NORTH LAKE TAHOE, CA — A winter weather advisory is in effect until 12:00 p.m. today, with waves of 2 to 5 ft. forecast on the lake. The advisory comes in the middle of a week with significant precipitation (both snow and rain) in the forecast, and emphasizes powerful winds around the basin. 

“Plan on wet or slippery road conditions, especially across area passes for the morning commute. Very strong winds could cause extensive damage to trees and power lines,” says the National Weather Service. Though precipitation is already “diminishing, it may still be slick over Mt Rose Summit with wet/slushy conditions across other passes through the morning commute.”

Highway 89 is closed from “the junction of US 395 (Mono County) to the junction of SR 4/Monitor Pass in Alpine County due to snow,” with some other restrictions heading north. Chain restrictions are in place on Highway 80, but it remains open. Be sure to check road conditions before travelling.

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Latest reports from weather.gov suggest that the “next storm still arrives Saturday night into Sunday.” 

This weekend basin residents and visitors should “look for another round of strong southwest winds with gusts up to 50+ mph in western NV valleys, and 100+ mph across Sierra ridges,” says the National Weather Service.

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Snow reports for the basin vary, with the rainy conditions somewhat mitigating excitement over snowfall. North Lake seems to be getting the best snow predictions, however, with a number of reports suggest resorts in the North Lake area will see significant snowfall. Predictions from OpenSnow are suggesting around 10″ for Palisades, Donner and Sugar Bowl in the next few days. 

Avalanche danger today is “Moderate” above and below treeline, according to the Sierra Avalanche Center. It will drop to “Low” above and below treeline tomorrow. 

Anna Kristina Moseidjord is a freelancer for the Tahoe Daily Tribune and Sierra Sun.