Tahoe Backcountry Snow

0600 temp. at 6350′ in Carnelian Bay: 30.9 deg. & 87% RH

1″ new snow

Backcountry obs.:

Despite the dry weather and gusty winds, backcountry conditions in the Rose zone around Incline and Relay Peaks this weekend provided a fun mixed bag of crusts, wind effect, and delightful, cold powder in sheltered N facing aspects. Traffic has been heavy in the area, so clean lines are rare in the most popular areas close to trailheads.

The most protected, N. facing trees and micro deposition aspects are still collecting and holding cold snow. Areas with solar and/or wind exposure are covered with a mix of breakable and unbreakable crusts. S aspects near lake level have begun to show signs of baby corn, which will likely expand and climb higher as temps warm and the sun grows stronger with each passing day. It won’t be long (a few days) until the focus shifts from skiing powder to skiing corn.

Weather and forecast thoughts:

Some light snow this morning has provided a minor refresh to the backcountry snow from the weekend. Today, expect an overcast morning with a few stray snow showers with the potential for some clearing by midday as the current disturbance moves out of the area. Highs today will approach 40 around lake level and stay near to below freezing in the backcountry. Expect moderate SW winds to prevail and pick up yet again this afternoon with the approach of our next system.

This evening another minor storm system moves in producing gusty winds and light snow that will continue through tomorrow morning before tapering off. Snow totals will range from an inch or two in mountain communities, to up to an additional 6-8″ in the mountains and along the crest. Winds will also pick up out of the SW again this afternoon and evening, increasing tomorrow during the day before backing off a bit Tues. evening. Highs tomorrow will reach the upper 30s around lake level and remain in the 20s and low 30s in the backcountry. Behind the system temps will cool off with lows in town in the low 20s on Tues. night, teens in the mountains.

The weather really starts drying out in a prolonged fashion beginning Weds., but not before a potentially significant – and powder destroying – NE wind event Weds.-Thurs. A building ridge of high pressure off the coast will interact with a cold, dry low dropping through the Great Basin on Weds. The steep gradient between the deep low and the strengthening high will create strong, potentially damaging NE winds for Tahoe communities that will almost certainly strip any cold snow that falls over the next two days from NE aspects and toss it into oblivion. Expect wind hammered conditions on all aspects when it’s all over.

Luckily the Tahoe Sierra finally has a snowpack, so what’s left behind or ground into wind board will likely endure what’s next: a warm up and dry spell, potentially transforming the snow into the second best thing to powder: Sierra corn.

The aforementioned ridge of high pressure off the coast responsible for the midweek wind event, will strengthen and move over the area late week through the weekend blocking any chance for precip. and warming up temps 5-10 deg. above average. Expect sunny skies from Thurs. through the weekend and into next week with highs warming into the upper 40s to low 50s by the weekend at lake level. Temps appear to cool efficiently each night, refreezing whatever surface snow melts during the day. This repetition of melt and freeze under sunny skies is the recipe for Sierra’s best corn. Time it right and enjoy!

Looking way out to next week, there are some signs of a trough of low pressure returning unsettled weather to the area, but the corn fest could continue as well. Time will tell.

0630 temp. at 6350’ in Carnelian Bay: 22.8 deg. & 88% RH

0520 temp. at 8400’ Incline Peak TH: 16 deg.

2-4” new snow

Backcountry Obs.:

Expectations for cold, soft snow were next to nothing when I set out this morning. Lo and behold, as soon as the skintrack began climbing Incline Peak, I was delighted to find 2-4″ of new, cold snow atop the windblown, battered surface from the last storm system. Yesterday’s (3/7) round of afternoon snow showers appears to have left some accumulation that touched up the surface with cold, soft fluff, vastly improving ski conditions from Weds. Tracks and ruts from user traffic over the past week still persist, but the additional few inches of snow has softened the wind buffeted surface left behind from last weekend’s big storm. There’s nothing like a little surprise mountain magic to kick off a Friday!

Winds this morning were moderate out of the NE transporting snow along ridgelines and in open areas, but were not strong enough to significantly degrade the surface. Snow transport and deposition was enough to produce small, sensitive wind slabs on lee aspects. A ski cut on a cross loaded gully produced a propagating wind slab – only 2-3″ deep – that released and ran the length of the gully on a bed surface of windboard/suncrust.

