Weather

Expect smokey skies Tuesday ahead of a storm system as the U.S. Forest Service fuels management crews will hold prescribed fire operations in the High Meadow area near South Lake Tahoe and above State Route 28 near Skunk Harbor Tuesday, Dec. 11. Crews expect to burn two acres at each location, weather permitting. Operations will continue as weather and conditions allow.

Heavenly Mountain Resort at Lake Tahoe opened Olympic Express and upper Olympic Downhill on Sunday, boosting the open terrain to 610 acres. With a new weather system moving in, the resort expects between six to eight inches of snow up top on Wednesday and will be opening additional terrain as the week progresses.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will begin accepting reservations for the 2013 Winter Trek Express program on Monday, December 17, 2012.

Teachers may reserve a spot by calling the Forest Service front desk at (530) 543-2694, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.

Winter Trek Express is a 5th-grade environmental education program that takes place at Heavenly Mountain Resort via the gondola. Forest Service rangers lead the class through the wilderness to learn snowshoe skills and discover winter adapting animals.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Authorities say a Nevada woman has been found and taken to a hospital after she and a Nevada man disappeared after leaving a Sacramento suburb during bad weather on a driv...

Fuels management crews with the U.S. Forest Service will conduct prescribed fire operations Wednesday near Grand Avenue on Lake Tahoe's west shore near Tahoe Pines. Crews expect to burn one acre, weather permitting. Operations will continue as weather and conditions allow.

As rain turns to snow in the Sierra a Winter Storm Warning has been issued by the National Weather Service for the Lake Tahoe Basin.
Snow levels are rapidly dropping as cold air associated with this latest storm drops into the basin.
Snow is expected below 7,000 feet this morning with periods of heavy snow in the afternoon. Snow accumulations of 10 to 16 inches are expected above 7,000 feet with 4 to 8 inches at lake level. At least two feet is expected above 8,000 feet.
Below is the latest video briefing from the National Weather Service.

Light up a Life — an annual South Lake Tahoe interfaith ceremony that provides the community an opportunity to gather and honor those of whom they've loved and lost — will be Thursday, Dec. 6, 5:30 p.m. at Inn by the Lake. The ceremony provides all to reflect and community members the chance to share and pay tribute to the memory of those lost who remain close.

The ever-changing forecast for a series of winter storms is calling for several feet of new snow between now and Monday as the first round of this Sierra storm has hit Lake Tahoe. Thanks to the highest elevations in the Sierra, it is currently snowing at Heavenly, Kirkwood at Sierra-at-Tahoe, the resorts report.

Here's the latest from the National Weather Service in Reno. Click on photos to see the illustration:

Predicting how much snow will fall at Lake Tahoe is a long-held pastime of skiers, professional weather watchers, resort operators and barstool meteorologists alike.
And the safe bet for precipitation pundits in coming years may be the under, according to a recently published study looking at the likelihood of high and low snowfall seasons on a warming planet.

A lot of moisture is headed our way, but according to the latest from the National Weather Service in Reno, any significant snow is likely to be along the Sierra's higher elevations.
Fire up the prayer and meditation circles. We could use a drop in temperatures.

Last Thursday, Elaine and I spent an enjoyable morning (as usual) fishing for Mackinaw (Lake) Trout at Lake Tahoe with our longtime friend and sport fishing guide, Gene St. Denis of Blue Ribbon Charters at South Lake Tahoe, Calif.

"Gino" has fished Tahoe for some 30 years and is one of the top, if not the top, fishing guides at that lake.
Sigh, and as usual on that day, Man's Favorite Sport belonged to Elaine for the fourth straight year!

UPDATE 411PM: Sierra-at-Tahoe Resort will open for the 2012-13 season on Thursday, November 22, 2012, offering Easy Rider Express lift, Rock Garden lift, and three surface lifts, giving guests access to four trails including, Broadway, Easy Street, Echo, and Lower Sleighride. Building on the reputation as one of the nation’s top terrain park resorts, Sierra Resort™ will offer a small to medium jib park on Broadway consisting of multiple features including new boxes and rails, giving eager guests a chance to get their park legs back underneath them.

Some years the weather has been unseasonably warm and the Lake Tahoe region is devoid of any skiing or snowboarding at Thanksgiving. However, this is certainly not one of those years.
There will be seven Lake Tahoe ski resorts open on Thanksgiving day and one more – Homewood ski resort – will open on Friday.
Read more here.

TAHOE/TRUCKEE, Calif. - With the National Weather Service predicting more snow for the region this weekend, regional road crews - which have seen no reduction in staffing due to budgetary constrain...

A series of storm systems will move into Lake Tahoe and the Sierra this weekend but how much snow to expect is still up in the air. The first low will move into the region late Thursday night into Friday, with moist flow continuing ahead of the next system for the weekend, according to the National Weather Service in Reno.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will begin the sale of holiday tree permits the day after Thanksgiving, Friday, Nov. 23. Permits cost $10 each (cash or check only, no credit cards) with a limit of two permits per family. Permit holders may choose from a variety of pine, fir or cedar in designated cutting areas and must abide by specific permit conditions for proper and responsible collection. Harvesting smaller diameter trees offers residents and visitors a traditional holiday experience while helping to thin the forest.

Powerful early-season storms combined with the area’s largest snowmaking operations have allowed Vail Resorts’ Lake Tahoe mountains – Heavenly Mountain Resort, Northstar California Resort and Kirkwood Mountain Resort – to open early with 111 acres. Heavenly and Northstar will open on Wednesday, Nov. 14 with a combined seven lifts and eight trails, totaling 51 acres.

Here is a video update from the National Weather Service in Reno regarding the winter storm moving into the Lake Tahoe Basin.
The strong cold front has moved into the Lake Tahoe area with snow levels expected down to the valley floors. Snowfall will be the heaviest Thursday night with lake effect snow bands possible on the east side of Lake Tahoe and in the Carson Range on Friday night as well as southeast of Pyramid Lake.

After attending the State of the South Shore Economy Public Forum held on October 23rd, 2012 I was inspired to draft a response to the questions about economic revitalization that were asked at the meeting. I feel like our group had many salient ideas that were not properly represented. Also, I have noticed that people are quick to offer ideas like “reduce unemployment”, “beautify the city”, and “improve recreation”, but they are typically unable to offer suggestions on how to make those ideas a reality.

Cold weather, wind and snow is on the way, Lake Tahoe. A winter storm is expected later this week that will bring strong winds, much colder temperatures and 5 to 10 inches of snow to the Lake Tahoe Basin, the Sierra and possibly 2 to 5 inches on the valley floors of Western Nevada. A strong cold front will push through the region Thursday dropping temperatures 15 to 20 degrees below normal by Friday through the weekend, according to the National Weather Service in Reno. A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued.

The Lake Tahoe basin can expect seasonably warm weather through midweek with changes ahead that may bring snow down to lake level and the valley floors before the weekend, according to the National Weather Service in Reno.
A cold front is forecast to bring gusty winds Thursday with showers spreading into the Sierra, Lake Tahoe Basin and western Nevada. Showers and much colder conditions will then spread over all the area Thursday night through Saturday with snow levels falling to all valley floors.

Here is this week's fishing report covering rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of Oct. 31 through Nov. 6.

Gusty winds and low humidity ahead of a low pressure system has prompted the National Weather Service in Reno to issue a Fire Weather Watch for Wednesday that includes the western Sierra front. Some rain and high elevation snow is expected as the system pulls through but the Lake Tahoe Basin but doesn't appear to be in a zone where forecasters believe there will be significant accumulation.