Fun for Babies & Toddlers

& PHOTOS BY LEAH PIVIROTTO

I’m drinking my kid’s hot chocolate, wondering if I subconsciously packed it for myself. I hold out a steaming, sugary cup when he walks to the top of the sled hill. He brushes it aside and collapses into his sled, drifting down the hill, pretending to sleep.

I think that’s “thee-teen” for “leave me alone, I’m playing.” So instead, I drink the four servings of hot chocolate and huddle with the rest of the parents. My baby girl catnaps in her sled; I have nothing left to do but enjoy watching young kids play at full tilt.

It’s never too early to introduce your kids to classic cold-weather activities. The noble arts of gracefully falling downhill and twinkle-toeing on ice, swears them into the alliance of winter lovers.

A word on planning: In the adventure world, it is good style to identify all your participants’ ability levels and plan accordingly. I’m sharing my list of activities for my whole family. Find details on these local activities in the Winter Family Fun chart in this edition or at TheTahoeWeekly.com/winter.

Ice Skating

NORTH SHORE

NORTHSTAR (530) 562-1010 | northstarcalifornia.com

Open air rink. Free access.

TAHOE CITY WINTER SPORTS PARK (530) 583-1516 | wintersportspark.com

Ice skating & rentals. Clubhouse.

OLYMPIC VALLEY RESORT AT SQUAW CREEK (530) 584-4024

Ice & hockey skate rentals available. Call for schedule.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE EDGEWOOD TAHOE (888) 769-1924 | edgewoodtahoe.com

Open air rink. Daily 4-9 p.m. Rentals available.

HEAVENLY VILLAGE (530) 542-4230 | theshopsatheavenly.com

Open air rink.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE ICE ARENA (530) 542-6262 | cityofslt.com

Indoor facility open year-round.

TRUCKEE TRUCKEE RIVER REGIONAL PARK (530) 582-7720 | tdrpd.com

Skate rentals, ice dancing & hockey lessons.

SLEDDING & TUBING

EAST SHORE

SPOONER LAKE (775) 831-0494

State park open for snow play. Bring equipment. Parking fee.

HOPE VALLEY AREA CARSON PASS (209) 295-4251

Highway 88 near Carson Pass. Bring equipment.*

HOPE VALLEY (775) 882-2766

Highway 88 at Blue Lakes Road. Bring equipment.*

MEISS MEADOW (209) 295-4251

Highway 88 near Carson Pass. Bring equipment.*

NORTH SHORE

INCLINE VILLAGE

On Fairway Blvd., next to the Chateau.Bring equipment.

NORTH TAHOE REGIONAL PARK (530) 546-0605 | northtahoeparks.com

End of National Avenue off Hwy 28. Rentals not available.

TAHOE CITY WINTER SPORTS PARK (530) 583-1516 | wintersportspark.com

Sledding & cross-country trails. Rentals available. RSVP required.

OLYMPIC VALLEY

OLYMPIC VALLEY PARK placer.ca.gov

Free snowplay area. Bring equipment.

PALISADES TAHOE (530) 452-4511 | palisadestahoe.com

Tubing area. Disco Tubing with DJ & lasers at night.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE

ADVENTURE MOUNTAIN (530) 659-7217 | adventuremountaintahoe.com

Machine-groomed sledding, tubing & snowplay.

ECHO LAKE (530) 644-2324

Highway 50 at Echo Lake Road. Bring equipment.*

HANSEN’S RESORT (530) 544-3361 | hansensresort.com 400-foot-long groomed tube run on Ski Run Blvd.

HEAVENLY skiheavenly.com

Tubing at top of gondola with four lanes.

KAHLE PARK (775) 586-7271 | douglascountynv.gov Off Highway 207. Bring equipment.

SAWMILL POND

On Lake Tahoe Blvd. Bring equipment.

SIERRA-AT-TAHOE (530) 659-7453 | sierraattahoe.com

Lift-accessible tubing lanes, snow play and sledding area.

TAHOE SNOWMOBILE TUBING (530) 542-3294 | tahoesnowmobiles.com

At Tahoe Paradise & Stateline, Nev. Reserve online.

TAYLOR CREEK (530) 543-2600

Hwy. 89, north of Camp Richardson Road. Bring equipment.*

TUBETAHOE (530) 600-2304 | tubetahoe.com

500 feet of machine-groomed tubing lanes in Meyers.

