Winter Storm Watch
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
509 AM PDT FRI MAR 20 2009

...WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM SATURDAY AFTERNOONTHROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON FOR THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA...

A WINTER STORM WATCH FOR THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF THE SOUTHERNSIERRA NEVADA REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM SATURDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON.

A COLD PACIFIC LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM FROM THE GULF OF ALASKA WILL MOVE SOUTHEAST INTO AND ACROSS THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR LATE SATURDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON. THIS SYSTEMWILL HAVE ENOUGH MOISTURE AND COLD AIR FOR THE THREAT OF A SIGNIFICANT SNOW EVENT IN THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA.

BASED ON THE LATEST DATA...SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 1 TO 2 FEET ARE POSSIBLE AT ELEVATIONS ABOVE 5000 FEET WITH THE SNOW BEGINNING IN THE YOSEMITE PARK AREA BY LATE SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND THEN SPREADING SOUTHWARD OVERNIGHT. SNOW LEVELS WILL LIKELY FALL TO 3000 FEET OR LESS ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON...THUS ACCUMULATING SNOW ISALSO POSSIBLE IN THE HIGHER FOOTHILLS...INCLUDING BASS LAKE. IN ADDITION TO THE SNOW...STRONG WINDS OVER THE RIDGES AND SIERRACREST ARE LIKELY.

PERSONS PLANNING OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES IN THE SIERRA ARE ADVISED THAT A MAJOR CHANGE FROM WARM AND DRY WEATHERON MUCH OF SATURDAY TO COLD AND SNOWY WEATHER ON SUNDAY WILL OCCUR. PLEASE PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR SIGNIFICANTSNOW ACCUMULATIONS AND WIND THAT MAY IMPACT TRAVEL. CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE LATEST FORECASTS.

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION

FXUS66 KHNX 202136
AFDHNX

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
236 PM PDT FRI MAR 20 2009

.DISCUSSION...A WINTERLIKE STORM WILL BRING A DRAMATIC END TO
OUR SPELL OF MILD AND PLEASANT WEATHER THIS WEEKEND. THE STORM
IS CURRENTLY SITUATED OVER THE GULF OF ALASKA AND IT WILL TRACK
STEADILY SOUTHEASTWARD DURING THE NEXT 48 HRS. HIGH CLOUDS WELL
IN ADVANCE OF THIS STORM WILL BEGIN TO SHOW UP OVER THE NORTHERN
HALF OF OUR CWA LATER TONIGHT. AS THE STORM APPROACHES CA ON
SATURDAY...CLOUDS WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE AND A STRENGTHENING
ONSHORE FLOW WILL GENERATE PRECIP OVER THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF
THE SIERRA NORTH OF KINGS CANYON SATURDAY AFTERNOON.

AS THE STORM TRACKS CLOSER...PRECIP WILL SPREAD OVER MUCH OF THE
REST OF OUR CWA SATURDAY NIGHT. COPIOUS MOISTURE COUPLED WITH
STRONG JET DYNAMICS AND COLD ADVECTION WILL PRODUCE HEAVY PRECIP
OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH MIDDAY SUNDAY.
DURING THIS TIME...SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF UP TO 3 FEET ARE LIKELY
OVER THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS OF THE SIERRA. COLD AIR ACCOMPANYING
THIS STORM WILL BRING SNOW LEVELS DOWN TO 2K-3K FEET BY SUNDAY
WITH A SMALL ACCUMULATION OF SNOW POSSIBLE IN THE FOOTHILLS. IN
THE TEHACHAPI MOUNTAINS...UP TO A FOOT OF SNOW IS POSSIBLE ABOVE
6000 FEET AND THERE WILL BE ENOUGH SNOW TO CAUSE POTENTIAL TRAVEL
WOES ALONG INTERSTATE 5 OVER THE GRAPEVINE AND THROUGH TEHACHAPI
PASS SUNDAY. BY LATE IN THE DAY SUNDAY...SOME OF THE HIGHER RIDGES
IN THE KERN COUNTY DESERT MIGHT EVEN GET A LIGHT DUSTING OF SNOW.

AS THE COLDEST CORE OF THE STORM PASSES OVER THE CENTRAL CA
INTERIOR SUNDAY AFTERNOON...PRECIPITATION WILL BECOME SHOWERY.
HOWEVER...THE ATMOSPHERE WILL BECOME VERY UNSTABLE AND BRING A
THREAT OF SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL IN THE SJ VLY AND
ADJACENT FOOTHILLS. BY THEN...OUR CWA WILL BE IN THE LEFT FRONT
QUADRANT OF THE UPPER LEVEL JET WHERE A COUPLE OF THUNDERSTORMS
COULD MATURE TO SEVERE LEVELS.

ADDITIONALLY...POST FRONTAL WINDS WILL BE QUITE STRONG OVER THE
KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS AND DESERT. IN THESE AREAS...WEST WINDS OF
25 TO 45 MPH ARE LIKELY THROUGH AND BELOW THE PASSES SUNDAY AFTN
AND EVENING WITH GUSTS AS HIGH AS 80 MPH.

PRECIP WILL DIMINISH IN MOST AREAS BY SUNDAY NIGHT AS THE STORM
SYSTEM MOVES INTO THE GREAT BASIN. AS WINDS ABATE AND SKIES
CLEAR IN THE SJ VLY SUNDAY NIGHT...IT WILL BECOME COLD ENOUGH FOR
PATCHY FROST BY DAYBREAK MONDAY. HOWEVER...UPSLOPE CLOUDS OUGHT
TO MITIGATE THE FROST THREAT ALONG THE EAST SIDE AND SOUTH END OF
THE SJ VLY AND ADJACENT FOOTHILLS MONDAY MORNING. OTHERWISE...
MONDAY WILL REMAIN MUCH COOLER THAN NORMAL AS A NORTHWESTERLY
FLOW ALOFT PREVAILS IN THE WAKE OF OUR WEEKEND STORM.

