Forest Service Releases Final Decision For Heavenly Mountain Resort Improvements

The USDA Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) issued a final decision for proposed improvements to existing skiing and snowboarding terrain at Heavenly Mountain Resort. Improvements will include selective widening of ski trails, removing trail obstacles and relocation and/or realignment of some portions of existing snowmaking air and water pipelines to improve user experience, maintain user safety, increase energy and water efficiency, and maintain native species.

“Heavenly Mountain Resort is an exemplary partner. Throughout the planning of this project, they have worked alongside our commitment to improve recreation experiences for our visitors,” said Jeff Marsolais, LTBMU Forest Supervisor. “Together, we will continue to work on innovative and unique resource protection measures that meet the needs of the public, while providing world-class recreation on National Forest System lands.”

Ski trail widening to reduce bottlenecks and improve skier flow, will include tree removal and selective boulder relocation on approximately 12 trails, with grading required in two locations to match the widened area to the grade of the existing trail. Due to the widening, any existing snowmaking lines will be relocated to the new edge of the trail. Removal of obstacles, such as boulders, stumps and logs, will take place on 11 trails to improve natural snow surface coverage, improve early season use of those trails, and conserve water used in snowmaking.

The proposal to remove trail obstacles was addressed in the Heavenly Ski Resort Master Plan and includes protection of native plants and revegetation, removal of invasive plants, chipping of large woody debris and existing felled trees, stump grinding, and boulder height reduction. 

Project work could begin as early as spring/summer 2018. The Decision Notice/Finding of No Significant Impact is available at http://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/ltbmu/Heavenly2017.