0430 temp. at 6350′ in Carnelian Bay: 33.8 deg. w/ 92% RH

Trace new snow & 0.25″ rain in last 24 hrs.

0515 temp. at 8650′ Tamarack TH: 25 deg.

4-8″ observed new snow

Backcountry obs.:

Coverage in the Rose backcountry improved further with this last storm as another 4-8″ fell across the area in the last day. Predawn today (11/26) brought occasional snow showers, moderate to strong SW winds, and mostly cloudy skies. The new snow and strong winds wiped clean all leftover tracks from the weekend, leaving a soft, yet densely buffed, wind-textured surface from TH to summit. Near and above treeline firmer, wind-sculpted pillows and fins had begun to form downwind of trees and protruding rocks. The high water content in the snow and brisk winds throughout the storm are evident in the compacted nature of the snow. No blower pow to be found!

But while the snow might not be blower, it continues to plaster the backcountry forming a dense, solid base for the nascent season. It’s low tide, but the high density snow is keeping skiers from sinking into the depths where rocks, snags, and other sharks lurk, hungry to bite into new gear and tired legs.

The skiing this morning continued to outperform expectations. While thick and forgiving, the fresh snow provided springy, supportable pop in the trees and around features.

Forecast thoughts:

The storm of the past 24 hours left unremarkable, yet still welcome, amounts of new snow in the Tahoe backcountry. While it started out around daybreak on 11/25 with decent snowfall rates, temps by mid morning crested freezing below 7000′, turning precip to a rain/snow mix with little, if any accumulation around the lake. Areas from Carson Pass southward won this round.

Today will host a mix of clouds and sun with a few scattered snow showers, especially in the mountains. Any additional accumulations will be light. Moderate winds will continue throughout the day, grooming out the snow surface, before calming this evening as skies clear and temps drop. Backcountry zones will cool into the teens and low 20s overnight. Whatever snow falls today will have to suffice for quite a while…

Tomorrow sunshine returns while temps remain cool (30s in town, upper 20s on the mountains) as a ridge of high pressure moves into the region keeping skies clear. Temps will start to slowly moderate towards week’s end under generally fair skies and dry conditions. By the weekend, expect sunny skies and highs in the mid 40s around the lake, with 30s in the mountains. The dominant high pressure responsible for the clear weather could also set up strong inversions where lows in the Tahoe Basin and Martis Valley may be 10-20 deg colder than a few thousand feet up in the mountains. Hopefully the airmass will be dry enough that if temps do not cool below freezing, radiational cooling on the snowpack will keep snow soft and cold. The low sun angle of this time of year will also help to preserve snow, especially on NW-E aspects.

Model ensembles for next week and early December strongly favor calm, clear weather and mild temps as a blocking ridge of high pressure dominates the west. Signals indicating a breakdown of the ridge don’t yet appear in long term forecasts going out towards the middle of December.

Fill up now; it might be a while before winter serves up another course.