TRUCKEE BOREAL MOUNTAIN rideboreal.com

RSVP in advance. Night sessions available.

DONNER SKI RANCH donnerskiranch.com Tubing hills with moving carpet.

DONNER SUMMIT (530) 587-3558

South side of I-80, Castle Peak exit. Bring equipment.*

KINGVALE RESORT (530) 427-5090 | kingvaleresort.com Bring sleds or sleds available to buy.

NORTHSTAR CALIFORNIA northstarcalifornia.com TART Tubing lanes in the Village.

SODA SPRINGS skisodasprings.com Up to 10 lanes. RSVP in advance.

SUGAR RUSH TUBING sugarbowl.com 10-lane tubing area at Sugar Bowl.

TAHOE DONNER (530) 587-9437 | tahoedonner.com

At Trout Creek Recreation Center. Reserve online.

YUBA PASS (530) 994-3401

Highway 49 at Yuba Pass. Bring equipment.*

WEST SHORE

BLACKWOOD CANYON (530) 543-2600

Sno-Play area off Hwy. 89. Bring equipment.*

GRANLIBAKKEN (530) 581-7533 | granlibakken.com Machine-groomed snow play area. Reserve online.

SLEDDING & TUBING

Some sled hills have height requirements that might preclude little ones. All the areas listed here do not. Plus, these slopes are established, often-groomed runs with safe parking areas and some include a lift to the top of the hill.

South Shore

Heavenly Lake Tahoe | On weekends, a mini-tubing area is open at the top of the gondola.

Tube Tahoe | Ages 3 to 5 must ride in a tube with a paying adult.

Hansen’s Resort | Age 4 and younger tube free when accompanied by paying adult.

Adventure Mountain | The highest elevation tubing area in the region at 7,400’ includes a snow play area.

Sawmill Pond | Free with a gentle slope.

Sierra-at-Tahoe | Blizzard Mountain offers two lift-accessible tubing lanes (with tow ropes) and snow play area.

North Shore

North Tahoe Regional Park | Small kid sled hill located at entrance, across from the kiosk. Bring your sled.

Tahoe City Winter Sports Park | Reserve spots online; sled provided.

Granlibakken Tahoe | Snow play area and saucer sled included in price, age 3 and younger sled for free.

Truckee

Donner Ski Ranch | Tubes provided and moving carpet.

Kingvale Resort | Bring your own sled (no tubes).

Northstar California | Kids sled. You watch from beside the fire.

Tahoe Donner Snowplay | Kids under 36 inches tall must be accompanied by an adult.

Truckee

Northstar California | Access is free if you have your skates. Skate rentals are available. Open daily from 12 to 9 p.m. and there’s fire pits.

Truckee River Regional Park | Offering public skating and rentals.

Tahoe City

Ice skating

Stepping onto the ice with blades under your feet for the first time can feel as wobbly as re-learning how to walk. But mastering the glide gets addictive and boosts a kid’s confidence. Ice skating is accessible to everyone, even if your participation maxes out at sitting on the sidelines and heckling.

Tahoe City Winter Sports Park | Reserve spots online. Rentals and learning equipment are available. Enjoy the hot chocolate from Café Zenon.

South Shore

Heavenly Village Ice Rink | Open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. $20 for adults, $15 for children (ages 4 to 12) and $5 off if you bring your skates.

Tahoe Ice Arena | Full-service indoor skating rink, NHL-sized sheet of ice, locker rooms, snack bar, retail store, arcade and party rooms.

Sno-Parks

Sno-Parks give children a rugged winter experience. So, I use them as an act of reciprocity between my kids and me. Our adventures look like this: I cross-country ski with a pulk sled packed with them, a picnic and toys (Read: get exercise.). Then, we hang out in a private area where my kids get unstructured outdoor playtime (Read: freedom), all with the security of a plowed parking lot and restrooms at some locations.

Permits are required to park and can be purchased online for $15 per day or $40 for season passes. Visit bit.ly/ ca_snoparks for details and a list of local vendors.

Sno-Parks are located at Blackwood Canyon, Donner Summit, Yuba Pass, Echo Lake, Taylor Creek, Carson Pass, Hope Valley, Iron Mountain, Meiss Meadow. n