Enjoying clouds just part of a Sierra day

They are made of the wind, harnessed by Nevada mountaintops and valleys that contain just the right conditions. Part science and half magic, lenticular clouds are an unusual natural element found in our area.

Have you ever thought you saw a flying saucer hover overhead, poised to let down its landing gear? If so, skeptics suggest that it was probably a lenticular cloud.

Lenticularis comes from the Latin for lentil, the wonderful legume with the shape of a double convex lens. Stacked like pancakes or dishes nestled next to each other, they are commonly known as the “UFO clouds.” Serious cloud watchers call them orographic wave clouds, and they have the nickname “lennies.”

Simply put, air rising over the crest of a mountain can condense to form smooth clouds in a wavelike pattern downwind (on the lee side) of peaks. They can appear at any level in the sky (high, medium, or low), and particularly large formations can traverse all three levels. As long as the air speed remains constant, lenticulars can appear to be suspended in the same place, giving an even stronger other-worldly impression.

There is a wide place in the road when the vista opens up as you are coming down Woodfords Grade to head into Carson Valley. It is here that you can suddenly access cell phone service that is typically unavailable elsewhere. It is also the location where, on those days when the conditions are ideal, that you can view the wondrous lenticular, levitating peacefully in the far distance.

Cloud physics suggests that billions of minuscule water droplets make up a cloud. These droplets disperse reflected light off their disordered surfaces in every direction. Together, this creates the illusion that the drifting, constantly transforming cloud is an opaque, solid object.

As we all know from entering a low valley fog, a cloud is not a concrete object that one can grasp and hold. It surrounds you, creating a soft, mesmerizing dream that cannot be controlled by any human means.

It is this “sitting cloud” that produces the incredible phenomena of “pogonip”. Most sources say it is a Native American word for the spiked frost that can form on every skeletal bush, tree, vine, and surface here in the West. Meteorologically, it is the term used to describe the uncommon occurrence of a “frozen fog.”

If it is a “pogonip morning,” grab your hat and gloves and head outside. You will be rewarded with the true experience of a winter wonderland, occurring spontaneously, and with a radiance like no other.

There is an eerie sensation when our familiar landscape is completely transformed, making you feel like you have been transported into your own private snow-globe. The icy cold magnifies the snowflakes, allowing you to see the intricacy of their crystalline structure. Temperatures have to be below freezing with enough humidity for the enchantment to occur.

Another morning to head out and experience the atmospheric environment is actually the complete opposite: a total absence of clouds. Here it is known as a “bluebird day”. After a huge snowstorm, with the ground blanketed in polished white drifts, suddenly the morning sun will come out, and the endless blue will open up: pristine and clear. This is a skier’s perfect day, making first tracks in the glow of glittering sunshine.

The bluebird has long been considered symbolic of happiness, so that is how this particular type of cloudless day got its name. Our local species is the scrub jay with a small, rounded head and dusty azure color at the lower elevations. The stellar jay, who is found from the elevation at Woodfords on up, is a deeper blue with black markings and a “punk-rock” shaped head. It is impossible to hold on to despairing thoughts on a bluebird day.

Lenticular clouds, pogonip, and bluebird days happen elsewhere in the West, and in the world. But these special local occurrences are another on the long list of what makes both Douglas and Alpine Counties exceptional.

These are not “common” occurrences, but majestic and unique, adding another layer of grandeur to Carson Valley and the towering Sierra Nevada.