If you want to make the most of a backcountry ski trip to Tahoe, this map will be your ultimate information source. The areas covered in the map include the Mount Rose Wilderness and the areas around Truckee from Castle Peak all the way down to the northern border of Squaw Valley (see zoomable map below for full area of coverage).
Includes ski routes on:
- Mt. Rose
- Castle Peak
- Tamarack Peak
- Relay Peak
- Donner Peak
- Silver Peak
- and many more!
Route information, including suggested approaches and descents, is marked on a large scale 1:25,000 map, so it’s easy to stay on track. Like all Backcountry Ski Maps, the Lake Tahoe: North map is accompanied by a self-contained field-guide containing detailed descriptions and photos of some of the most worthy descents – so you can spend less time looking up information and more time skiing!
Descents of all varieties – from killer couloirs to wide open bowls to perfectly spaced glades – are all covered, so you can find your perfect line whether this is your first or your thousandth day in the Tahoe backcountry.
Features:
- More than 100 descents ranging from classics to rarely-skied lines
- Suggested ascent routes to get you up the hill as efficiently as possible
- Field-guide to the best descents complete with color photos
- Waterproof, tear-resistant so you never have to worry about damaging your map
- Fits in your pocket – the map folds down to 4.25″ x 9″
- Highly detailed with 40ft contour lines
- Easily readable with a 1:25,000 scale
** Please note that digital maps do NOT include the color photos or route descriptions included in the paper maps. You’ll need to download the Avenza app to use the digital versions of our Backcountry Ski Maps – they are not viewable on a PC or elsewhere outside of the Avenza app. **
Covered Areas
Kathy K. –
Helpful to send a screenshot to friends so we know where to meet
Dane Worthington –
Really like them and the info about the “runs” in that area. Have you all seen FatMaps? Consider using their mapping vs Venza?
Jake Hudson –
The digital map is great. Makes one wonder if they need a paper map. Thank you, very pleased.
Craig –
The key to the candy store!
Anonymous –
I wish there were a few more lines; this seems to cover mostly steep terrain. I do love having the digital and paper versions. Most of these I have done or know about but good to find some new!
Brian Thom –
The hard copies are nice. And the digital ones work easily as well. My expectation was that I’d be able to start breaking into some new zones that I know nothing about, and then learn more with experience. The maps are prefect for that. Worth every penny.
Suzanne –
Great map! I’m glad someone is finally putting this together. Thanks for making it available to Avenza too. A general comment for all the maps… I would like to see more place names on the map. Ridges, mountains, descents. Gracias!!!!
Eli –
An absolutely invaluable resource for those venturing out of bounds around Tahoe!
Douglas DeVore –
They worked great!
Katherine Hill –
I ordered a digital copy. Not a copy to use in an app; I wanted a PDF digital version for reference for work. Totally wasted my money
Jamin Horn –
Useful maps super easy to navigate with and nice descriptions of the most interesting / best runs included with photos.
Chris Noe –
I would give 5 stars if they were printed on heavier paper like a Harrison map
Justin Barham –
Routes/approach could be more obvious
Nathan Ranney –
great map
Matt H. –
It’s great to find maps at this scale with easy to read routes and distances. Highly recommend picking one up.
Ryan Libbey –
Really wish the printed version incorporated a slopemap
Ian Mclens –
Easy to use, accurate and easy to navigate
Ken M. –
Would Love integration w All Trails & Gaia GPS for more efficient access to trails and better on trail interaction with route selection.
Erik Johnson –
these maps are incredible! the level of precision is unmatched by anything I’ve seen or used.
Dean Schaecher –
Maps are great, but the app is hard to use
Brooke –
Great maps, and thanks for supporting Savy!
Erin S. –
Super helpful
Ian –
I’m new to the game, and these maps are comprehensive, easy to read and gave me the confidence to get out (safely) to the backcountry.
Bill M. –
These maps are awesome. The few routes that I’ve already done are described well and accurately mapped. I would like to see “slope angle shading” on the physical maps like the app shows. On the app, there’s no key so I can’t tell what slopes angles correspond to what colors. I gotta get out more…
Sarah Jakober –
Great resource for common objectives in the area
Jesse G. –
This requires some weird app to use making it unusable for me.
David S. –
Great map
kenneth marcroft –
Stuck in front of a computer? I went out to the backcountry today!! The maps are sick thank you.
John C. –
You did not go far enough South…there is great skiing out of Alpine Meadows, in Ward Canyon and Blackwood Canyon, among other things. And Alpine allows backcountry access (e.g. to Nat Geo Bowl) from the resort boundaries, unlike Squaw Valley.
evanderkloot –
Hi John, since we’re limited to what can fit on a map, we have to draw the line somewhere, which unfortunately does leave some great options out on each map – if we extended each map to the limits of the good skiing, we’d just have to make one non-portably huge map of the Sierra! That being said, our Lake Tahoe: The Best of the Rest map covers the area between the Tahoe: North and Tahoe: Southwest maps, including Blackwood and Ward Canyons. It’s worth checking that out if you’re looking for more options in that area and others outside the boundaries of our paper maps!
