Sierra Snowfall Measured in Feet

The last few days brought a serious, and much needed, addition to the Sierra snowpack. Over here in Reno, we received a goodly amount of rain. All this precipitation has amounted to more than the average for the entire month of March and helped alleviate fears of a drought inducing third dry year in a row. This is a dramatic change from the grim picture we were looking at a few weeks ago. Even though we can never take water for granted here in the desert, we'll probably be able to flush the toilet this summer without feeling guilty.

Before this big storm and the President's Day dump, the total precipitation in our major drainages was below average and shrinking as we went through an unseasonably warm and sunny January. The SnoTel measurements as of March 4 show a much improved precipitation picture - the Truckee River was at 91 percent, the Lake Tahoe Basin was 88 percent, and the Carson River was highest at 98 percent. Here's another way to look at how much water fell on the Sierra - Lake Tahoe's level rose four inches in three days, which equals about 38,000 acre-feet of water, which is more than 12 billion gallons.

As of Wednesday morning, here are some snowfall totals for the latest storm reported by Tahoe area ski resorts.

• Northstar-at-Tahoe: 18 in.
• Squaw Valley: 24 in.
• Heavenly: 36 in.
• Alpine Meadows: 32 in.
• Boreal: 40 in.
• Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe: 20 in.
• Diamond Peak: 24 in.
• Kirkwood: 48 in.

Source: Western Regional Climate Center and VisitRenoTahoe.com

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