Forecast and weather thoughts:

It feels like today is the first truly bluebird day we’ve had in a while. Temps around the lake are in the low 40s with 30s in the backcountry under sunny skies. Expect a cold clear night tonight.

Tomorrow sunshine and similar temps will return, along with an increase in SW winds and the arrival of some clouds presaging the next series of disturbances set to arrive Sun. through Weds.

Sun. night light snows return to the Tahoe Sierra with a few inches (2-4″) possible in mountain communities with maybe 6-8″ accumulating by Mon. morning in the backcountry. Points N and along the crest will likely receive the highest amounts. Snows taper off on Mon. with highs again reaching the upper 30s.

But wait, there’s more! High on the heels of the Sun. PM-Mon. AM system, another disturbance arrives Mon. night into Tues. with chances for more accumulating snows. This system will be similar to the one before it dropping modest amounts, but enough to contribute to a decent refresh from the weekend traffic and prolific wind effect left from last week’s storm. In total, backcountry zones could see an additional 6-12″ from both storms by Weds.

Looking beyond, models show signs of a strong ridge of high pressure building into the west coast around midweek and holding court through at least next weekend, possibly longer. This would bring a series of days with clear skies, warm daytime temps and hopefully cold nights: an ideal setup for the first solid corn cycle of the winter.

0415 temp. at 6350′ in Carnelian Bay: 26.9 deg. & 94% RH

0515 temp. at 8650′ Tamarack TH: 21 deg.

Backcountry obs.:

Mt. Rose Highway reopened yesterday afternoon (3/5), so I opted to head out to the Tamarack zone to check on the new snow from the big storm. Light winds and cloudy skies greeted the morning, along with snow banks now double their pre-storm height.

Skinning out to Galena Peaks, few tracks were evident on the snow surface and those that had been laid had filled in with wind drifted snow overnight. All snow surfaces on all aspects, elevations, and even in the most sheltered treed zones, have some form of wind effect. In the most sheltered N facing areas, a rippled texture accents the soft snow surface. In any exposed terrain, wind board of all varieties abounds. The most solar and windward aspects are non breakable, while lee and colder N aspects are have a dense, yet penetrable surface. Solar crusts are minimal in this area and were noted in a few limited areas with true S aspects. Abundant cloud cover since the storm has likely contributed to the lack of sun crust.

The skiing? Variable and sporty. Because even the soft snow grains have been ground down in the wind into fragments, the snow is skiing slow and fairly grabby. Each turn provides the excitement of providing a soft, buttery experience, a firm unbreakable wind crust, or breakable board requiring considerable effort. These aren’t conditions worth traveling for, but are great backcountry training.

On the plus side, no signs of instability were noted. It could be a good time for a multi-day deep into the backcountry in search of soft snow, or maybe a hut trip? Stability and coverage are good, so why not head out for some exploration?

While the storm did set the area up for at least another month of great coverage, vastly improving a bleak season up to last week, another shot of cold, light snow would be most welcome to bring back the joys of effortless pow skiing.

Forecast and weather thoughts:

The weather over the next few days will be rather lackluster and will do little to improve surface conditions.

Expect highs Weds.-Sat. in the upper 30s to low 40s in Tahoe communities with generally mostly cloudy skies lasting through Fri. Backcountry highs each afternoon will likely hit the mid 30s. Expect the snow to thicken and continue crusting each day. A few snow showers could grace the area Weds. and Thurs. dropping a dusting at best along the crest and points N of Tahoe. Lows each night will drop below freezing into the 20s with high humidities each night.

Fri. a narrow ridge passes over the region that will usher in sunny skies and temps into the low 40s.

The weekend continues the ho-hum rhythm: cool and mostly cloudy days with highs into the low 40s at the lake, mid 30s in the backcountry with modest chances for decorative, yet non-consequential snow showers. Lows will cool efficiently into the 20s each night.

The next potential storm signal comes Sun. – Weds. with two rounds of precip. approaching the area from the Pacific. These look rather modest, but could bring a needed refresh to zones above 7000′. Snow levels don’t appear particularly low with either storm. While unimpressive, any new snow would be a welcome refresh to cover up the wind battered surface left by the excesses of the Great Blizzard of 2024.