Expect Snowy, Windy Week, No Matter Where You Are

We have 3 storms that will have a major impact on Tahoe weather coming in the next week. The mid-week storm is a fairly rare type for Tahoe. However, even at this late date, the models are not in agreement on the amount of precip headed our way. The EC model is much more bullish on precip for the first two storms and the GFS has forecast more precip for storm three.

Storm Timing:
Late Monday, January 13th
Expect a major wind storm in the Sierra starting at noon Monday. The precip should roll in very late on Monday night and should last on/off through most of Tuesday. We expect 6 inches of snow for most of the Sierra including the Carson range out of this first storm. There is a big birthday celebration on Tuesday, that could be blown out, however the winds should begin to die down by noon on Tuesday so you never know.



Late Wednesday, January 15th
Ok, this is the granddaddy of them all, and I am not talking about the Rose Bowl. The NWS has called this storm the biggest of the season thus far. They are not saying it will produce the most precip, but rather it will dig deep into the barometric pressure rating and cause the most havoc. That is because it is coming in very cold and will have a decent moisture tap. That is a rare combination for Tahoe. This storm will have very high winds and produce a decent amount of very light blower snow. That means blizzard conditions in the Sierra and you do not want to be there when this thing hits. The storm will be outta here within 48 hours as it passes through quickly, which will also limit the amount of precip. Depending on the winds, this could produce some of the finest powder skiiing that we have seen in Tahoe for some time. Sven over at Unofficial Rose will have all the ski condition details for you. We expect somewhere between 1-3 feet of light powder.


Sunday January 19th
The next storm finds the models on two completely different pages in both timing and impact. It is almost not worth talking about. GFS has this storm coming late on Monday, while EC has it coming on late Saturday night. This does not look to be a major precip maker and it is slightly warmer.

The models have backed off on the amount of precip we will receive. I think we can realistically expect 2-4 feet of snow in the next week. Our guess is closer to 2 feet than 4 feet.


Stay Tuned ...