident of South Lake Tahoe at the time, still holds the record—37.6 pounds—for the largest Mackinaw from Lake Tahoe. This was back in 1974.

Tyler Chia of Southern California shows off his nearly simultaneous haul. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Destination fishing

Mergansers dart in the shallow water, making the only ripple on the glassy waters.

Capt. Gordon keeps the mood light on his vessel that departs from Ski Run Marina at the break of dawn. With how the sun dips behind the various ridges on the East Shore, it was like experiencing multiple sunrises in one morning.

Then the top of Mount Tallac comes out of the dark. Soon it is completely awash in sunlight. Only fishing boats are out at this hour. That changes as the air temperature rises.

Daylight awakens the vocal chords of those onboard. Introductions. Pleasantries. A few light-hearted jokes. Building comradery for what will become a collaborative effort to land fish after fish after fish.

Tommy Chia is with his sons, Tyler and Ryan. The Orange County trio are in town while their wife/mom is at a conference. Mike Behrens of Arizona is on his first visit to Tahoe, with catching a Mackinaw a primary goal—which he did more than once. He was celebrating his 47th wedding anniversary. Part of the fun included this fishing expedition with his childhood buddy Jack Johnson of Wisconsin. Scott Olson traveled from Sonoma. He says he only catches fish on guided trips. All were fishing Lake Tahoe for the first time.

Deck hand Nate Mitchell cleans one of the Mackinaw. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

After deck hand Nate Mitchell threaded live red-sided bass minnows onto the hooks and the lines were dispatched to a depth of a couple hundred feet, Gordon surveyed his brood. He pointed to Olson. “He looks fishy.” That’s a compliment, meaning he’s the one to watch, the one who is going to reel in multiple fish and likely be the one to feed everyone onboard.

Gordon, who has been a captain since 2007, was spot on. Within minutes Olson’s pole arced. He brought in about at 2.5 pound Mackinaw.

“When I had him it felt like 10 pounds,” Olson said. “I need to rest my arm.”

Gordon is full of clever quips: “Come on, we put three in the lake last night so there are two left.”

Fish No. 2 went to Olson. He was definitely “fishy” the entire trip.

When lines hit the bottom, Gordon chimed: “We don’t want to catch the plug to the lake and drain the whole thing.”

Hook, line and sinker

Lake Tahoe and its tributaries have been fishing meccas for eons. Fish were a staple of the Washoe Indians who lived at the lake during the summer.

Now recreational fishing charters ply the water year-round, with more than a dozen outfitters working all ends of the lake. Commercial fishing, where the haul is sold off, is not allowed at Lake Tahoe.

South Lake Tahoe government officials were not able to quantify the economic impact of fishing charters; and Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority doesn’t market fishing as an activity. Even so, fishing is big business for those with the boats and poles.

“It’s not like being on the ocean and trying to fill your freezer. It really is about the experience—going on Lake Tahoe, fishing Tahoe, the scenic views, and the opportunity to catch fish and eat it that same night,” Zach Shearer, operations manager with Tahoe Sportfishing, said. “It’s a really, really cool experience that not many places in the world are offering.”

Shearer grew up fishing; he almost had to. In 1997, the year before he was born, his dad, John, bought the South Lake Tahoe outfitter from Dean Lockwood. Lockwood opened the business in 1953.

Tahoe Sportfishing has been taking people out on Lake Tahoe since 1953. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

The Prophet, one of the first boats Shearer purchased, was overhauled last year—with this being the first full season back on Tahoe. The 43-foot Delta has new, quieter engines that are better for the environment.

Tahoe Sportfishing with its six boats has the largest fleet of fishing vessels on Lake Tahoe. All boats are Coast Guard certified. All are also ocean-worthy, which is a good thing considering Lake Tahoe gets plenty rough.

“Lake trout is what we fish for most of the year. They are always moving, doing different things,” Shearer said. “A big benefit of fishing year-round is consistently knowing where they are because the hot spots always change.”

Captains tap into the Tahoe Environmental Research Center’s website to get information about the currents in the lake. They are forecasted from data collected via  the buoys in the water. Currents can move 100 feet a minute.

Sonar also helps locate fish along the various shelves.

While fishing licenses from California and Nevada work for individuals in both states, captains need to be certified by each state if they want to take the boat anywhere on the lake. Gordon is the only captain with Tahoe Sportfishing who has a Nevada captain’s license. Two captains with other outfitters also have a Nevada license.

