Lake Tahoe, the popular winter vacationland is unfortunately very difficult to reach right now due to winter storms.
According to Tahoe Daily Tribune, the region could see 2.5 feet of snow at lake level and up to 5 feet at higher elevations over the weekend, making travel “difficult to impossible“.
The National Weather Service in Reno has issued a winter storm watch for the Lake Tahoe Basin that goes into effect at 10 p.m. Friday and lasts through 4 a.m. Monday. They’ve also issued an avalanche watch this weekend from 7am Saturday until 7am Sunday. It might be a good idea to reschedule that ski weekend in Tahoe unless you plan to arrive early and stay late.
This is the second weekend that The National Weather Service Reno has issued travel warnings about the region. Last weekend’s winter storm prompted them to tweet videos of snow-covered traffic and reports of numerous spinouts along the heavily traveled mountain roads.
Popular resorts in the region are excited about the fresh snowfall while also stressing the challenges. A recent Palisades Tahoe blog post commented that “Saturday is going to be no joke, calling for 24 inches during the day and an additional 24 inches at night. Winds could reach 100 mph.” They went to set expectations that they’ll be “digging out and playing catchup over the next week.”
This weekend storm is due to a cold, low-pressure system dropping out of the Gulf of Alaska that will phase with subtropical moisture and strong southwest flow as it intersects the Sierra, bringing strong winds and heavy snow to the mountains, the service said.
You can find the latest updates on this winter storm at the National Weather Service Reno’s website and Twitter page.
Featured image: Thom Milkovic on Unsplash