Sledding at Spooner Summit Trailhead - Toiyabe National Forest

Being the desert dwellers that we are, two of our three kids had never been sledding before this winter. How sad is that?!  Obviously this is a situation that needed to be rectified, so we bought a small toboggan and a couple of discs and headed up the mountain to find some white stuff. It was SO much fun! 

We knew that there is a public sledding hill right where Hwy 50 forks and heads towards South Lake Tahoe, but it's a pretty big hill for our little sledding beginners and has always been pretty crowded when we've driven by. We wanted something a little quieter and easier, so we stopped just short of the fork in the road at the Spooner Summit Trailhead. This ended up being the perfect place for our needs!

 The normal parking lot was not open, but the snow plows had left parking space along the shoulder of the highway where we could easily pull in and access the powder. There were even a couple of porta-potties there in case the need should arise. There are hills all around, so you can pick and choose just what size and steepness you want in your sledding slope. We chose a small hill off the West side of the parking lot and went for it.

 The snow was deep! I sunk in clear up to my hips a couple of times! We found a path compacted by a snowmobile and used that as our sledding course. It made it so much easier to climb back up after each run. We had to be careful about a couple of nearby trees, but we weren't really going fast enough for it to be a serious problem.
After the kids were done sledding we headed up the hill to see Lake Tahoe surrounded by snow, and it was so beautiful! But of course, that place is beautiful no matter what time of year you visit. :)

Essential Details:
Spooner Summit Trailhead
Hwy 50, Carson City NV (Toiyabe National Forest)
Website
***If there has been a recent snow storm you will need snow tires or chains to safely get up and down the mountain. Four-wheel drive would be a good idea!