How is The Bay Area for someone who likes skiing?

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by DMenscha

Except you wouldn't get there through Tahoe from the Bay Area unless you were stark raving mad.

Even if you were in South Shore to start with, I wouldn't fancy going up and over Luther and Carson Passes in spite of what Kirkwood's marketing department thinks.

It's usually not that bad. My cousin lives up in Zephyr Cove north of Stateline and the drive to Kirkwood over Carson and Luther isn't really any worse than the drive directly to the west is going to be on the same day.

As far as Kirkwood being a Tahoe resort--yes, you don't have to drive near Tahoe to get there from the west, though at the same time, it's close enough from South Lake that it's considered a South Tahoe resort. It's the same way that Sugar Bowl is considered a Tahoe-area resort, yet you can reach it from 80 without going close to Tahoe.

In another way though, the slightly longer distance from Tahoe itself--as well as the fact that it feels more remote than Squaw or Northstar--has at least allowed it to feel a little less crowded and with less of the really clueless skiers you find at some other resorts. That's why I always loved Kirkwood when I lived in Northern California--good steep slopes and no BS...

[traveller123]

Thanks for the helpful advice Deezus.
TO ALL: I was thinking of buying a home in the east bay area - near the city, but (i verified on google maps) significantly closer to the ski resorts. How are the towns of Orinda and Danville?

[sav858]

Originally Posted by traveller123

Thanks for the helpful advice Deezus.
TO ALL: I was thinking of buying a home in the east bay area - near the city, but (i verified on google maps) significantly closer to the ski resorts. How are the towns of Orinda and Danville?

Wealthy and exclusive. I feel Orinda is more rural and it also is closer to SF/Oak and has a BART station for better access. Weather is cooler than Danville as it gets more fog. Both have top notch schools, Danville's downtown is slightly bigger, both nice but expensive communities.

Orinda would be your best bet for access to the City or Oakland/Berekely, it's only 10 minutes max farther when going to Tahoe compared to Danville. I do like the warmer weather in Danville more but Orinda is still nice and it really is quick to get to SF/Oak/Berk compared to Danville. If I had to choose between the two I'd go with Orinda as long as my home wasn't too far in the hills. Those windy rural roads in Orinda can be a pain imo to get to the freeway.

[gone down south]

Originally Posted by DMenscha

Except you wouldn't get there through Tahoe from the Bay Area unless you were stark raving mad.

Even if you were in South Shore to start with, I wouldn't fancy going up and over Luther and Carson Passes in spite of what Kirkwood's marketing department thinks.

No, you'd take the direct route, but for people coming from the Bay Area you'd still say you were "going to Tahoe for the weekend".

[tstieber]

Originally Posted by traveller123

Thanks for the helpful advice Deezus.
TO ALL: I was thinking of buying a home in the east bay area - near the city, but (i verified on google maps) significantly closer to the ski resorts. How are the towns of Orinda and Danville?

I'd probably prefer Danville myself. Danville is larger and has a bigger variety of housing stock, while Orinda is mostly older homes (post-war ranchers, not so much interesting architecture). I do really like Orinda's Wilder neighborhood near the Caldecott tunnel, although it's extremely expensive. Danville's downtown is also much more bustling than Orinda's, and there's just generally more day-to-day infrastructure. Orinda feels cut off and sleepy by comparison. I also much prefer the consistent sunshine and warmer weather in Danville, compared to Orinda's frequent morning and evening overcast from the bay.

The only thing I'll give Orinda over Danville is its proximity to San Francisco and Berkeley, if you're interested in spending much time going to theater and such. Living in Danville will add a good twenty minutes to that drive, which can make the difference between going and not going sometimes.

As a compromise, I'd look at Lafayette. It's just one city farther inland from Orinda, has a lot more going on downtown, with lots of nice independent restaurants (Chow, Postino, Pizza Antica, Yankee Pier, Uncle Yu's, Metro, etc), Whole Foods, La Boulange, Peet's Coffee, Starbucks, Chipotle, and some old-school spots that have been there for decades, like Millie's (breakfast joint), Papillon (coffee), and the Cake Box. It's like a small town that's grown up but hasn't really changed at the same time. You can almost identical access to SF, but you're also closer to Walnut Creek's downtown, which is fantastic, plus you get warmer weather than Orinda, but not as hot as Danville. There's also Lafayette Reservoir, which is great for walking, running, and biking, and there is a huge athletic club as well. So for the best of both worlds, I'd vote Lafayette.