General Conditions

Yesterday’s snow storm never materialized; but the “residential” Summit area received 18+ hours of cold rain.  Elevations above 7000 ft received snow (see photo below).  Clouds have cleared, and we’ll be back to 60° daytime highs over the weekend.  The Summit’s fall color has faded, but you can still find foliage at Lake Tahoe.   The Central Sierra Snow Laboratory (https://cssl.berkeley.edu) reports 9 inches of snow this year (all more than a week ago), compared with 11 in a median year since 1991.   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 remains in effect.  No open fires — including campfires, charcoal grills, etc.  Gas grills are OK.  Truckee Fire rates its fire danger as “low”; Tahoe National Forest says fire danger is also  “low”.   Find more information at https://www.truckeefire.org/fireban

Sunrise/Sunset: Today’s (November 6) sunrise was at 6:35 AM; sunset will be at 4:54 PM.  Sunrise drifted later by 8 minutes compared to a week ago. Sunset has drifted earlier by about 8 minutes. The days continue to get shorter by about 2 minutes per day.

Star Gazing: The Moon is just past full, making evening star gazing easier.  Cassiopeia is a W-shaped constellation nearly overhead but toward the northwest in the early evening.  Look for Orion, rising in the southeast around 10 PM.  If you want to see planets, your best bet is an hour before sunrise when Jupiter is southwest of overhead and Venus is very low on the eastern horizon.  They are both very bright.  You can also spot Jupiter at about 45° above the southeastern horizon before midnight.

Forecast

With the recent storm moving out, there will be more sunshine and temperatures will rise.  Expect a high around 61° Sunday and Monday before the next system arrives.  Rain and snow showers are forecast for Thursday (November 13) through Monday (November 17) with daytime highs around 40° next weekend.  There could be a couple days with only partly cloudy skies early the following week (November 18-19) before showers return.

Summit Calendar

November 8 (Saturday) 9 SAM – 2 PM: The Annual Cross-Country and Backcountry Ski Swap will be at Tahoe XC in Tahoe City. Entry is $5 for adults and free for kids.  Entry fees and commissions from sales support youth programs of the Tahoe Cross Country Ski Education Association.  For more info, go to https://tahoexc.org/event/ski-swap/

November 15 (Saturday) 12 noon: Applications for the Second Annual Snow Science School (January 14-16) are due.  For more information, go to https://www.csslsnowschool.com/

November 15 (Saturday) 5:30-8 PM: Feast at the 41st Annual Donner Trail Elementary School Thanksgiving Dinner.  All proceeds benefit children and classrooms of the Summit’s own elementary school.  There will be a raffle and silent auction.  Adults $25, kids $15.  For more information and tickets, go to https://event.auctria.com/d1a660a7-6d87-4754-9900-58dcb7f8f440/

November 19 (Wednesday) 6 PM: The second of four avalanche awareness sessions sponsored by Tahoe Mountain Sports will be at Alibi Truckee.  This one is “Where/When to go”.  Following sessions are scheduled for December 17 and January 21 on “Rescue” and “Partnering Up”, respectively.  For more information, go to https://tahoemountainsports.com/blogs/events

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 closed for the season.  Check https://www.rideboreal.com for details

Sugar Bowl has no winter activities planned yet; check  https://www.sugarbowl.com for updates.  Season pass prices go up on November 1.  There has been a major overhaul of the main lodge and dining room … but not open yet.

Donner Ski Ranch has Disk Golf 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 which says DSR will open in early December.

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 is 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.

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: Watch for snow and ice on the highway when weather is bad (becoming more common).  Otherwise the forecast is generally favorable for the next two weeks.  Be alert to construction and lane closures — especially Monday-Friday.  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.    Off-highway vehicle routes (unpaved) are mostly open, but watch for pot holes, rocks, ruts, and slippery spots.  There can be snow on these roads above 6500 ft.  Forest Road 85 north from Cisco Grove is closed (for several years) while the Lake Fordyce Dam Seepage Mitigation Project is completed.