About 50 percent of Tahoe Sportfishing’s customers are repeat clientele. For others, this is a bucket list item. Still others want a day on the lake. Afternoon charters tend to be more about hanging out than hauling in one’s limit.

And it might not just be fish you catch. Gordon joked with one of the guys who had a piece of wood on the line: “Bring it in. It might be the only thing you catch.” Then Gordon offered to take the man’s picture with the wood, which made everyone on board laugh.

Fishing really is more than fishing.

Note: A version of this story first appeared in the Tahoe Mountain News.

Fishing at Lake Tahoe

Lake Tahoe is known for many things. One thing that people don’t always think about is fishing. It’s a year-round activity, with Mackinaw (lake trout), Kokanee salmon, and rainbow and brown trout likely to be on the hook when you reel it in. (Video: Kathryn Reed)

Giants honor players from World Series era

Giants honor players from World Series era

Five players from the Giants World Series era join the wall of fame at the ballpark. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

When Brandon Belt, Brandon Crawford, Joe Panik, Buster Posey and Pablo Sandoval took to the field at Oracle Park magic happened.

If only history would repeat itself.

For a brief moment earlier this month the five returned to this San Francisco ballpark. All were being inducted into wall of fame. The nice thing about the plaques is they are outside the stadium so everyone can enjoy them without paying for a ticket.

Since the Giants started this tradition in 2008 more than 60 names have been immortalized this way. Peter Magowan, Mike Murphy and Bob Lurie are the non-players on the wall. Mike Krukow has a plaque for his days (1983-89) as a pitcher for the Giants.

The plaque on the wall facing King Street in part says: “Baseball’s modern age began at Seals Stadium on Opening Day, April 15, 1958, when the San Francisco Giants defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-0, in the first Major League game played on the West Coast. Since that historic date, San Francisco fans have witnessed the daily exploits of some of the game’s finest players, and a special bond was created in the spirit of ‘Once a Giant, Forever a Giant’. In our 50th anniversary season in San Francisco, the Giants inaugurate this perpetual tribute to our greatest stars. The plaques along this wall recognize Giants players whose records stand highest among their teammates on the basis of longevity and achievements. Those honored have played a minimum of nine seasons for the San Francisco Giants, or at least five seasons with at least one All-Star selection as a Giant. As of Opening Day 2008, a group of 48 Giants legends qualified for this distinction, forming the charter class of honorees.”

Reading each inscription would take a while. Their individual accomplishments are impressive.

Looking at the lineup the Giants have today it’s hard to imagine anyone other than Logan Webb having his name up there.

But when this band of five started the same might have been said. After all, the Giants lost 90 games in 2008. Two years later they won the World Series. This year’s wall of fame induction is a reminder that one season doesn’t necessarily foretell what the next season will bring.

The Giants have a good chance of hitting that 90 game loss mark again. Maybe that means winning the World Series in 2028. A girl can dream.

Most of all, though, this tradition of bringing back past stars to give them and fans an opportunity to reconnect, remember and reminisce is pretty special.

Book review: ‘The Secret of Secrets’ is a page-turner

Book review: ‘The Secret of Secrets’ is a page-turner

The Secret of Secrets (Doubleday, 2025) is a whodunnit that will keep you coming back for more.

This is a long one. So long that I needed to get it twice from Libby in order to finish listening to all 23 hours.

Author Dan Brown is known for his detailed novels. He wrote The Da Vinci Code—another book I’d recommend. If you liked that one, you will probably like this one. If you didn’t like that one, you might want to skip his latest book.

Set primarily in Prague, Secret of Secrets is full of history. In many ways Prague is a main character. Having never been there, the book piqued my curiosity about this city.

Brown has a way of blending history, science, religion and human drama into a riveting read.

Robert Langdon, a professor of symbology, and Katherine Solomon, a noetic scientist who is writing a book about her findings, are the main characters. When the book is hijacked off the publisher’s server, everything goes haywire.

I won’t give away any secrets, but it does make me wonder what governments are really up to. Don’t worry, this book isn’t political in the sense of partisan politics.

