Saturday – Sunday:
Saturday & Sunday we expect mostly sunny skies with highs into the 50s at the base and 40s up top. The winds look to be lighter through Saturday. Sunday we expect increasing southwest winds with ridgetop gusts up to 50-60+ mph, possibly affecting a few upper mountain lifts.
Monday:
Monday we should stay dry during the day with partly sunny skies and increasing clouds later in the day. Ridgetop winds could increase to 70-80+ mph from the southwest, which could continue to affect some upper mountain lift operations. Highs cool into the 40s at the base and 30s up top.
Monday Night – Tuesday Night Snow Showers:
By Monday night a large trough digs into the West through Wednesday bringing in colder air. Snow showers are expected to move in sometime Monday evening bringing a few-several inches of snow overnight. Then scattered snow showers are possible Tuesday into Tuesday night, with some breaks of sun possible during the day on Tuesday between showers.
Highs dip into the 30s for Tuesday with 20s up top. Ridgetop winds from the WSW could gust up to 30-40+ mph. The snow levels could start out near the base Monday evening and then fall well below the base. They could rise to near the base during the day Tuesday before dropping well below again Tuesday night.
Most of the snow is expected to fall by Tuesday morning with light amounts possible Tuesday – Tuesday night from the scattered snow showers. Here is the updated snowfall forecast for the potential snowfall totals by early Wednesday morning.
- 1-4 inches at the base.
- 2-5 inches at mid-mountain elevations.
- 3-6 inches up top.
Wednesday – Saturday:
The latest model runs are trending the next system moving through on Wednesday farther north and missing the Tahoe basin. We should remain cold with highs in the 30s along with partly-mostly sunny skies and lighter winds.
Thursday through Saturday we should see mostly sunny skies and warming high temperatures. Highs could warm into the 40s for Thursday and Friday, near 50 degrees at the base on Friday, and then possibly into the 50s for Saturday the 22nd.
Long-Range:
Another trough could dig in over the West from around Sunday the 23rd through the 26th. That could cool temperatures a little and could allow some weak weather systems to move through northern CA at times. We’ll continue to watch the trends to see if any stronger systems could show up that could bring accumulating snow to the mountain.
Beyond the 26th, the long-range models suggest that weak high pressure could build in over the West through the end of April. That could bring a drier and milder pattern if strong enough, or if weak then weak systems could still move through the region at times.
BA
