Donner Ski Ranch Makes Tough Decision on Closing Day

Originally posted on Powder | By Ian Greenwood | Last updated May 7, 2025 2:04 PM ET

Donner Ski Ranch, one of the last still-operating ski areas in the Lake Tahoe, California, region, will likely end its skiing and snowboarding operations following a planned opening on May 10 and May 11, 2025 due to rising temperatures, and a rapidly dwindling snowpack.

Once Donner Ski Ranch closes, Palisades Tahoe will be the only place to ride the lifts and ski around Lake Tahoe.

While Palisades Tahoe is larger and more well-known, Donner Ski Ranch has an edge over the neighboring destination: affordability. Several deals are available to skiers who visit the smaller ski area during its closing weekend.

Adult lift tickets are discounted to $69 at Donner Ski Ranch. For anyone who has a 2024-2025 season pass to another ski resort, they’re even cheaper, only costing $25. Finally, moms ski and ride free Sunday, May 11, in observance of Mother's Day.

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“We’d love to see you this Saturday and Sunday to bring this great season to a close with some epic spring skiing and riding!” Donner Ski Ranch wrote in the social media post.

The impending closure comes after Donner Ski Ranch announced that it would adhere to a somewhat unusual late-season operating plan.

Rather than setting a fixed closing date in advance, the ski area asked local skiers and snowboarders to vote with their feet and determine how long the chairlifts would keep spinning.

“DSR will be open weekends only … until there is no snow or no interest, IT’S ALL UP TO YOU!” the ski area wrote on social media, explaining the plan. This spring, it seems a lack of snow arrived before skiers and snowboarders gave up on Donner Ski Ranch.

Palisades Tahoe, meanwhile, plans to remain open daily through May 26. Only one more ski resort in California, Mammoth Mountain, will offer skiing and riding on Memorial Day weekend (Mammoth's website does note that the resort will remain open until "at least" Memorial Day, perhaps hinting at the possibility of a season extension).

Outside the Golden State, the ski season will continue beyond May at a small handful of other ski areas and resorts, like Timberline Lodge, Oregon, and Beartooth Basin, Wyoming. If you don’t mind earning your turns, there's always the backcountry, too.

This article first appeared on Powder and was syndicated with permission.

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