Saturday was stormy and windy so we decided to work on taxes and work out at the gym — while Sunday was a true bluebird day and we took advantage of it!

We left the house around 1:30pm and got to the Mt Rose Wilderness area shortly after that. To our surprise, we found awesome powder –yes! although it was so warm, there was still powder from the storm the day before. Some areas were a bit crusty due to the high winds the day before, but for the most part — if you stayed in the trees you got good powder! Spring skiing with powder in late March is just an amazing combo.

Here’s my six-month pregnant belly, enjoying the warm spring day:

Snowboarding at Mt. Rose

It’s been an incredible year for snowboarding. It seems like every other week brings another storm, usually during the week, that dumps fresh powder on the mountains just in time for the weekend.

With all that in mind, last weekend I took my teenage son and some of his buddies to the closest skiing to Reno, which is the Mount Rose Ski Resort, for a little snowboarding. Mt. Rose is only 25 miles southwest of Reno (via U.S. 395 and the Mount Rose Highway).

During this visit, they wanted to check out the Slide Lodge, which is a second base facility for Mt. Rose skiers and boarders located east of the Main Lodge. The Slide Lodge is the gateway to Slide Bowl, a kind of secondary skiing area at Mt. Rose.

The reason they wanted to hit Slide Bowl is that it’s the location of Mt. Rose’s two terrain parks designed specifically for boarders. The parks, called “Doubledown” and “Badlands,” offer a wide variety of boarding features including tables and rails.

“Doubledown” is designed as the primary “go big” course and has a roller, lots of rails, a couple of 40 to 45-foot step downs and a 250-foot table spine. “Badlands” has mostly medium-sized elements and consists of several rails, boxes and rollers, as well as two tables.

While I don’t board, it was fun to watch them race down the runs, goofing on the various features–and eating some snow more than a few times.

With only a brief break for lunch, my son and his pals played on the slopes for most of the day. I saw them catch a bit of air, skate down the rails more than a few times and, in general, have a great time enjoying all the snow we’ve been blessed with in recent months.

I wonder if it will last until Memorial Day?

Of course, another nice thing about Mt. Rose is that it’s affordable. The adult day rate is $54 ($44 for a half day), with the lifts running from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.—-Richard Moreno

The snow just keeps coming! Last week it was a full moon so a few of us ventured out in the backcountry up around Mt Rose Wilderness. The snow was light and deep and beautiful in the moonlight. Couple of days later it snowed again and we were right back out there touring around, dropping in, and having an absolute blast. Here are a couple of pics from Saturday.

No way!

Especially when it has been snowing non-stop for the last I don’t know how many weeks. There is powder everywhere, so getting hurt is not a concern at all!

We went backcountry to the Tamarack Peak area on Saturday and enjoyed the awesome powder. And then again on Sunday with our friends Erik and Michelle who are also expecting a baby!! The snow was a little bit crusty but we still had a blast. Check out our pictures:

The pregnant girls

The six of us

View of Washoe Lake

It’s been years since I went cross-country skiing but with the abundant snow this year it seemed like a good opportunity to give it a try. So last weekend, my teenage son, Hank, and I headed to Tahoe Meadows (at the top of Mt. Rose, about 15 miles south of Reno via State Route 431) for a little Nordic father-son bonding.

Conditions were ideal. The meadow was layered with about four or five feet of packed snow and the skies were bright and sunny. After parking beside the road, we climbed the four-foot berm and set off across the meadow.

Even though I hadn’t skied in a long time, the gliding movements soon came back to me as we plowed through the fresh powder. My son, who downhills and boards, quickly got the hang of it all and was, in no time, easily following the trail.

Since I’m not in the shape I was in 20 years ago when I used to cross-country more regularly, we only stayed on the snow for a short time. But the scenery was magnificent, the powder felt nice and soft under our skis, the smaller moguls were fun to ski down, and it gave us a chance to hang out and talk.

What more could you want on a Saturday afternoon?—Richard Moreno

So have I mentioned that I am 20 weeks pregnant??? But that doesn’t keep us from skiing and getting out every weekend. It’s been a blessing because I have been feeling great and full of energy!

This Saturday we went to Proletariat and had the best run of the season — we drank some mate at the top while enjoying the view, then met another tele guy and shared some stories and mate with him, and then we got to practice some great tele turns on our way back — since the powder was amazing!

Sunday we took our friends Caro and Sam (who are learning how to snowboard) to the Galena Creek Drainage area and we also had a blast. We decided to go there because the area is protected by the trees, so the wind wouldn’t drive us crazy. And that was the case! It was perfect!

Climbing up the mountain

Our friends taking a little break

Me and hubby talking to the belly

Our return trip almost dark (it was around 6pm!)

Boreal Mountain Resort caters to boarders.

A Boreal boarder.

Catching air at Boreal.

Riding a rail.

It’s no surprise that snowboarding is hot. Just look at the recent Winter Olympics. Who were the biggest stars of the games besides the medal winning speed skaters and Tahoe’s slalom queen Julie Mancuso? It was the boarders led by Seth Wescott, Shaun “The Flying Tomato” White, Danny Kass, Hannah Teter, Gretchen Bleiler, and Lindsey Jacobellis.

Fortunately, Reno-Tahoe has plenty of places to shred the slopes including Boreal Mountain Resort, which is home to the region’s only all-mountain terrain park, meaning it offers not only downhill skiing but also lots of snowboarding turf and a sledding area.

For years, Boreal has been one of the Tahoe area’s top snowboard spots. Boarders can ride the resort’s superpipe (with 18.5-foot walls) as well as Jibassic Park, a snowboard park with more than 100 features including rails, jumps and funboxes.

The focus on all things boarder means the resort has something for every skill level. For instance, the Jibassic Park (www.jibassicpark.com) offers small ride ons, medium and large-scale features, a superpipe cutter and more. The park is also very popular with freeriders, which are boarders who kind of surf around the mountains without trying to race or perform technical tricks.

Boreal’s ski and snowboard instructors, available on weekends and holidays, specialize in training first-time and novice skiers and boarders and boast of having taught more than 300,000 beginners over the years.

During a recent visit, it was clear this wasn’t the average ski resort. The slopes had a variety of jumps, mounds and rails for boarders as well as nice stretches of challenging open terrain for the downhill skiers. We saw several folks catch some good air on a few of the jumps. The thing that was most obvious was just how many boarders enjoy Boreal. More than half of those in the lift lines packed a board rather than skis.

Additionally, Boreal has roped off a section of the mountain for sledding. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Playland Sledding Area is open to children who are at least 42 inches tall. Cost is $15 and snow saucers are provided.

Skiers and boarders will find that Boreal has 9 lifts and 41 open runs. The resort’s base elevation is 7,200 feet and summit elevation is 7,700 feet.

Lift ticket prices are $38 for adults, $10 for children (5-12) and free for those under 4 years old. Boreal also has special night rates (it’s one of the few resorts with outdoor lights for night skiing) of $22 for adults, $10 for children, and free for those younger than 4.

The resort’s newest attraction actually has little to do with snow. Earlier this year, Boreal opened an indoor skateboarding bowl. Sessions begin at $5 for 30 minutes.

For more information, go to www.rideboreal.com or call 530-429-3666.