TODAY’S OVERVIEW: FEBRUARY 16, 2017
The storms moved in early this morning! Precipitation transitioned from rain to snow at the base around 8am this morning. We saw a mix of snowfall and high winds, with some blue skies peeking through throughout the day with up to 8 inches of new snow at our upper elevations.
Squaw Valley
At Squaw Valley we saw very high winds with gusts clocking in at over 115mph at the summit. This caused wind holds on the upper mountain lifts. KT-22, Exhibition, Red Dog Far East, Squaw Creek, First Venture and the Tucker Carpet ran for most of the day, offering some fun skiing and riding.
Video shot this morning by Nick Baron on GoPro. Skier: Andrew Putnam.
Alpine Meadows
Alpine Meadows also saw very high winds, with gusts at the summit clocking in as high as 130mph! Due to the high winds, the day started with only the carpets and Meadow spinning. After winds decreased slightly, Roundhouse opened at 1pm and Hot Wheels opened at 2:45pm for some great afternoon skiing.
Weekend Weather
The National Weather Service Forecast calls for more snow tonight through Friday, snow showers on Saturday, and heavier snow again by Sunday night. We could see a couple more feet of snow in the next few days! Here is the breakdown:
- Tonight: A chance of snow showers, mainly before 10pm, then snow likely after 4am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 27. Breezy, with a south wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 35 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
- Friday: Snow. High near 34. Windy, with a south wind 15 to 20 mph becoming east 25 to 30 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 50 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 5 to 9 inches possible.
- Friday Night: Snow. Low around 30. Windy, with a southeast wind 20 to 30 mph, with gusts as high as 40 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 3 to 7 inches possible.
- Saturday: Snow showers. High near 36. Southwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.
- Saturday Night: A 30 percent chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 25. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
- Sunday: A 40 percent chance of snow. Partly sunny, with a high near 37. Windy. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.
- Sunday Night: Snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 34. Windy.\
Projection for TOMORROW’S OPERATIONS: FEBRUARY 17, 2017
25 lifts are scheduled at Squaw Valley and 13 are scheduled at Alpine Meadows for tomorrow. Snow is in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow, so we could see delayed openings in the morning due to snow safety. It is also possible that high winds will continue to impact operations, and some lifts may be put on wind hold as our crews assess conditions. Please check the following resources for updates tomorrow morning and throughout the day:
CalTrans Road Conditions
We also encourage you to check the CalTrans road conditions to see if your travel route is affected by weather & conditions:
