Carson City area weather: Light mountain snow, gusty winds through Saturday, then warming
The first of two weather systems will move through the region late Thursday, mostly affecting areas from Tahoe north in the Sierra and near the Oregon border in western Nevada. A second wave follows Friday into Saturday, potentially impacting all areas of the Sierra and western Nevada.
As far as snow is concerned, the National Weather Service says amounts will be light over areas passes, with under an inch for the first wave, and up to a couple inches for the second wave.
Up to 1 inch in the Lake Tahoe Basin and higher terrain of northeast California with spotty dustings possible Friday night for Western Nevada foothills.
For the lowers valleys, there's a slight chance of snow (20 percent) overnight Friday into Saturday morning. Forecasters advise that any snow can produce slick roads and difficult travel conditions. If you have travel plans across the Sierra, be sure to carry chains.
As for winds, NWS forecasters say we can expect strong gusty winds along Sierra ridge lines starting late Thursday and lasting through Saturday morning. Southwest winds will pick up in valley locations Friday afternoon, peaking overnight into early Saturday morning.
Wind prone locations in the eastern Sierra could see gusts exceed 40 mph. Lakes will be choppy with hazardous travel for high profile vehicles, particularly along US-395 and I-580 from Reno south through Mono County. Aviation interests will also experience impacts including turbulence, low level wind shear and mountain wave activity.
There were not any weather watches or advisories for Carson City and the Lake Tahoe area as of Thursday morning, however the weather service did issue a special weather statement regarding the weather systems headed our way.
Daytime highs around Carson City, Carson Valley areas Friday will be in the low 50s Friday, low 40s Saturday and upper 40s Sunday.
As for Monday forecasters say we can expect light winds, drying conditions, and warmer temperatures. Peak temperatures on Monday with spring-like with a high near 60 for Carson City.
Check the latest forecast at weather.gov/Reno and check road conditions with Caltrans and NDOT.
For the latest weather discussion go here. For Carson City area updates see CarsonWeather.com.