Over 7 Feet of Snow in California's Mountains

Now that much of the snow has tapered off for the Sierra Nevada, we're finally seeing some of the crazy snowfall totals they have accumulated from this storm. Mt. Rose, near Reno, NV, saw over 7.5 FEET of snow! Donner Peak, which is along I-80 and a little farther to the west from Mt. Rose, got close to 7.5 feet. Overall, this was an extremely beneficial system that dumped a bunch of snow in the high country.

There has been a downside to the snow though, plows could not keep up with the extreme snow amounts and the blizzard conditions, so I-80 through the High Country is CLOSED until further notice.

With many places tallying 5-7' of snow, sights like this one below are fairly common out of the mountains. Ski resorts are having to kick snow off their measuring boards to get accurate measurements!

Due to the recent snowfall, slopes are unstable, meaning the avalanche risk is HIGH. This includes the entire spine of the Sierra Nevada with all major ski resorts around Lake Tahoe, Mammoth Lakes, and Bear Valley. Once I-80 reopens and you're planning on hitting the high country, please be extremely cautious and prepare for avalanche threats, even in ski resorts.