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Ponderosa

Blue Heavenly, CA

Steepest pitch27°
Vertical778 ft
Length2,580 ft
Average pitch18°
FacesE
Top9,429 ft

Ponderosa drops 778 vertical feet over 2,580 feet of skiing, with a steepest pitch of 27° about 1,730 feet below the top. That's steeper than 86% of the 5,615 blue runs we've measured in North America, and the 62nd steepest of 124 named runs at Heavenly. It faces east.

How well Ponderosa holds snow

Snow preservationPoor

Facing east at an average 18°, Ponderosa gets about 113% of the winter sun that flat ground at Heavenly does, December through March. That's sunnier than 82% of the runs we've measured, and the 13th sunniest named run at Heavenly. Its top sits at 9,430 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.

Ponderosa profile

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

Where it is on the mountain

Runs like Ponderosa elsewhere

Nearby at Heavenly

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.