 

Volunteers keep Tahoe trail system functioning

Volunteers keep Tahoe trail system functioning

Tahoe Rim Trail Association crew leader Shea Imgarten, right, brings material to help mask a social trail at Van Sickle Bi-State Park in Lake Tahoe. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Lopers, picks, shovels, mallets, McLeod’s, saws, carts and other items dotted the hillside. Instead of this lineup of tools being employed to build something, they were used to decommission 1,300 feet of social trails in Van Sickle Bi-State Park in June.

Finding a shortcut seems ingrained in human behavior. In nature this means creating trails in places that weren’t meant to be walked on.

Fifty-five volunteers alongside a slew of Tahoe Rim Trail Association personnel set about creating a landscape that no longer invited people to get off the designated route. After several hours the user-created trails were no longer visible. It went beyond just not being inviting. No evidence of their existence could be seen.

Normally slash piles are disposed of by fire. Not so this summer. Nevada State Parks crews left them for the Tahoe Trim Trail folks to use in June.

Using picks, shovels and McLeod’s, holes were dug to “plant” logs like they were mini trees.

“Ice-berging is a more permanent way to decommission switchbacks,” Shea Imgarten, a TRTA trail crew leader, explained. “They can last 20 years. It’s better than throwing logs and needles on the dirt.”

Rocks found by volunteers helped stabilize the planted log, with dirt filling in the hole.

Eileen Mosse, from left, Andy Rothman and Seyil Yoon stabilize a log in the ice-berging process of trail decommissioning. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Manzanita—some from the slash piles, some trimmed from plants growing slopeside—were replanted. Not whole bushes, but trimmings. This propagation really works.

“I’ve done a lot of landscaping. There is a lot of crossover with this work,” Andy Rothman, a trail leader, said.

Other debris from the slash piles were scattered about in a semi-methodical way to look as natural as possible. Only plant material found on-site and hand tools were used.

These trails were about seven-tenths of a mile in from the main parking lot; in between the initial vista point and the waterfall.

Some worked from the top, others from the bottom. At the end, looking up or down, only those who were there June 6 would likely be able to know where the work occurred.

In the end, TRTA Executive Director Lindsey Schultz declared this was the best those trails have looked in 20 years.

Land and water

When hikers create their own trails it can lead to unintended consequences like trampling sensitive habitat and the inevitable destabilization of the ground which creates erosion problems. This in turn can lead to sediment reaching Lake Tahoe.

Sediment is a major reason the lake’s clarity isn’t what it once was. Clarity is worse in the summer compared to winter readings.

The annual Lake Tahoe Clarity Report released in June shows the annual average clarity remains at a plateau.

“In 2025, as in previous years, the seasonal decrease in water clarity appears to be well correlated with the seasonal peak of particles,” the report states. “Given that water clarity has not shown an overall trend toward improvement in several decades, we suggest that understanding the nature of the particles is a priority area for research to identify the current drivers of water clarity.”

Jim Large, recipient of the TRTA Peak Award for volunteer work, helps with digging a trench for a log. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Why this day?

American Hiking Society launched National Trails Day in 1993. It is always the first Saturday of June. Organizations across the country put on various events with the goal of getting community members to be trail stewards.

“What is really cool is people will go up there in the next years and won’t know what each of you did today,” Schultz told the group before work started. “But you’ll know. That will be inside of you forever.”

She reflected on her first trail day as a 9-year-old when her dad took her to Mount Rose. It’s moments like those when you don’t necessarily know the impact you are having on one’s life, she said.

“You might get a small human in your life to know the importance of conservation,” Schultz said. She was once that child. This was her 15th Trails Day.

Eileen Mosse remembers reading a Sunset magazine article in the 1980s about the Tahoe Rim Trail that lead her to declare she would be part of it one day. Now that she lives in the Carson City area most of the year with husband Leon she is a guide in training. Last year they did the 165-mile trail in segments.

On this particular Saturday the couple was doing everything asked of them and then some: digging, lifting, hauling, burying, sawing.

Larry Green of South Tahoe works to decommission a user-created trail on the South Shore of Tahoe. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

For South Lake Tahoe’s Larry Green this was his 13th Trail Day. He’s a lover of working with rocks—building stairs in particular. The Lake Tahoe Community College math instructor admits he might be the only one out there using math to figure out the best build.

While stair building was not on the agenda this particular day, Green was seen with a variety of tools in his hands and seeming to never take a break.

Of the 750,000 people who use the Tahoe Rim Trail each year, less than 2 percent give back in terms of financial donations.

