What a Mess! 11,000 Foot Snow Levels + Heavy Precip = Major Flood Risk

We have an excellent snow pack in the Sierra. Ideally, we would like that to slowly melt away. However, we have a major storm coming in, bringing with it tropical rains that will push snow levels over 10,000 feet for most of the event.

If you are one of those people that are scared to death of drought, then you will love this:



When we reach April, the rainy season is mostly behind us. Yes, in the past we have seen storms in April, but not like this, not that I can remember. We are talking about 10+ inches of rain for parts of Northern California, 4-6 inches for the Carson Range, 2 inches for the leeward foothills and perhaps an inch in the valley. Snow levels for most of this event will stay above 10,000 feet. Not until the very end will some colder air get forced in and bring snow levels down, but by then most of the rain will have fallen.

With all that moisture falling in the mountains melting tons of snow it only has one place to go; DOWN.

If you live in a flood prone area, seek the NWS website and find out just how bad it is going to be. They are very concerned over there and rightfully so.

After a short break on Sunday and Monday, we have a couple of more storms coming in. These storms are much colder with snow levels around 7,000 feet. The first shows up on Tuesday (4/10) morning:


Then a slightly colder storm follows right on it's heels early Thursday morning (4/12):


These storms are still about a week out, but my confidence is pretty high for both.

The storm coming for Friday and Saturday is coming, no doubt about it, so get ready especially if you live in a flood prone area.

Stay Tuned ...