This list is a chronology of significant changes and additions made to Ski Tours in the Sierra Nevada. They are listed by date with the most recent first.

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March 22, 2009

Version 17.01.01 adds ten tours between Truckee and Tahoe City. The Bradley Hut Loop tour will be of particular interest to anyone planning at trip to the hut; the loop adds variation to an otherwise straight-forward tour on roads.

• Donner Memorial State Park
• Cabin Creek Loop
• Pole Creek Loop
• Pole Creek to Deep Creek
• Bradley Hut
• Bradley Hut Loop
• Bradley Hut and Deep Creek
• Saddle Trail Loop
• Silver Peak
• Truckee River

February 26, 2009

Version 16.01.01 adds eight tours in the Donner Pass area.

• Andesite Peak
• Andesite Ridge and Peak
• Andesite Ridge Loop
• Castle Valley
• Round Valley and Peter Grubb Hut
• Castle Peak
• Summit Lake
• Frog Lake Cliff

Also be sure to take a look at the newest avalanche website (it's a mini-course).

February 11, 2009

Version 15.02.01 you will find a discussion about "the truth about snowfall." What really constitutes a low snowfall year? You might be surprised at the truth.

February 9, 2009

Version 15.01.01 adds an exhilarating tour that descends the narrow ridge west of Shealor Lakes.

Also in this version you will find an expanded description of how to wax your skis, including the no-wax pattern. Described is an improved method for removing the excess wax from the pattern section using a heat gun.

February 6, 2009

Added in version 14.01.04 is a link to the web cam at Tioga Pass. This version also updates all the other web cam links (they seem to change each year) and fixed a bunch of minor glitches. Stand by for more tours to be added later this month.

January 11, 2009

With version 14.01.01 the maps in the ski tour descriptions are now interactive — you can now zoom the map in and out, and drag the map using your mouse.

December 20, 2008

Version 13.02.04 includes a description on how to base wax skis.

October 27, 2008

We have temporarily removed all links to the Matrimony Ridge tour in the Kingvale area. This was done in response to a reader suggestion that we recheck one of the details in the description. In our quest for accuracy, we have removed the links until such time as the detail has been checked. This will be as soon a possible.

October 18, 2008

Version 13.01.01 adds two tours at Echo Summit. The Benwood Meadow tour describes two beginner loops and the Benwood Meadow Drainage describes a more difficult extension up the meadow's drainage.

The Carson Pass to Echo Summit tour was updated to more accurately reflect the location of the marked trail as you approach its end at Echo Summit.

October 15, 2008

Version 12.01.01 adds five tours in the Kingvale and Donner Pass area.

Kingvale area

• Matrimony Ridge
• Fisher Lake Overlook
• High Loch Leven Lake

Donner Pass area

• Mount Judah and Donner Peak
• Mount Judah and Donner Peak Loop

The three Kingvale area tours have been updated significantly since they were first described in the print version of Ski Tours in the Sierra Nevada, Second Edition. Some of the changes are the result of the dramatic growth of saplings over the 17 years since the trail was first marked. Other changes resulted from the use of a GPS to more accurately locate the High Loch Leven Lake Trail where it cuts cross-country through non-descript and heavily wooded terrain.

September 16, 2008

Version 11.02.01 now includes links to news items related to the sport you love — backcountry skiing. Visit In The News to read the latest.

September 13, 2008

Version 11.01.01 debuts a major addition to each tour. A reader's suggestion spurred us to add a link that permits you to:

• Read and write reviews for tours.
• Easily submit corrections for tours.

Be the first to write reviews and we'll post them for others to read.

We also added 5 ski tours on Interstate 80. They include the following tours in the Kingvale and Donner Pass areas.

Kingvale area

• Nancy Lake
• Snow Mountain

Donner Pass area

• Lake Angela, Flora Lake and Azalea Lake
• Lakes Crossing
• Lakes Crossing Loop

September 1, 2008

A milestone — 101 ski tours!

Version 10.01.01 adds 4 ski tours on Highway 49 near Yuba Pass making a grand total of 101 to date. The new tours include one beginner tour (Yuba Pass Vista) and three intermediate tours (Lunch Creek, Three Knobs and Beartrap Meadow Loop). This area is about 35 miles from Truckee.

July 14, 2008

Version 09.02.01 adds three essays on snow camping. They focus on how to go light and how to maximize the caloric content of the food you carry. You will probably be surprised to read that salami and cheese are no better than crackers in terms of calories per unit weight. Also, it's pretty hard not to loose weight on a multi-day ski trip!

June 16, 2008

Version 09.01.01 adds 11 ski tours along the Luther Pass corridor. Two intermediate tours lead to Scotts Lake and two more difficult tours lead to seldom visited Thompson Peak. Check out all 11 tours in the Luther Pass corridor.

June 2, 2008

Quite of few changes were made to Ski Tours in the Sierra Nevada in Version 08.01.01.

• Great deals are now being listed on the Winter Wares . Like everything else on this website, this to is a work in progress. On the same web page you will find links to Amazon.com, REI.com and REI-OUTLET.com. Using these links for your shopping will support this website.
• On the Winter Wares web page you will find information on SPOT, the World's first satellite messenger designed for backcountry use and a great deal on carbon fiber ski poles.

