General Conditions

The heat dome is starting to move (very slowly) east, and temperatures are moderating.  After low 70s a week ago, the daytime high at Donner Summit dropped to 62° last Saturday and then slowly drifted to 58° yesterday.  Overnight lows slipped from 38° to 32° over the same five days.  That’s not been enough to save ski resorts; Donner Ski Ranch and Soda Springs closed last weekend.  Royal Gorge closed its Summit Station and maintained trails during this week, but they hope to have a few trails open from their Sugar Bowl entrance this weekend (March 27-29).  There has been no new precipitation in the past week.  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 (March 26) sunrise was at 6:55 AM; sunset will be at 7:19 PM.  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 at first quarter yesterday (March 25), so evening stargazing will be more difficult for the next week.  The Moon was in Gemini last night, within an outstretched hand’s width of Jupiter.  The Moon will have moved another 12° east by tonight — toward the constellation Leo.  But you can still use it to find Gemini and Jupiter.  Orion and Sirius are easy to spot toward the southwest.  The Big Dipper is close to overhead around midnight.  Venus is now visible  for about 60 minutes after sunset near the western horizon; it will 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.

Forecast

Today’s high/low range is expected to be 59°/32°, and skies will be partly cloudy.  Expect similar conditions (though slightly warmer days) through this weekend.  On Monday, temperatures will drop by about 10° as more clouds move in.  On Tuesday it will be another 10° cooler — the high/low range will be 38°/27° — and there’s an 83% probability of snow (2-6 inches).  More snow on Wednesday and Thursday with 5-9 inches forecast for the two days combined.  The storm clears Friday; daytime temperatures will bounce up while overnight lows will drop — 46°/19° Friday and 53°/26° on Saturday and Sunday.  The following week will be similar — warmer than normal for this time of year, but much cooler than the past month.  Skies will be partly cloudy to mostly sunny.

Summit Calendar

March 28 (Saturday) 10 AM – 2 PM: Yeti Bark Park at Boreal.  Jointly sponsored with Tahoe Truckee Humane Society.  Bring your dog for a day built for both riders and pups.  Check out the on-snow agility course.  If you don’t have a four-legged friend, TTHS can introduce you to candidates.  More info at https://www.rideboreal.com/explore/community/all-events/

April 3 (Friday): Play Forever Friday at Boreal.  $35 lift tickets, tubing tickets, and 2-hour Bunker tickets.  $5 goes to charity.  More info at https://www.rideboreal.com/explore/community/all-events/

April 4 (Saturday) 8:30 AM – 8:00 PM: All day good-bye party for the historic Gondola at Sugar Bowl.  It will be retired the next day; a new high-capacity replacement is targeted for operation by November 2026.  Snacks and drinks at both ends 3:30-5:30 PM, followed by a celebration and auction. The festivities will wrap up with Open Mic Night outdoors on the Terrace of the Village Lodge, starting at 7 PM.  See https://www.sugar-bowl.com/gondola-history for a history of the Gondola.

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 and registration information at https://www.asctrainingcenter.org/events-races/biathlon-races/

April 5 (Sunday) 9 AM – 4 PM: rescheduled from April 11.  Pond skim at Sugar Bowl.   Costumes encouraged.   Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/paradise-pond-skim-2026-registration-1985396155346?aff=oddtdtcreator&utm_term=registration&utm_medium=email&utm_source=email&utm_campaign=pond-skim

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.

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.

Resorts

Boreal (the Mountain) has 3 of 6 lifts open 9-8 daily, though some may have more restricted hours.  Tahoe Tubing Carpet is open 9:30 AM – 4:15 PM.  Woodward (indoors) is open 12-8 Monday-Friday and 10-8 Saturday and Sunday   Check https://www.rideboreal.com for more information.

Sugar Bowl  is open today 9-4.  Check  https://www.sugarbowl.com for more details.  For special events, go to https://www.sugarbowl.com/events. Backcountry access information is at https://www.sugarbowl.com/backcountry

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

Royal Gorge is closed mid-week but hopes to have limited operations Friday-Sunday from the Sugar Bowl side.  Check https://www.royalgorge.com/home for updates.

Donner Ski Ranch is closed for the season; but 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 information.

Kingvale Resort (on the south side of I-80 at exit 171) is open for tubing and sledding.  They also offer snowmobile tours and have a rope tow terrain park.  Visit their web site at http://www.kingvaleresort.com/ for more information.

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 softening snow, which could avalanche on steep slopes.  For more information, visit https://www.sierraavalanchecenter.org/

Roads

I-80: The freeway is open and in good condition.   Plan ahead by following CalTrans road reports at https://roads.dot.ca.gov.

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