Grant funding is drying up, making donations all the more imperative. In fact, the Youth Backcountry Program, which serves several Tahoe kids, was facing a $90,000 funding gap going into this summer.

TRTA still needs volunteers to work this summer; check out the calendar.

Also at Van Sickle on that first Saturday of June were 28 volunteers with the League to Save Lake Tahoe who picked up 137 pounds of trash in the park and Stateline area.

Note: A version of this story first ran in the Tahoe Mountain News.

Giants games starting in 2027 will sound different

Giants games starting in 2027 will sound different

Next to being at the ballpark, listening to baseball on the radio is my favorite way to experience a game.

I’ve never met Mike Krukow or Duane Kuiper, but I feel like I know them. For the last 36 years they have been the voices of the San Francisco Giants. Krukow is retiring after this season because of health reasons.

Broadcasters who make you feel like you are at the park, offer insight you might not otherwise glean and tell it like it is make the sport all that much more enjoyable. In my car, living room, bedroom—wherever I’d hear them—it’s almost like they became friends.

If one were to total the number of hours I’ve listened to both of them—on the radio and TV—I’m pretty sure I’ve heard their voices more than I have any family member or friend. And I’m not a die-hard, listen to every game kind of fan.

In recent years they’ve done fewer broadcasts together because of health issues. Other broadcasters have been brought in. I’ve gotten used to them—sort of. To be honest, I don’t always recognize their voices. I can’t say that about Kruk and Kuip, or for Jon Miller.

Miller is in the National Radio Hall of Fame. Kruk and Kuip are sure to follow. Miller has also received the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Ford C. Frick Award which is an annual award for a broadcaster who made “major contributions to baseball.” It’s hard to imagine Kruk and Kuip won’t join this elite group.

It’s going to be hard next season without Kruk part of the broadcast team. It feels even harder to imagine than when a favorite player gets traded away or retires; probably because Kruk and Kuip have always been there—at least as long as I’ve been a fan.

While I feel sorry for myself and other fans who will miss this dynamic duo, we will have Kuip—and Kruk, well, he more than deserves to retire. On the bright side, he’s already said he wouldn’t mind joining a broadcast or two or an inning or so next year and for however long.

No snow melts Vail Resorts’ coffers

No snow melts Vail Resorts’ coffers

Winter came and went in a blink of an eye. For Vail Resorts it was a black eye.

During the third quarter earnings call in June “challenging” was one of the most used words. Lack of snow translated to fewer people hitting the slopes, which meant challenging sales of most everything at the company’s properties.

Vail Resorts owns Heavenly Mountain Resort, Kirkwood Mountain Resort and Northstar. Vail’s Colorado and Utah properties also suffered from receiving little white stuff.

Officials reported resort revenue for the quarter declining 7 percent compared to the previous year, saying it was “primarily driven by unfavorable weather conditions that impacted visitation and revenue for both local and destination guests, particularly at our resorts in the Rockies and in Tahoe.”

Visitation was off 15 percent, though lift revenues were only down 5 percent, which is attributed to season pass sales increasing 3 percent before the lifts started turning last November.

“When you look back over 40 years, the prior worst decline in visitation outside of Covid-related closures for the Rockies was down 8 percent in 2012, which illustrates the unprecedented severity of the conditions and the anomaly we just experienced,” CEO Rob Katz said.

Dismal conditions in 2025-26 are impacting pass sales for the upcoming season. In the earnings call it was noted through May 26 Epic pass sales were down 10 percent for 2026-27.

The Epic pass was introduced in 2008 as a way to reward riders by offering a cheaper alternative to daily lift ticket prices, while providing the opportunity to ski/board at any Vail property. For the upcoming season that pass costs $1,119. The Tahoe Local pass, which is what people who ski the Sierra tend to buy, goes for $699, provides access to Vail’s three resorts in the area. The $597 Tahoe Value pass comes with more restrictions.

“Looking back over the past several decades, U.S. ski market data indicates that visitation typically fully recovers following a season with poor conditions if the subsequent season has normal conditions,” Katz said. “And we believe we are well positioned to capture that visitation recovery with the pass and lift ticket product and marketing strategies we have developed. That said, given how unprecedented this past season was, it’s hard to know with certainty how any of this will play out.”

Note: A version of this story first appeared in the Tahoe Mountain News.

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