either shore, or just in northern california in general...so yah

Heavenly and Kirkwood

Kirkwood is number 1 in my book. Challenging terrain, smaller crowds compared to the other resorts, & its relatively cheap.

Second in my book is Alpine Meadows. The terrain is not as challenging as at Squaw, but the ski patrol is a lot more laid back at Alpine. They recognize skiers who can handle themselves & r much more likely to let u ski faster without hassling you. Whereas, at Squaw Valley, they just have too many idiots who think they're rock stars skiing way too fast. So they have to clamp down on that kind of stuff.

Third is Squaw Valley. It has the most varied terrain out of any mountain at Lake Tahoe, & also has some terrific off-slope activities: ice skating, bungee jumping, a couple of good bars & restaurants, etc. Plus, it has one heck of a view of the lake from the top of the mountain.

Fourth on my list would be Heavenly. It has some very good runs, but the crowds r always packed on the slopes. You spend as much time dodging morons as u do actually concentrating on ur run. Beautiful views & good food, but u have to work a lot harder to find the challenging runs.

The rest of the resorts all lump into the same category for me: Sierra at Tahoe, Northstar, Homewood, etc. They're all decent places, but they just do not have the variety of runs that it takes to keep me occupied & having fun all day.