Weather
The National Weather Service office in Sacramento, California has issued a Blizzard Warning for the Central Sierra from Tuesday afternoon, January 26 through Friday morning January 29, 2021. In an email message to NWS weather spotters, Meteorologist Eric Kuth stated that “a powerful and cold winter storm is expected to impact the area Tuesday afternoon through Friday” and that “we can expect to see up to 4 to 7 feet of snow in the higher mountains. The foothills are also expected to see heavy snow.
Snow levels are expected to be around 2000′. Central Sierra foothill communities such as Sonora may see a few inches. Heavier accumulations up Highway 108 near Twain Harte and up Highway 4 near Arnold could see 12-18″ of new snow. High winds are also expected with this storm, which coupled with heavy snow, could cause whiteout conditions along mountain highways. Travel in the Central Sierra will be challenging the next few days.
Dodge Ridge and Bear Valley will both see a significant amount of snow from this storm. Skiing and riding should be excellent this weekend. If you’ve never skied our smaller Central Sierra ski areas, now is the time to check them out. Remember to always be prepared when traveling in the mountains during the winter.
Dodge Ridge Ski Resort is 35 miles up Highway 108 from Sonora, CA, and is the easiest drive to any ski area in the Central Sierra – www.dodgeridge.com
Bear Valley Resort is 45 miles up Highway 4 from Angels Camp, CA – www.bearvalley.com
Everyone, please be aware that Dodge Ridge is currently CLOSED due to many large downed trees from the huge wind storm last week. This is the same wind storm that closed Yosemite NP. The winds were very high and wide and came from the NE direction (aka Mono Winds). We witnessed lots of snapped and downed trees also on Highway 88 on Saturday. Please make sure you confirm Dodge is opened as planned for on Thursday, before heading there. Below is a statement on their website as of Tuesday, 1/26, at 8:30pm PT.
WE’RE SCHEDULED TO RESUME OPERATIONS THIS THURSDAY, JANUARY 28
DODGE RIDGE IS TEMPORARILY CLOSED DUE TO A SEVERE WIND EVENT THIS WEEK
Our Mountain Operation crews have been out on the mountain mitigating hazards and repairing damages all week as we work toward our reopening.
The forecast looks great prior to reopening. Check our Snow Report page for updates.
see my other story about Dodge Ridge