Skiing great blue runs at Northstar Ski Resort in California is a lot of fun. I am an intermediate skier and don’t like skiing black runs. I spent 4 days skiing at Northstarin February 2024 and greatly enjoyed it. Here are my recommendations for days of fun on the slopes sticking to blue runs only.
Skiing great blue runs at Northstar
Vista Express
There are several fun blue runs off of the Vista Express chair. The Logger’s Loop is a great mellow run with nice views of the mountains and the airport in Truckee. For an extended run, continue down the Woods run all the way to the Village Express chair, or ski to the bottom of Vista Express and ride the chair back up again. Another great run of this chair is Lumbarjack. It’s actually a green run and if your legs are tired, you won’t have to work too hard skiing this one.
Comstock Express
In order to go to the to the top of the mountain, ski to the Comstock lift from the Vista Express chair. While on top, take the West Ridge Run and transition to Luggi’s to get down to the bottom of the lift. If you prefer, from West Ridge, transition to Upper and then Lower Pioneer and ski to the bottom of the Tahoe Zephyr chair. The West Ridge run was my favorite run on the mountain. It was gradual, wide, and offered great views.
Tahoe Zephyr
The Tahoe Zephyr lift is one that I skied the most. The West Ridge run was really enjoyable but I also liked the Northern Lights down to Main Street. I tried the Hoot Owl as well but there were too many moguls at the lower section of the run. I also gave Sodergren’s a try but it wasn’t groomed enough to my liking. Drifter, on the other hand, was a great run. While perhaps a bit on a steeper side, it was easily doable. What’s more, the run takes you to the Backside Express, less busy lift that also offers nice views.
Backside Express
Unfortunately, I didn’t ski anything other than West Ridge to Drifter on the Backside Express. All the other trails were marked as black and I tend to avoid them. I skied West Ridge and Drifter multiple times, though, as they were truly enjoyable.
Martis Express
It was fun to criss-cross the mountain and end up on Martis Express. You can get here from the Zephyr chair or the Backside Express by working your way to the Lookout Bypass. The only blue run off of this chair is the Washoe run. It was definitely the steepest blue run on the mountain, especially on the very top. However, since we had great snow, I was able to make turns and slowly get down to a more mellow part of the slope. Remember that this part of the mountain is not as busy as the other parts, so it’s good to keep it in mind if you want to avoid lines and put in a lot of runs.
Parking
We visited Northstar Ski Resort during the busy President’s Day week. Since we do not like to pay for parking, we parked at the free parking lot, the Castle Peak Lot, and took the shuttle to the Northstar Village. It was easy to do and didn’t take much time at all. Once there, you have a choice of taking the Big Springs Express Gondola or taking the Village Express chair. As I am a bit claustrophobic, I opted for the Village Express lift to get me up the mountain. If you arrive early, the lines won’t be too bad.
Final word
Skiing great blue runs at Northstar was a lot of fun. If you’re planning a ski trip across the West, you can read about other blue runs I have skied here:
* The Best Blue Runs in Park City
* Skiing at Vail. Practical Tips for Intermediate Skiers
* Skiing at Breckenridge: Practical Tips for Intermediate Skiers
* Where to Ski in Colorado: Practical Tips for Intermediate Skiers
