Lots of Snow, Not Enough Water

To a casual observer like me, it looks like we've got a pretty good snowpack going for this water year. The Sierra is white almost down to the edge of the Truckee Meadows. We were buried in snow during December and it didn't melt off for more than a month. It was also freezing cold while all that snow was falling, which was not a good thing. It made for light, fluffy snow with little water content. The net result is that while it's pretty and the skiers are happy, the snowpack to date is below normal and doesn't hold enough water to fill depleted reservoirs and fend off a fourth dry year in a row.

A snow survey taken in early January at the Mt. Rose ski area told the story. Water content in the four feet of snow was only about 56% of what it should have been. In fact, all across the eastern Sierra the snowpack is below normal for this time of year. According to the National Weather Service in Reno, here's where our major drainages were as of January 13...

• Lake Tahoe - 77%
• Truckee River - 76%
• Carson River - 85%
• Walker River - 70%

Many other measurements are below average as well. Lake Tahoe has no storage available for sending downstream, reservoir levels in the Truckee River drainage are at 78% of average and the Carson River is at a dismal 13%. Unless something changes, projected stream flows later in the year will be below average as well. And something may change - the long-range forecast is for normal to above normal precipitation for the Reno / Tahoe region from February through April. Whether it turns out to be enough to make up a deficit from three dry years in a row remains to be seen.

Now the good news. Starting Sunday, a series of storms is forecast to bring significant rain and snow to Reno, the Sierra around Lake Tahoe and a wide area of northern Nevada. These storms won't be nearly as cold as those in December and several feet of nice, wet snow could accumulate at higher elevations. Let's hope the prediction comes true.

If you plan to travel by road anywhere outside the Truckee Meadows, be prepared for winter driving and check the highway conditions before departing.

Sources: National Weather Service, Reno Gazette-Journal.

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