Weekend Update

It appears as if the "big snow pattern" may finally be ending -- at least temporarily. Our weather pattern is definitely shifting away from frequent cold storms and more towards occasional storms with more dry weather than wet weather. I see several sunny days on the mountain coming up.

As of now, here's the outlook:

Saturday -- Increasing light snow in the afternoon. Snow level around 4,000 feet... which is a little high. But it's low enough to keep the precipitation as snow, albeit a wet snow. Expect only 3-6" with this storm -- it's not very strong.

Sunday -- Becoming sunny. The freezing level will be 5,000-6,000 feet, so it'll be fairly mild in the afternoon with temperatures into the 30s. There shouldn't be much wind. Overall, a nice day on the mountain.

Monday -- Increasing snow again in the afternoon. Expect about 6-10" of new snow by Tuesday morning. As the snow begins, the snow level will be near 4,000 feet... but it should fall to below 2,000 feet by Tuesday morning.

Tuesday-- Becoming sunny. It'll be cold in the morning, but afternoon temperatures will be 25-30 degrees.

Wednesday through Friday -- Mostly sunny and milder. The freezing level should be above 6,000 feet... meaning that the runs exposed to the sun may enter a freeze/thaw pattern. That means firm conditions in the morning with some afternoon softening. It is January, however, so once the snow gets firm or icy, it can be difficult for it to soften unless it gets unusually warm. Higher-elevation areas with a northerly exposure (such as Heather Canyon and the bowls off of Shooting Star Ridge at Meadows and the Outback & Northwest territories at Mt. Bachelor) may maintain winter-like snow for several days since the sun angle is so low, however.

A major plus to this upcoming break in the weather: Crews will have lots of opportunities to build parks and pipes in the coming week.

Have a fun weekend!