A storm is on the way for the California mountains. Today looks mostly sunny, then snow moves in on Friday, and it clears out again by Saturday. All five mountains below are under a Winter Storm Warning from the National Weather Service. Forecast snow totals are also from the National Weather Service. Snow, lift and trail numbers are what the resorts report.
Mammoth and June
Mammoth Mountain is the only one of these five that’s open right now. The resort reports 2 of 25 lifts and 3 of 181 trails running. It has 12 inches of snow so far this season and 0 new inches in the latest report. Friday’s forecast calls for heavy snow, with 8 to 11 inches. Saturday looks mostly sunny.
Next door, June Mountain isn’t open yet. It reports 4 inches on the season and 0 new. Friday’s forecast is snow, about 7 inches, with sunny skies on Saturday.
On the roads, SR-203 and SR-158 both have chain notices posted. Check them before you drive up.
Tahoe and Highway 4
Kirkwood has the biggest number in this storm. Friday’s forecast is heavy snow with 11 inches. It isn’t open yet, so this is one to watch on the cams as the base builds.
Sierra at Tahoe is also closed for now. Snow is in the forecast for Friday, with 8 inches expected, then mostly sunny on Saturday.
Bear Valley gets a mix. Friday’s forecast is rain and snow, with 6 inches of snow. It’s not open yet. SR-4 is closed in part, so check the road conditions before you plan a trip that way.
What to expect
This looks like a quick storm. Today is calm, Friday brings the snow, and Saturday clears out at every mountain on this list. Most of these places haven’t opened for the season, so for now this snow is mostly about building a base. Mammoth is the one place you can ski right now. You can see what else is running on the open ski resorts page.
With a Winter Storm Warning in place and chain notices on several roads, Friday is a day to check conditions before you leave.
Watch it come in
The cams are the easiest way to see how much actually falls. Each mountain page above has its live cams next to the latest snow, weather, lift and road conditions. For the plain answer on new snow, the snow stake cams show the totals as they stack up.
