General Conditions

Summit weather has returned to conditions that are closer to normal for this time of year.  The past week has been sunny with highs around 55° and lows around freezing.  Snow continues to melt.  The Central Sierra Snow Lab (https://cssl.berkeley.edu/) reports no precipitation in the past week; the year-to-date snowfall is 251 inches compared to a median 326 inches on this date (77%) and 360 inches for the season (70%).  There is essentially no snow on the ground at CSSL today.  However, the total rain-plus-snow precipitation is 99% of median for this date.

All ski resorts at Donner Summit have closed for the season; the nearest operating lifts are at Palisades Tahoe; Palisades hopes to continue running to the end of April.  Webcams at Sugar Bowl (http://www.sugarbowl.com/home), Donner Ski Ranch (http://webcams.donnerskiranch.com/), and Boreal (https://www.rideboreal.com/explore/webcams/boreal-mountain-cam/) provide up-to-the-minute views of current conditions.  Backcountry skiing remains feasible at 7000 ft and above; but avoid south facing slopes, and beware of snow bridges and streams, which are carrying a lot of water.

Sunrise/Sunset: Today’s (April 9) sunrise was at 6:33 AM; sunset was at 7:33 PM (exactly 13 hours of daylight).  Sunrise is 11 minutes earlier than last week and sunset is 7 minutes later, so the days continue to get longer by about 2-1/2 minutes per day.

Star Gazing: The Moon was full last week (April 1).  Evening stargazing will be good over the next couple weeks as the Moon rises later each night.  Jupiter is the bright object in the evening ski, roughly in the middle of the constellation Gemini and at zenith in evening hours.  Orion and Sirius are easy to spot toward the southwest.  The Big Dipper is close to overhead around midnight.  Venus is visible for about 90 minutes after sunset above the western horizon; it will continue to become brighter and higher in the evening sky in coming weeks.  Mars may be faintly visible before sunrise in the eastern sky; it will become easier to spot in coming months.

Avalanche: For those continuing to follow the February 17 avalanche story, a final report is now available from the Colorado Avalanche Information Center and the Forest Service’s National Avalanche Center (https://avalanche.org/avalanche-accidents/#/report/cc583756-68b3-4e06-9fa9-769af352fc18).  Reports from Nevada County and Cal OSHA are still in progress.

Forecast

Today will be mostly overcast; the high/low temperature range is forecast to be 51°/33°.  Showers are expected this evening.  Tomorrow (Friday) there is a 90% change of snow (3-5 inches) with a temperature range of 41°/28°.  On Saturday winter returns more seriously; temperatures will be 37°/21° and there’s a 93% chance of snow (1-3 inches during the day and 8-12 inches overnight).  Temperatures will continue to drop Sunday (31°/20) but snow will slow to 1-3 inches.  Expect cloudy to partly cloudy next week with daytime high temperatures rising from the upper 30s to the mid 50s and overnight lows hanging in the mid 20s.    The weekend of April 19-20 will be showery, and 1-2 inches of snow is forecast for Sunday; but daytime highs will be around 50°, so there’s little chance of much accumulation.

Summit Calendar

April 4-5 (Saturday-Sunday):  Easter weekend was busy at both Boreal and Sugar Bowl.  Cars were parked along both sides of Donner Pass Road for several hundred yards in both directions from Sugar Bowl’s gondola entrance on Saturday.

April 11  (Saturday): Glenn’s Gallop Biathlon Race at ASC Training Center (formerly Auburn Ski Club).  Rifle check is at 7:30 AM; race starts at 9 AM.  Other details at https://www.asctrainingcenter.org/events-races/biathlon-races/  Registration is closed, but the event remains on the ASCTC calendar.

April 12 (Sunday) PM: Union Pacific celebrates the nation’s 250th birthday with a tour by its Big Boy No. 4014 locomotive.  The train is scheduled to leave Colfax at 12:45 PM and arrive in Truckee at 4:45 PM.  More information is available at https://www.up.com/about-us/history/steam/schedule

April 16 (Thursday) 5-6 PM:  The April meeting of the DSA Board of Directors.   Find an agenda at https://www.donnersummitca.com/dsa-meetings-info/  early in the week before the meeting.  Directions to the meeting will be included.

April 18 (Saturday) 10 AM: Public workshop on proposed increases in water and wastewater rates for the Donner Summit Public Utilities District.  More details can be found at  https://www.dspud.org/

May 6 (Wednesday) 3-5:30 PM: Truckee Job Fair at Truckee Community Recreation Center (10981 Truckee Way) for full-time, part time, and seasonal positions.  Prospective employers should e-mail melissa@truckee.com.

May 19 (Tuesday) 6 PM: Public hearing on proposed increases in water and wastewater rates for the Donner Summit Public Utilities District.  Customers who reject the increases must register their opposition before the end of the hearing.  More details can be found at  https://www.dspud.org/

Resorts

Boreal/Woodward: Boreal (the Mountain) and Woodward Outdoor Parks and MTB Trails are closed.  Woodward (The Bunker) is open Wednesday-Friday 1-8 PM and Saturday-Sunday 10 AM – 8 PM.  Check https://www.rideboreal.com for more information.

Sugar Bowl  is closed for the season.  Check  https://www.sugarbowl.com for information on summer activities.

Soda Springs Mountain Resort is closed for the season.  Watch  https://www.skisodasprings.com/ for news.

Royal Gorge is closed for the season.  Tapas Friday and Saturday starts in late June.   Check https://www.royalgorge.com/home for updates.

Donner Ski Ranch is closed for the season.  Its Old 40 Bar and Grill remains open 7 days a week.   Check the DSR web site at https://www.donnerskiranch.com for news.

ASC Training Center (formerly Auburn Ski Club) offers alpine, nordic, snowboard, and biathlon programs including 25 km of groomed trails.  ASC specializes in training for competition and sponsors events.  See Calendar above and check their web site — https://www.asctrainingcenter.org — for more information.

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

Avalanche Report

The Sierra Avalanche Center forecasts “2-Moderate” avalanche danger at all elevations today.  Their preliminary forecast for tomorrow (Friday) is the same.   Watch for instabilities on steeper slopes as temperature rises during the day.  Then avoid those areas.  For more information, visit https://www.sierraavalanchecenter.org/

Roads

I-80: The freeway is open and in good condition, but there are occasional lane closures for construction.  Plan ahead by following CalTrans reports at https://roads.dot.ca.gov.

General: Paved secondary roads around the Summit should be in good condition.