Diamond Peak, Once Ski Incline

The ski runs on the mountain above town are known today as Diamond Peak, but generations of locals still call this place by its original name, Ski Incline. The resort was created in nineteen sixty six by an Austrian ski consultant named Luggi Foeger, hired by the developers building the new community of Incline Village. Remarkably, the resort went up quickly, opening its doors in November of nineteen sixty six.

Snowmaking mattered here. Ski Incline is remembered as one of the early western resorts to make its own snow, a bet on technology that helped it survive dry winters when other areas struggled. Later an expansion brought a new name, Diamond Peak, a nod to the black diamond symbol that marks the most advanced ski runs, and a newer chairlift pushed higher up the mountain, adding steeper runs near the summit.

From the top, skiers get one of the finest lake views of any resort at Tahoe, the whole cobalt basin spread out below. Owned by the local community improvement district, Diamond Peak remains a friendly, family oriented mountain in an area better known for its wealth.