General Conditions

The meteorological roller coaster continues.  Daytime highs have ranged between 60° and the low 70s; overnight lows have bounced between 40° and the low 50s.  It’s been mostly sunny during the day; but afternoon clouds build up.  Last Friday was overcast most of the day; there were showers during the day and as much as a quarter inch of rain Friday night.  Saturday morning was clear, cool, and sunny.  Trails in sunny areas have returned to being a bit dusty, but it’s possible to find damp spots and dew in shaded areas at sunrise.  The Central Sierra Snow Laboratory (https://cssl.berkeley.edu) has daily, weekly, and monthly conditions on their web site.   Webcams at Sugar Bowl (http://www.sugarbowl.com/home) and Donner Ski Ranch (http://webcams.donnerskiranch.com/) provide up-to-the-minute views of current conditions.

Wildfire: The seasonal campfire ban has been in effect since late June.  No open fires — including campfires, charcoal grills, etc.  Gas grills are OK.  Truckee Fire rates its fire danger on the Summit as “high”; Tahoe National Forest says fire danger is  “moderate”.   Be careful; there’s plenty of combustible material on the ground to feed a wildfire if one gets started.  Find more information at https://www.truckeefire.org/fireban   The Garnet fire is still producing Purple Air AQI up to 100 in the southern Sierras; numbers around Donner Summit are 3-5 and mostly below 10 at Lake Tahoe.

Sunrise/Sunset: Today’s (September 25) sunrise was at 6:52 AM; sunset will be at 6:53 PM.  Sunrise drifted later by 9 minutes compared to a week ago. Sunset has drifted earlier by about 11 minutes. The days continue to get shorter by about 2-1/2 minutes per day.

Star Gazing: The Moon is a waxing crescent — visible in the west just after sunset.  Look for the Big Dipper, visible to the northwest; it rests on the northwestern horizon in the correct position to “hold water” at about 10 PM.  Earlier in the evening, follow the arc of its handle leftward to Arcturus, the only bright star in that part of the sky.  Saturn was at opposition on Sunday (September 21).  That means the Sun, Earth, and Saturn were almost in a straight line.  Saturn was closest to Earth at that point — at its brightest.  Look for it about 45° above the southern horizon around midnight; it’s bright but not dazzling.  Being a planet, it does not twinkle.  With a pair of binoculars, you should be able to make out its rings.  The Milky Way is a very diffuse band of light that is close to overhead in the late evening hours.  We’re part of the Milky Way, orbiting its center and about two-thirds of the way toward the edge.  The easiest planet to spot is Venus — very bright at 6 AM and about 15° above the eastern horizon.  Much higher in the eastern sky (and not quite so bright) is Jupiter.

Forecast

High temperatures were in the low-70s today; they will drop to 40° overnight.  Tomorrow and Saturday will be copies of today but slightly warmer.  Sunday’s high, however, will be only 61°; and the drop Monday (50°) and Tuesday (46°) is even more with a 50-50 chance of showers each day.  It will be partly cloudy and warmer during the rest of next week. From Friday next week (October 3) expect sunny skies, daytime highs in the 60s, and overnight lows in the mid-30s.  The cooler temperatures are causing fall colors to come out — best color in about two weeks.

Summit Calendar

August 26 – October 15 (approx): Reconstruction of the Van Norden Dam Road near Sheep Pens.  The road is closed for 3 weeks starting about September 8.

September 30 (Tuesday): Deadline for survey responses to the Truckee Recreation and Parks District’s Comprehensive Master Plan and Recommendations (the District includes Donner Summit).  View the plan at https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/d332689eeb0546908f466d5d0471eff4.  Take the survey at https://designworkshop.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_ezGv72xVYBqD7BI

October 4 and 5 (Saturday and Sunday): Donner Party Hikes.  Choose from among eight Saturday hikes with a guide who provides historical commentary.   Distances range from 2 to 6 miles.  There will be a Sunday tour at Alder Creek and an exploration at Donner Memorial State Park.  For more information and registration, go to https://donnerpartyhike.com/general-information/

October 11-12 (Saturday and Sunday): Oktoberfest at Rainbow Lodge.  The Lodge and bar are open to the public starting at 3 PM Saturday.  Food service is available 5-9 PM, and Manzanita Music is live 6-9 PM.  For more information, go to https://www.therainbowlodge.com/events

October 16 (Thursday) 5-6 PM: Monthly meeting of the Donner Summit Association Board of Directors at Sugar Bowl.  An agenda will be posted here as the meeting approaches.  One of the discussion topics will be the economic status and future of Donner Summit.

Resorts

Boreal/Woodward (indoors) is open Wednesday-Friday 1-8 PM and weekends 10 AM – 8 PM.   The Castle Peak chair and MTB trails are open Friday (1-5 PM) and Saturday-Sunday (10-5).  Check https://www.rideboreal.com for details

Sugar Bowl summer activities are winding down; check  https://www.sugarbowl.com.  Sugar Bowl is making major upgrades to its main lodge.  For a 3-minute video about the project, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL7imGrXCt0

Donner Ski Ranch is closed for the season; but Disk Golf is open.   DSR’s Old 40 Bar and Grill is open daily 8 AM – 9 PM. Check the DSR web site at https://www.donnerskiranch.com

Auburn Ski Club is closed for the season.   Check their web site — https://www.asctrainingcenter.org — for more information.

Soda Springs Mountain Resort is closed for the season.  For more information, visit https://www.skisodasprings.com/

Royal Gorge wrapped its  Summer Après Series —over Labor Day weekend.  Royal Gorge is now waiting for snow.  Watch https://www.royalgorge.com/home for the latest information.

Kingvale Resort (on the south side of I-80 at exit 171) is closed for the season.

For those heavily into speculation, three resorts (none on Donner Summit) have announced target opening dates for the winter season (https://epaper.sierrasun.com/html5/reader/production/default.aspx?pubname=&pubid=3ee86800-0b96-47c1-92da-da9138ad31aa): Heavenly November 21, Northstar November 21, and Kirkwood December 5.  Announcements include wording such as “based on weather and conditions”.

Other Activities

If you’re looking for things to do in the foothills and mountains, Nevada County has some suggestions.  These are spread more broadly but some specifically include the Summit area.  Some link to other parts of this web site.

https://gonevadacounty.com/ways-to-beat-heat-that-arent-swimming/ (like ice cream)

Roads

I-80: The forecast is generally favorable for the next two weeks, but be alert to construction and lane closures.  There are at least three possible choke points eastbound — Crystal Springs to Drum Forebay, at the I-80/CA20 split, and between Rainbow Road and Soda Springs.  You can avoid the third by exiting at Cisco Grove and driving at a more leisurely pace on Hampshire Rocks Road, which parallels the freeway on the north side.   Continue across I-80 on Donner Pass Road, then go all the way to Donner Lake and Truckee.  Note that several ramps between Gold Run and Donner Summit are closed while being reconstructed.  Plan ahead by following CalTrans road reports at https://roads.dot.ca.gov.

General: Paved secondary roads around the Summit should be open but be prepared for repair work and occasional delays.  Forestry along Soda Springs Road between the railroad tracks and Serene Lakes is nearly complete (if not finished); impact on travel has been minimal.  Off-highway vehicle routes (unpaved) are mostly open, but watch for pot holes, rocks, and ruts.  Forest Road 85 north from Cisco Grove is closed (for several years) while the Lake Fordyce Dam Seepage Mitigation Project is completed.