A NICE WARMING TREND IS SLATED FOR THE REMAINDER OF NEXT WEEK
AS AN EPAC RIDGE BUILDS INTO CA. BY NEXT FRIDAY...TEMPS WILL BOUNCE
BACK TO EARLY MAY LEVELS. THE 12Z GFS SEEMS TO BE AN OUTLIER TO
THIS SCENARIO AND PUTS A HALT TO THE WARMUP DURING THE MIDDLE OF
NEXT WEEK BY BRINGING AN INSIDE SLIDER TROUGH INTO THE GREAT
BASIN. UNLESS THE OTHER MODELS TREND SIMILARLY...THE GFS WILL
CONTINUE TO BE RULED OUT OF THE EXTENDED FORECAST.

&&

.AVIATION...VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL OVER THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
INTERIOR THROUGH 00Z SUNDAY. WINDS OVER THE SIERRA CREST WILL
INCREASE TO 40-45 KTS SATURDAY AFTERNOON AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING
LATE-SEASON WINTER STORM.


&&

.AIR QUALITY ISSUES...
NONE

&&

.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 5 PM SATURDAY TO 5 PM PDT SUNDAY FOR
CAZ096-097.

WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 2 AM TO 11 PM PDT SUNDAY FOR CAZ095.

HIGH WIND WATCH FROM SUNDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY EVENING FOR
CAZ098-099.

&&




PUBLIC...DURFEE
AVN/FW...SANGER

This looks like the storm that I ordered up last week...(!)

B

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV
347 PM PDT SAT MAR 21 2009

...PERIODS OF MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW IN THE SIERRA TONIGHT
THROUGH SUNDAY...

.A FAST MOVING STORM WILL DRIVE A COLD FRONT THROUGH THE REGION
TONIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING. PERIODS OF MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOWFALL
AND MUCH COLDER TEMPERATURES WILL ACCOMPANY THE FRONT IN THE
SIERRA...WITH SNOW DIMINISHING TO SNOW SHOWERS BY SUNDAY AFTERNOON.

SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS AND GUSTY WINDS WILL CREATE
DANGEROUS WINTER DRIVING CONDITIONS IN THE SIERRA. IF YOU HAVE
TRAVEL PLANS IN THE SIERRA TONIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING...EXPECT
LENGTHY DELAYS AND POSSIBLE HIGHWAY CLOSURES. CONTINUE TO MONITOR
THE LATEST FORECASTS AT WEATHER.GOV/RENO OR LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER
RADIO.

CAZ073-220645-
/O.CON.KREV.WS.W.0003.090322T0000Z-090322T1800Z/
MONO-
INCLUDING THE CITY OF...MAMMOTH LAKES
347 PM PDT SAT MAR 21 2009

...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM PDT
SUNDAY...

A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11
AM PDT SUNDAY.

* PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH LATE SUNDAY MORNING IN THE
SIERRA...WITH SNOW SPREADING INTO THE REMAINDER OF MONO COUNTY
OVERNIGHT. THE HEAVIEST SNOW IS EXPECTED FROM LATE TONIGHT
THROUGH MID MORNING SUNDAY.

* SNOW LEVELS: INITIALLY AROUND 7000 TO 7500 FEET...THEN RAPIDLY
LOWERING TO BELOW 6000 FEET TONIGHT.

* SNOW AMOUNTS: 15 TO 30 INCHES BY MIDDAY SUNDAY IN THE SIERRA
ABOVE 7000 FEET...WITH LOCAL AMOUNTS TO 3 FEET IN THE HIGH
SIERRA. A TOTAL OF 6 TO 12 INCHES FOR AREAS BETWEEN 6000 AND
7000 FEET NEAR THE HIGHWAY 395 CORRIDOR. LIGHTER SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS SHOULD OCCUR IN THE LOWER VALLEYS OF EASTERN MONO
COUNTY SUNDAY MORNING.

* WINDS: SOUTHWEST WINDS 15 T0 30 MPH WITH GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH IN
THE LOWER ELEVATIONS. GUSTS OF 80 TO 100 MPH OVER THE HIGHER
RIDGES.

* IMPACTS: THE COMBINATION OF HEAVY SNOW AND GUSTY WIND WILL
PRODUCE SEVERAL HOURS OF RAPID SNOW ACCUMULATIONS AND NEAR ZERO
VISIBILITY...ESPECIALLY OVER THE PASSES LATE TONIGHT INTO EARLY
SUNDAY MORNING. THE RISK FOR AVALANCHES IN THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS
WILL INCREASE ON SUNDAY.

&&

$$

I hope I wake up to some fluffy stuff in the a.m. here in Sparks

CHP is reporting heavy snow over Deadman Pass.

What elevation is Sparks? Does it get snow regularly?

B

Nice to see snow on the valley floor again (and no doubt beyond, if you could see that far). Waterfall insurance for those summer visits, at least the early ones.

---

Gary
Yosemite Photo Galleries: http://www.pbase.com/roberthouse/yo

Got 1/4" this morning is all.

Called my sis, she answered while riding one of the lifts on Northstar-At-Tahoe. Time for me to go up there, too.

Here's a great winter web site:

Caltrans Live Streaming Traffic Video

This view brought to you free of charge by the Little Truckee River: