Dusting of snow on Bay Area’s highest peaks, several feet of snow in Sierra after atmospheric river storm

After weeks of bone dry weather, those hoping to hit the slopes at Lake Tahoe’s ski resorts this weekend will be greeted with several feet of fresh snow. Meanwhile, the Bay Area’s highest peaks, including Mount Diablo and Mount Hamilton, received a dusting during Monday’s atmospheric river storm.

There’s even more snow in the forecast for this week. Another storm Wednesday into Thursday is expected to dump up to 36 inches of snow on Lassen Park, up to 18 inches on the Donner Pass and between 12 to 18 inches on Interstate 5, according to the National Weather Service.

Mount Diablo in Contra Costa County got around two inches of snow while Monday’s storm dropped three to four inches on the highest elevations on Mount Hamilton in Santa Clara County, shuttering the road at Lick Observatory on Tuesday morning.

A weak storm anticipated to pass over the Bay Area on Wednesday night may also leave a dusting of snow on mountain peaks.

“There’s a small chance at the end of the system,” said National Weather Service forecaster Sean Miller. “It’s not impossible, it just has to line up just right. The biggest question is whether the cold air will connect as the precipitation is moving away. If there’s an overlap, we can end up getting a little bit.”

Palisades Tahoe got a whopping 60 inches of snow between Dec. 12 and 14, while Kirkwood saw 52 inches of snow in that same time period, according to the National Weather Service. The storm dropped 58 inches on Sugar Bowl and 52 inches on Boreal.

Here are some preliminary snow totals for this storm. Snow showers will continue to linger today and mountain travel is still discouraged. Another system will move into the area early tomorrow, with more snow expected! #CAwx pic.twitter.com/ullCIVgHXo

— NWS Sacramento (@NWSSacramento) December 14, 2021

“Most of the snow is all beneficial,” said Emily Heller, a NWS meteorologist. “We didn’t have much of a snow pack until the huge storm in October. There’s not a whole lot of downsides. For California, in general, having the snow pack that feeds into the reservoirs can help with the water storage situation that is unique to California.”

Northstar California Resort and Heavenly Mountain Resort delayed their openings until 10 a.m. Tuesday due to the inundation of snow. Palisades Tahoe was closed Tuesday after reporting that the power had been knocked out. Kirkwood was also temporarily shuttered Tuesday to work on avalanche mitigation and snow safety before reopening later on in the day.

“They’ve got chair 5 up and running, and are excited to welcome guests to experience the amazing new powder on the mountain,” said Sara Roston, a spokesperson for Vail Resorts.

Strong winds also knocked down trees and power lines and temporarily shuting down major interstates during the storm.

California Highway Patrol said Tuesday morning that State Route 88, State Route 89, US-50, Interstate 80 and US-395 in the Sierra Mountains had “restrictions”