Thursday – Friday Weather:
We have two more days of mostly sunny skies with highs in the 50s to near 60 degrees at lake level.
Saturday Storm:
The latest model runs show showers reaching the mountain Saturday morning with steadier precipitation pushing in later in the morning into the afternoon and evening.
If these forecasts hold, this is turning out to be a pretty amazing classic winter storm in May, a strong snowstorm by May standards. With the storm moving west to east pushing a cold front through the winds will be more favorable for lift and spillover with strong southwest winds, gusty up to 90-100+ mph over the ridges Saturday. That should close several ski lifts.
High temperatures will occur in the morning with highs in the 30s on the mountain and 40s near the base, but falling through the afternoon as the cold front moves through with a period of heavier snow. Snow levels start up near 7500-8000 ft. Saturday morning but fall to the base by late morning/midday, and then below 4000 ft. by later Satuday night!
The latest model runs have all increased precipitation forecasts with a range of 1.1 – 1.8 inches falling near the mountain. The model average this morning is around 1.5 inches by Sunday morning! By Sunday morning we could see up to 7-12 inches of snow near the base, and 11-18 inches on the upper mountain.
I’ll be updating over the next few days to be sure that nothing changes as we watch what could be a big snowstorm by May standards move through. Temperatures drop into the 20s Saturday night, so Sunday morning could be a fair powder day, especially for May!
Sunday Weather:
Partly sunny skies with scattered snow showers into Sunday with highs only in the 30s. The winds will drop off making for a better day for skiing.
Long-Range Forecast:
The cool trough hangs around the West next week. The storm track should shift to our north with mostly sunny skies most days. But highs may only be in the 40s on the mountains and 50s near the base.
The long-range models continue to show high-pressure building in near CA during the 2nd week of May. That should bring some milder weather as we go towards mid-month.
BA
