Friday - Sunday Storm:

A low-pressure system is spinning near the CA coast Friday morning. It will spread snow showers over the Sierra through the day, reaching the mountain by late morning. Then steadier snow is expected Friday night and turning more showery Saturday into Sunday as the low moves down the coast.

Highs in the 30s through the weekend. We are not expecting strong winds with this storm, but gusty ridgetop winds up to 30-40+ mph. The model average overall is down slightly this morning with the high-end precipitation forecasts averaging around 1.3 inches. Around 50-60% of that could fall by Saturday morning.

The snow levels will fluctuate between 4000-6000 ft. through the weekend, with lower snow levels at night and with heavier bands of precip, and higher snow levels during the day and with lighter precipitation. But overall we should see all snow to the base through the end of the storm. The snow ratios could average around 9-15:1 between 6000-9000 ft through the weekend.

By Sunday night we could see storm totals of around 7-12 inches at the base, 10-15 inches near mid-mountain, and 12-17 inches up top. There is a chance that the deformation band on the north side of the low stalls out someplace over the Tahoe basin and drops more snow than forecast, but it's hard to predict where that could happen.

Monday - Wednesday:

High pressure builds in over the West for Monday through Wednesday. That will quickly bring a return of spring weather. Mostly sunny skies are expected each day with highs into the 40s on Monday, and then into the 50s for the lower elevations on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Colder & Unsettled Weather Returns:

The long-range models continue to show a trough digging back into the West from the 4th - 8th. That will bring a return of colder air and will open the door to storms dropping down from the north. The first could be associated with the initial cold front on Thursday the 4th, and then another system or two could move through by the 8th. 

The latest model runs are showing the chance for a wetter storm or two, not quite as weak as the storms they were showing. We'll continue to watch the trends as we get closer to this period. This could bring another fresh tracks morning or two in April.

Long-Range Forecast:

By the 9th through the 2nd week of April, the long-range models continue to show high pressure in the eastern Pacific shifting closer to or over the West Coast. That could be game over for storms for a while, at least of any significance, with nice spring weather locking in.

BA