Lifestyle — Nick Menendez

Home base is Las Vegas, but when the snow starts falling I migrate to Lake Tahoe for the winter. Most of what I love doing happens outside — on a mountain, in the ocean, or somewhere down a dirt road.

Skiing

Palisades Tahoe is my home mountain, and winters revolve around it. The deeper obsession is backcountry skiing in the Sierra — skinning up far from the lifts and earning every turn down.

Sunglasses selfie on a snowy road heading into Lamoille Canyon in the Ruby Mountains — Lamoille, NV

Two backcountry skiers traversing a snowy slope at dusk high above Lake Tahoe — Rubicon Peak, Tahoe

Skinning up a snow track through snow-laden Sierra pines, a skier ahead on the skin track — Donner Summit, CA

Standing on a snowy summit with Lake Tahoe and the surrounding peaks in the distance — Granite Peak, Tahoe

Looking up a steep rocky couloir filled with snow toward a sunlit peak — Terminal Cancer Couloir, NV

Two skiers high-fiving in the snow below a spring slalom race course — Palisades, Tahoe

Skinning up a track with Lake Tahoe far below under a deep blue sky — Jake's Peak, Tahoe

Group of skiers posing with a mountain mascot on a sunny groomed run — Mammoth Mountain, CA

Three skiers at a resort summit beside a boundary sign, Lake Tahoe behind — Palisades, Tahoe

Surfing

I surf up and down the California coast, north and south. Once a year I pick somewhere new and chase waves there — Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Baja Mexico so far.

Two surfers carrying boards toward the water beneath Morro Rock on the California coast — Morro Bay, CA

Cross-stepping toward the nose of a longboard down the face of a wave — Popoyo, Nicaragua

Standing on a red-dirt bluff in Baja with a surfboard, the Pacific behind — Baja California, Mexico

Sitting on a longboard in a foggy lineup, grinning between sets — San Onofre, CA

Two surfers walking down a fog-shrouded beach with boards under their arms — Central Coast, CA

Traveling

I spent 2025 traveling all around the world — and it only made the list of places I want to see longer. I try to get somewhere I've never been every year.

Fiery sunset over the rocky Pacific coastline at Nosara — Nosara, Costa Rica

Standing in front of the Colosseum in Rome — Rome, Italy

In front of an alpine lake below snow-capped peaks near Grindelwald — Grindelwald, Switzerland

Pointing at the Great Pyramids of Giza — Giza, Egypt

Holding umbrellas in front of Osaka Castle in the rain — Osaka, Japan

Four friends on horseback on the beach at Popoyo — Popoyo, Nicaragua

The Eiffel Tower lit up gold at night in Paris — Paris, France

Group of five in the courtyard of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul — Istanbul, Turkey

Selfie with an alpaca on the shore of Lake Titicaca — Lake Titicaca, Bolivia

At the Monument to the Discoveries in Lisbon — Lisbon, Portugal

Three friends in front of Mysore Palace in India — Mysore, India

Group selfie in front of the Marble Church in Copenhagen — Copenhagen, Denmark

On Plaza Bolívar before the cathedral in Bogotá — Bogotá, Colombia

In front of a colorful El Tunco surf mural in El Salvador — El Tunco, El Salvador

A couple at the Spanish Steps and Barcaccia fountain in Rome at dusk — Rome, Italy

In Día de los Muertos face paint at a festival in Mexico City — Mexico City, Mexico

Coffee

Roasting and brewing started as a hobby and got out of hand — I'm now in the process of starting a small coffee roasting company.

Checking the drum roaster mid-roast in a brick-walled roastery

Close-up of freshly roasted coffee beans

Latte with latte art on a wooden table beside a pool

Holding a paper cup of latte on a sunny city street

Latte in a black clay cup with cookies, tropical greenery behind

Black coffee in a world-map cup at a cafe

Espresso and a pastry on a granite counter