Tahoe Weather Blog

The current pattern which is marked by weak cold fronts dropping down and leaving us with a few inches of snow and very cold weather is going to change back to a very stormy pattern in about a week.  The first step is a storm to our north (2/21) that will knock our ridge of high pressure considerably further west. That will open the storm door. Next, a series of storms will come into our area getting progressively stronger, notice the ridge way out at sea: Wednesday (2/22) Friday (2/24) Monday (2/27) Wednesday (3/1) This pattern looks similar to late December and if it holds, March comes in like a lion. Here is the forecast total liquid precip for the week starting February 21st: If you are wondering if you are reading that correctly, yes it says 10-12 inches of liquid precip which could translate into 8-15 feet of snow for most of Tahoe. As has been the case this winter, these will be cold storms and as of now it looks like this will be all snow for all Tahoe Resorts and quite a bit o

If it seems like our temperatures have been below average since October, that is because for the most part they have, with few exceptions. That is not going to change anytime soon and we are tracking what could be another major snow event in about 12 days. First, we have several weak, cold systems heading our way, starting tonight (2/10): Temperatures will quickly recover until the next cold front comes in on Tuesday (2/14). Nothing very exciting about this, just a lot of cold air coming down the Eastern Sierra. Temperatures will remain quite cool until about the 21st. Then it appears we have what could be a major pattern change, as a very large and wet storm will shove our ridge of high pressure out in the Pacific and could bring a series of precipitation events to Tahoe. Here is the forecast for late on the 22nd: A lot can change between now and then, but our two favorite weather models are showing this. Stay Tuned ...

Another storm is spinning up as I write this. That storm will deliver moderate snowfall to the mountains and a decent amount of rain to the valleys.  Here is the forecast for Sunday morning. This storm should last through the day and into the evening hours. The heaviest snow will be on the West side of Lake Tahoe: This will be a fast moving storm but has plenty of moisture to work with. Here is the precipitation amount forecast: We are looking at 1-2 feet for Mt. Rose and 2+ feet West of Lake Tahoe above 7,500 feet. The snow level for this system looks to be right at Lake Level. Looking past this storm we will warm up to near average temperatures. There may be a small disturbance around the 11th of February. Stay Tuned ...

We have a cold slider system coming in for Sunday. This system will usher in some arctic air and bring low temperatures near zero in the Sierra and low teens for the valleys.  This will NOT be a big snow maker system. In fact the ECMWF weather model is predicting almost no snow for the Sierra. The above forecast is the GFS weather model.  It will be warm up until Sunday, finally! Then it will take a few days to recover but we may start to see some average temperatures for this time year later in the week. We see no other systems in sight, but we all know that can change. Stay Tuned ...

We have one weak storm left in what has been an amazing storm cycle, even by Tahoe standards. This cycle lasted over 3 weeks and produced close to 20 feet of snow for Mt. Rose. Oops, I am not supposed to forecast what has already happened, but I could not resist.  Late tomorrow night our last storm in this cycle will arrive. Notice the blocking ridge of high pressure to the west. That will cut off any significant moisture tap.  We are looking at 4-8 inches for Slide Mountain and a few flurries for the valley. This is a cold storm and will bring with it some very cold air. That cold air will stick with us until the end of the month when it looks like our next storm cycle will begin: This is still a few weeks out so our confidence is pretty low. But the models do have that west coast ridge of high pressure getting shoved much further west. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know that means the storm door opens. Stay Tuned ...

In about a week (1/17), the metaphorical caboose will pass by the station and high pressure will setup off the California coast which will push the storms north. Between now and then, we still have a series of storms that will wreak even more havoc in California. Having said all that, the reservoirs should be filled and all the gloomy predictions of the world coming to a quick end because you drive a mini-van, will go away for another year or so.  The largest of the remaining storms is poised to slam the Tahoe Area late Friday (1/13 - Yes, Friday the 13th) or early Saturday. That will be followed by another storm and last through most of Monday (1/16). That will bring an end to another epic Tahoe dump. Mother Nature flexing her muscles which are much bigger than our own. We expect that train to get back on the track, the only question is when? Stay Tuned ...

We have not seen precipitation forecasts like this one since 2017. We talked about that transition from La Nina to neutral and felt as though our weather could be effected back in October. Here is what is forecast for the next 2 weeks in the way of precipitation: Yes, many parts of the Western Sierra Crest are forecast to receive 25+ inches of liquid in the next 2 weeks. In the upper elevations, that translates into 20-30 feet of snow. The leeward valleys are looking at nearly 7 inches of rain in the next 2 weeks. While Mt. Rose should receive 10-12 feet of snow. These are mostly warm storms that will start out at very high elevations and come down as the the front passes and pulls in the cooler air. We believe this will be mostly snow for Mt. Rose, but other Tahoe resorts could be looking at major flooding. In addition, all that rain will melt snow and that water will go downhill which will definitely challenge the drainage systems around Reno, Carson City and other valley locations.