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South Face

Black diamond Alpine Meadows, CA

Steepest pitch34°
Vertical520 ft
Length1,109 ft
Average pitch28°
FacesSE
Top8,327 ft

South Face drops 520 vertical feet over 1,109 feet of skiing, with a steepest pitch of 34° about 940 feet below the top. That's steeper than 80% of the 4,740 black diamond runs we've measured in North America, and the 63rd steepest of 132 named runs at Alpine Meadows. It faces southeast.

How well South Face holds snow

Snow preservationPoor

Facing southeast at an average 28°, South Face gets about 137% of the winter sun that flat ground at Alpine Meadows does, December through March. That's sunnier than 95% of the runs we've measured, and the 6th sunniest named run at Alpine Meadows. Its top sits at 8,330 feet.

Angled toward the low winter sun, it bakes: powder turns heavy soon after a storm, and in spring it softens early in the day and refreezes hard overnight. Shading from ridges and trees isn't counted yet.

South Face profile

under 25°25–35°35–45°45°+ Hover to follow the line on the map.

Where it is on the mountain

Runs like South Face elsewhere

Nearby at Alpine Meadows

Measured by ZRankings from 1-meter USGS lidar. Steepest pitch is the steepest stretch of about 50 vertical feet along the skiable line. Run lines come from OpenStreetMap and can sit a little off the skied path.