Version 08.01.01 also includes some exciting new ski tours that to my knowledge have never been documented anywhere. In Yosemite National Park:

• The Tioga Pass Road tour now includes a short extension to Peak 7168. From the summit there are views of the Clark Range including Mount Clark, Gray Peak, Red Peak and Merced Peak.
• The Tamarack Campground Road tour is also an extension of the Tioga Pass Road tour.
• Truly outstanding is the tour to Devils Dance Floor if you have the skills to get there.

Along the Highway 88 corridor there are now three tours that begin at Shot Rock Vista. Take a look at the Tragedy Creek, Shot Rock Loop and Shot Rock to Bear River tours — the photos tell the whole story! This area is amazing for backcountry skiing.

Also added are five standard tours in the Echo Lakes area. They include: Becker Peak, Echo Lakes, Echo Peak, Tamarack Lake and Desolation Valley.

February 24, 2008

The following four tours in the Echo Summit area were added in Version 07.01.01:

• Lake Audrian
• Huckleberry Ridge
• Huckleberry Ridge to Sierra-At-Tahoe
• Sayles Canyon

In addition to the added tours, corrections were made so that the correct elevation profiles are printed when an entire tour is printed using either the "print preview" or "print" options in the browser.

February 22, 2008

Alternate routes and additional images are added to the Van Vleck Storm Shelter and Van Vleck Bunkhouse tours in Version 06.02.01.

February 19, 2008

The following six tours were added in Version 06.01.01:

Yosemite - Westside

• Dewey Point Via Ridge Trail
• Dewey Point Via Meadow Trail
• Ostrander Ski Hut Via Bridalveil Creek Trail
• Ostrander Ski Hut Via Horizon Ridge Trail
• Ostrander Ski Hut Via Merced Crest Trail
• Horse Ridge Loop

January 31, 2008

The following seven tours were added in Version 05.01.01:

Lake Tahoe - Eastside

• Old Tannenbaum Ski Area
• Old Mount Rose Highway

Highway 88

• Tragedy Spring to Silver Lake Via Ridge and Option 1
• Tragedy Spring to Silver Lake Via Ridge and Option 2

Yosemite - Westside

• Crane Flat
• Tioga Pass Road - Westside
• Gin Flat Loop

The above three tours in Yosemite National Park mark the beginning of an effort to fully cover Yosemite, both west and east sides.

Just a reminder — you can use your browser to print tours. The information is reformatted to make it more compatible with print media and we continue to work to improve the way in which the printed material looks.

January 14, 2008

The following two tours were added in Version 04.01.01:

Lake Tahoe - Eastside

• Tamarack Peak Loop
• Tamarack Lake

A special note was added to all tours beginning at the summer trailhead for Thunder Mountain or to the west near Martin Meadow.

January 4, 2008

Difficulty and length of tour are now given in Find By Location and Difficulty and Find Using Index (Version 03.02.01). You will probably find searching for a tour by location and difficulty the easiest unless you know the name of the tour.

January 1, 2008

The following seven tours were added in Version 03.01.01:

Lake Tahoe - Eastside

• Headwaters of Galena Creek
• Third Creek
• Relay Ridge
• Mount Houghton Via Radio Tower
• Mount Houghton Direct
• Mount Rose

Highway 88

• Headwaters of the Middle Fork of the Cosumnes River Loop

There are now 11 tours in the Tahoe Meadows area on the Mount Rose Highway. The Headwaters of Galena Creek tour, suitable for beginner-intermediate skiers, is a destination that visitors to the area should not miss. The Relay Ridge tour is the easiest route to over 10,000 feet in the area and is suitable for intermediate skiers and the Mount Houghton Via Radio Tower tour is a short, but more difficult, extension. The Mount Houghton Direct and Mount Rose tours are suitable for only advanced skiers.

The Headwaters of the Middle Fork of the Cosumnes River Loop tour on Highway 88 loops around the river's headwaters and is rated intermediate.

November 30, 2007

The following six tours were added in Version 02.01.01:

Highway 50

• Ralston Peak

Lake Tahoe - Eastside

• Tahoe Meadows
• South Ridge
• Tahoe Meadows to Incline Village
• Tahoe Meadows to Diamond Peak
• Tahoe Meadows to Brockway Summit

Ralston Peak and Tahoe Meadows to Incline Village will interest those primarily seeking downhill in the backcountry. In contrast, Tahoe Meadows to Diamond Peak and Tahoe Meadows to Brockway Summit are equally difficult with comparable amounts of downhill, but combine the downhill with more of a "tour."

The South Ridge tour is a wonderful tour for beginner-intermediate skiers.

November 16, 2007

Debut of Ski Tours in the Sierra Nevada. Version 01.01.01 available and includes 43 ski tours. Two of the tours are near Loon Lake off Highway 50 and 41 of the tours are on the Highway 88 corridor west of Carson Pass. Of special interest to those who enjoy hut trips is the Van Vleck Bunkhouse tour near Loon Lake.