William –
The maps are great and delivery was super speedy!
Charlie –
Not a fan how it doesn’t scale with the apps zooming. It’s a set number of pixels and detail and contour line separation, which is perfect for a map, when you have the whole thing in front of you, but not ideal when you have to zoom and scan to particular areas. Also it would be GREAT if your maps were compatable with Garmin or Gaia (preferably Garmin) so we could download them as an overlay on the watch or inreach and follow them from there. Currently, the one app that is available is really not a very powerful app and doesn’t have a lot of transferrable features to other apps (Garmin Basecamp, Strava, etc.). Would be most useful if the map either could overlay on these more popular apps, or if you could export gtx files of the routes after you purchase them.
This is a lot of personal preference, if I’m the only one, it’s not as big of a deal, but I do believe there’s a big opportunity here to expand/improve to make these maps even better than they are.
Craig –
Great map, super helpful to have it on my phone and be able to look at my location in real time.
Jordan Degen –
Great haven’t used it yet but it’s greatest use is safety. Too many people head into the BC relying on electronics so great to have something to stash in your pack that always works. Also great for post BC beers when you and you crew can gather around the table and go over the next day’s adventure.
Tristan –
Good bits without giving away the adventure
Anonymous –
Great resource for backcountry skiing. Easy to read and navigate.
Anonymous –
Map looks great. I haven’t been out to use it yet because winter has deserted Northern California.
Anonymous –
These maps seemed to be on the pricey side, but then I received them and I see why. They’re really more like guidebooks in map form, with lots of useful information in addition to the maps. Highly recommended.
Vince P. –
See my review for the Carson Pass map. Simply stated: these maps are awesome and incredibly useful, particularly the digital version!!!
Scott –
I would have preferred for this map to include the backcountry near Alpine Meadows such as Grouse Rock.
evanderkloot –
Hey Scott, just FYI that terrain is included on our Tahoe: The Best of the Rest map!
Scott –
Thanks, I’ll check it out!
Scott –
Thanks, I’ll check it out!
Anonymous –
Love the map. Really want the ability to view on desktop to plan before the trip
Anonymous –
1. Slope shading in electronic maps is very good and useful for route planning.
2. Coverage between maps is incomplete. I bought Lake Tahoe North and Lake Tahoe South expecting map coverage for a ski tour starting in the North and ending in the South. There is a big gap that is not mapped.
3. Route planning is tedious in the app. Option to snap-to marked routes would be helpful.
4. Exporting and importing data could be more user-friendly.
5. Routes are limited to the most popular routes. I bought the maps for route planning on less well-known routes.
Charlie C. –
Used the digital version yesterday to help find a sweet, new zone near Benson! Worth it immediately
Tim M. –
Very good map, well-detailed.
Mike –
Love the map, only wish it extended a bit farther south. There is a gap on your maps between squaw and rubicon or so.
Ken G. –
Just wow. I’ve ski toured in North Tahoe for six seasons so I was hoping to find a handful of new runs. My expectations were blown away. This map has reminded me of tours that I had skied and forgotten about, and has literally dozens of tours I’ve never heard of as well. I’m psyched!
Loren –
Most of this information is available for free from sites like Caltopo. But it is a nice wall poster nonetheless. Too bad I can’t view it on my desktop since the electronic version is app only.
Eddy van der Kloot –
Hi Loren, I’m sorry to hear that you’re not happy with your new map. North Tahoe is one of the more well-explored areas around, but we put in thousands of hours of work to make sure that this map (like all of our maps) includes both the classic lines (which you can naturally find lots of information about online), and rarely skied lines, like those in Coldstream Canyon or Gray Creek (which we haven’t been able to find any other beta on anywhere on the internet). Unfortunately Avenza does not allow maps to be viewed on desktop at the moment, but we’ve opened a discussion with them to try to get this supported in the future. Would it be alright to send you an email so we can learn a bit more about your disappointment? You’re the first person we’ve heard from in over a thousand map sales who isn’t happy with the information provided, so we’d love to get your input and see how we can improve our maps even further in the future!
Eduard –
Fantastic Map. Can’t say enough good things about the information provided in this map. Even being a local with many years of backcountry skiing, I was pleased to find a lot of routes I never thought to take or descents I didn’t even consider. There’s no question it’s worth the cost, but there is one flaw that made me a bit disappointed. I find the thickness of the maps to be inadequate. I have many waterproof maps, but this one just seems much thinner and sensitive. If I could ask for one thing, please make these maps more durable
Eddy van der Kloot –
Hi Eduard, thanks for the purchase and review. It’s great that you found some new lines and zones despite being a local – that’s always what we’re hoping for! We’re sorry to hear that the paper was thinner than you expected. Did you have an actual issue with durability or was it just that the paper seems thin? We’ve tested in various conditions with various paper thicknesses (and even just attempted to rip the maps) and chose this one based on the fact that it was found to be a great combination of strong and light. We haven’t heard of any map tears yet but, if you did have a map tear (or if you’d like to comment further) shoot us an email through our contact form (https://backcountryskimaps.com/contact/) and we’ll make sure to set things right!
Andrew –
easy to understand, nice supplement to other resources