There is a chance for high elevation snow showers for the first weekend of May. The mountain is aiming to stay open in some capacity for skiing through Memorial Day weekend. So there could still be a few coatings of snow yet before we put a final nail in the storm season.
But my weather forecasts/commentary won’t return until the fall, so be sure to use the OpenSnow app, which powers the Palisades weather page, for all of your year-round weather needs.
2024-25 Season Recap:
Fall Forecasts:
During the fall, we were hopeful for a good snowfall season looking at some of the teleconnection pattern forecasts for the season. Those historically, when combined, would have lined up with a forecast for near to above average snowfall for the northern Sierra.
What Actually Happened:
The forecasted La Nina season never materialized and we ended up with an ENSO neutral season with a warmer eastern Pacific than was forecast by the models. If we go back and plug that into the data, along with a few other signals that changed, to see what that would have forecast for the season, it would have reduced us to a slight below average season historically.
Snowfall Totals:
It ended up being an interesting season where the north side of the lake saw near to above average snowfall on the mountains in 5 out of 6 months of the season, but the south side and farther south saw below average snowfall. Palisades picked up 387 inches for the season in total as of 4/30.
That is around 89% of average for the date if you compare the totals from the last 15 seasons. The Central Sierra Snow Lab, about 10 miles to the north, is officially reporting 93% of average compared to the 54 year average going back to 1970.
Even thought 5 out of 6 months saw above average sownfall form Nov-Apr, January only produced 15 inches, or about 18% of average snowfall for the month. That is what dropped the averages for the season. February saw a nice rebound with wetter AR type storms, and March saw some colder storms, and was the biggest month with 97 inches.
Final Thoughts:
I’ve been forecasting for the northern/central Sierra since 2006, and I’ve seen a lot of ups and downs over the years. Really bad seasons, really good seasons, and decent seasons like this one. I think we came out way better than what we could have if the mountain was slightly farther south. I had fun skiing!
It’s been a lot of fun with a lot of memories over the last 15 seasons forecasting for Palisades. I look forward to beginning my 16th season with you next fall and chasing storms together.
See you then… BA
