Just need to keep it up all winter....

Potent weather system dumps snow across California's Sierra

Amy Graff

The second push of a large and potent weather system dumped snow across California's Sierra Nevada Range on Tuesday, bringing whiteout conditions and travel delays to mountain highways. 

In the Tahoe Basin, the heaviest snow is expected at elevations above 4,000 feet and snowfall rates could reach up to 1 to 3 inches an hour today, the National Weather Service said.

"There will be periods of whiteout conditions with gusty winds of up 40 to 50 mph," Chelsea Peters, a meteorologist with the weather service's Sacramento office, told SFGATE on the phone. "Heavy snow will create hazardous driving conditions. It's not going to be enjoyable."

The weather service issued a winter storm warning for the Sierra through 4 a.m. Wednesday, alerting drivers to avoid roads. Chain control was in effect on Highways 50 and 80 on Tuesday morning. Check with Caltrans for the latest information. 

About a foot of snow fell at elevations above 4,000 feet on Monday and up to another 3 feet is expected on Tuesday in the Tahoe Basin, which is 6,000 feet in elevation at the shore of Lake Tahoe. As the storm exits California, light snow showers could linger into Wednesday morning. 

South of Tahoe, Mammoth Mountain said it was expecting up to five feet of snow at upper elevations with this storm. The ski resort opened a week early this year on Nov. 5 due to the early November cold and snow. 

"It's the biggest storm of the season so far," Peters said. "We did have decent snow a week ago. This one in total will be more."

The early November storm is good news for California that is facing drought conditions. The Sierra saw a below-normal snowpack last winter, but Peters warned, "This doesn't mean that we're going to be above normal this year."