Holiday Travel: Three Sierra storms expected for Thanksgiving week
The first of three winter storms will move into the Sierra tonight, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a Winter Weather Advisory for the Sierra from 7 p.m. until 10 a.m. Wednesday.
Though the first system is considered weak to moderate, it will cause significant travel delays in the Sierra due to the Thanksgiving holiday week and heavy traffic volume, according to the weather service.
Forecasters expect little if any accumulation in the Reno and Carson City area although some light accumulation, upward of an inch of snow, may occur early Wednesday morning between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. for foothill areas above 5,000 feet.
For the Sierra, snow will begin for areas west of Highway 395 by late afternoon Tuesday, then spilling over along and east of Highway 395 Tuesday night. The heaviest snowfall will likely be between 10 p.m. Tuesday and 4 a.m., Wednesday. As for accumulations, up to 8 inches of snow is expected above 7,000 feet, 3 to 6 inches around lake level, and 1 to 3 inches along and east of Highway 395.
Snow levels will be near 5,000 feet. The new snow is welcome news for skiers and snowboarders as Heavenly and Northstar will open Wednesday and Kirkwood on Saturday.
Thanksgiving Day will be mild and sunny, and then another winter storm is forecast to impact the Sierra starting Friday afternoon into Saturday morning that will result in more travel issues with winter driving conditions likely.
The latest forecast models show a break later Saturday into Sunday, with possibly a colder system expected for Sunday evening into Monday with the potential for additional snow in the Sierra and snow across western Nevada as well.
If you have plans to travel back across the Sierra at the end of the holiday weekend or early next week be sure to check the latest forecast at weather.gov/Reno and check road conditions with Caltrans and NDOT.
For the latest weather discussion go here. For weather updates for Carson City, see CarsonWeather.com.
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