Palisades:
The terrain at Palisades is amazing for skiers and snowboarders of all abilities, from those making their first turns to the professionals that frequent the resort. There is a dedicated learning area at the base of the mountain for those just getting started out. For more confident beginners, there is great terrain higher up on the mountain, too, in the High Camp area. Both the Tram and the Gold Coast Funitel access this area. The Tram is a fun novelty, but the lines can be long.
Intermediate skiers and snowboarders will also want to head to this part of the mountain. The Siberia, Gold Coast, and Emigrant lifts are where intermediates will want to explore as well as the backside. The backside Granite Chief and Shirley lake chairlifts have lots of different intermediate terrain to explore. There are more trees here than in High Camp, making this area better during low visibility and windy days.
Advanced terrain is where Palisades really begins to shine, the options are seemingly endless. Granite Chief has a good variety of terrain. Including some trees, which some of the mountain’s other advanced terrain lacks. The Silverado, Headwall, and Cornice chairs hold more fun terrain for advanced skiers and snowboarders. The Red Dog lift can be overlooked on a powder day sometimes, check it out for fresh turns. A short hike from the Siberia lift is The Palisades. These chutes are legendary, and for expert skiers and snowboarders only. They are steep, gnarly, and often feature mandatory cliff hucks. Check out local legend Scott Gaffney's breakdown of the Palisades
here.
Palisades' most famous KT-22 chairlift rises straight from the base area, and access some of the resort's most well known lines. It is not uncommon to find locals camping out or cooking breakfast in this chairline, as well as many other playful antics inspired by legend Shane McConkey. Keep your eyes on these guys throughout the day, odds are they’ll be hucking huge cliffs and riding the gnarly lines that helped inspire the modern “extreme skiing” movement. The runs on the west face, like Mosely’s, Chute 75, and Rock Garden are classics.
Alpine Meadows:
Alpine Meadows is a great mountain, with a lot of fun advanced skiing and snowboarding. Beginners have some options near the base area, however, Palisades' High Camp lets skiers and snowboarders explore more. Intermediate riders will have a great time at Alpine Meadows, the Hotwheels and Roundhouse have a lot of terrain to explore. The backside Lakeview chair serves mostly intermediate terrain, too. Intermediate skiers and snowboarders can also get a taste of the more exposed upper mountain terrain off of the Summit Six chairlift on the Alpine Bowl run.
Advanced skiers will love Alpine Meadows, snowboarders can have a bit tougher of a time, however, due to flat areas and traverses. The Summit Six and Scott chairlifts access a lot of the advanced terrain, which is typically steep with lots of natural features like small cliffs to jump off of and jib on. After big snowstorms, the Summit Six will be the first chairlift to open, followed by others as ski patrol deems the conditions safe. The Alpine Bowl Chair leads to some of the steepest terrain at Alpine Meadows. The wide open bowls on the backside can be a ton of fun, too, the farther out from the Sherwood Express chairlift, the longer fresh powder lasts after storms.