Forecasters at the National Weather Service’s office in Reno say a potent Pacific storm will move inland this weekend bringing rain, mountain snow and gusty winds. The winds will begin Saturday afternoon and continue through Sunday night. Precipitation will begin as rain, even at the passes, as snow levels start high.
Snow levels will begin to fall Sunday with snow over the passes possible by sunset Sunday. Expect holiday weekend travel impacts due to winds and snow over the passes.
Strong, gusty southwest winds are expected both Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Winds may abate some overnight Saturday night in some valley locations, but they will remain strong over the ridges. Wind gusts of 60 mph or more are possible along portions of the 395 corridor and Sierra ridge gusts will likely exceed 100 mph.
Light rain is likely over the mountains by Saturday evening north of I-80, gradually spreading southward into Sunday evening. Snow levels will also gradually fall during this time before crashing late Sunday night as a strong cold front moves through. The precipitation will end Monday morning behind the front.
Snow levels will start out at near 9,000 feet Saturday afternoon. They will then fall to 5,500 feet here in Lassen County, 7,000 feet for the Tahoe Basin and 8,000 feet for Mono County by late Sunday afternoon.
Snow levels will crash Sunday night and fall to near the lower valley floors as the precipitation ends. While it is too early to predict snowfall amounts, accumulations are likely for the Sierra passes with light accumulations possible as low as 5,000 feet. Be prepared for major travel delays over Sierra passes due to slick and snow-covered roads.
For up-to-date weather information follow this link to the Lassen Weather Network.
