A blizzard warning has been extended until 4 a.m. Monday as mountain communities in the Sierra Nevada attempt to dig out from the biggest snowstorm of the year.
Up at 6,700 feet of elevation near the Tahoe Donner ski resort, Dimitris Sweeney and his brother-in-law Cole Heer, both of San Jose, were still digging to free their SUV from five feet of snow after toiling for an hour and a half Sunday morning. The pair was racing against time to get in as much skiing as possible at Northstar ski resort, which had but three runs open by noon. However, the lingering Lake Tahoe blizzard made timing for their returns home uncertain.
“Fingers crossed I’ll be able to leave Wednesday,” said Sweeney, 25, a web designer scheduled to return to work Thursday.
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The Reno National Weather Service originally expected its warning to lapse at 10 a.m. Sunday, but the storm has persisted longer than expected. Although meteorologists say the early models held up pretty well in terms of predicting intensity, the storm is not yet over, and forecasters are highly discouraging mountain travel, which they are calling “extremely dangerous to impossible.” Strong winds and additional snow showers are expected through the evening.
Heer, a U.S. Air Force pilot, 29, said he had originally planned to drive back to San Jose next Thursday. With more snow in the forecast for the coming week, he’s now considering hitting the road “whenever there’s a gap to get home,” he said.
As of now, there’s not much of an opportunity. Interstate 80 is closed indefinitely in both directions, with motorists being turned away at the foot of the mountains. A snow slide early Sunday morning closed US Highway 50 at Meyers Road for about an hour after the small avalanche buried the road under a few feet of snow. Although the road was quickly cleared, the event underscored official’s travel warnings.
“Even where roads aren’t closed, traffic can still be hazardous with all this snow and wind,” said Sarah Purdue, a meteorologist with NWS Sacramento.
Snow totals across the mountains have so far met or exceeded expectations, and mountain communities that were just a month ago at a serious snow deficit are now all but buried. Meteorologists say colder air from a system off the Gulf of Alaska brought in more moisture from the Pacific, which contributed to the especially high snow totals.
The Soda Springs Cal Trans station on Sunday Morning was reporting 76 inches of snow over a 72-hour period. Yuba Pass was at 72 inches, Tahoe/Donner hit 62, and Mount Rose topped 80 inches.
Bay Area friends Frank McGorman and Michael Shields came up to the Lake Tahoe region Wednesday night because they knew the blizzard was coming and they planned to ski plentiful new snow. But too much of a good thing meant nearly all resort skiing was shut down, so on Sunday they broke out their backcountry ski gear to try a trail near Truckee.
“We’re not going to go where it’s steep, for sure, because of avalanche risk,” said Shields, 64, a Los Gatos commercial real estate broker. McGorman, a retired FBI forensic accountant, intended to drive home to San Carlos on Tuesday to help friends with taxes.
On the Western slope, an additional 1 to 2 feet of snow are expected above 4,000 feet until midnight Sunday, with high gusts of wind especially across the peaks. After a brief break in the weather late Monday morning, another storm may bring yet another foot or two of snow by Monday afternoon.
The extended blizzard was forcing McGorman, like Heer, to be flexible on his departure — and be prepared to help his friends remotely. “If there’s a window I’ll take advantage of it,” said McGorman, 70. “If there isn’t, I’ll just stay up and keep skiing.”
Check back for updates.
By no means is there a lot going on in downtown Truckee this Sunday morning, as the Lake Tahoe blizzard keeps dumping snow pic.twitter.com/t5SNztxQNB
— EthanBaron (@ethanbaron) March 3, 2024