Standing water ripples in the sunrise east of Genoa on Sunday morning.
With a high wind warning in effect until 10 p.m. tonight, the rinse cycle in an atmospheric river driven storm is over for a bit.
As of 6:30 a.m., 50 mph wind gusts have already been recorded across the Valley on a blustery Ground Hog Day, according to the National Weather Service.
A spot near Sunridge in northern Carson Valley clocked a 59 mph gust while one at the base of Kingsbury Grade recorded a 58 mph gust.
Minden-Tahoe Airport and Sheridan both had 53 mph gusts.
A gauge a mile north of Genoa recorded 2.3 inches of rain from the entire storm with 1.5 inches of that since Saturday morning.
That total was eclipsed by gauges along the West Fork of the Carson River that recorded 2.9 inches of rain near Woodfords, with totals of 2.67 inches and 2.52 inches in southern Carson Valley on both sides of the state line.
Much less rain fell in the center of the Valley, with Mottsville getting .38 inches and Minden-Tahoe Airport only recording .01 inches for the entire 48-hour period.
The rain resulted in the East Fork of the Carson River cresting a full foot higher to 10.76 feet or 780 cubic feet per second at 3:15 a.m. Sunday. The West Fork at Woodfords was up from 10.58 feet on Saturday morning to 11.42 feet just after midnight.
An avalanche warning is in effect for the back country where snow levels are at 7,500-8,000 feet in the warm storm, according to the National Weather Service.
“The warmer airmass is keeping high snow levels across the area through this afternoon,” forecasters said on Sunday morning. “Snow levels start to fall Monday morning as the upper low drops in and taps into colder air.”
Snow levels overnight on Monday will stay around 6,000-7,000 feet, dropping to the valley floors by Tuesday night into Wednesday.
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It was hailing weather alerts at Lake Tahoe before the rain arrived on Friday afternoon.
The basin is under a flood watch issued 2 p.m. Friday warned that excessive flooding could arrive Saturday through Tuesday afternoon as an atmospheric river made landfall.
Tahoe was already under a winter weather advisory through 10 p.m. Saturday for spots above 7,000 feet.
Accumulations of 6-12 inches of Sierra cement were expected at 7,000-8,000 feet, with up to 20 inches above 8,000 feet. Winds across the ridges could hit up to 100 mph in spots.
A lake wind advisory is in effect until 7 p.m. Saturday at Lake Tahoe. An avalanche watch was issued by the Sierra Avalanche Center in Truckee for high danger in the backcountry early Saturday between Yuba and Ebbetts passes. Ski areas and highways where avalanche mitigation exists are not included.
Douglas County emergency dispatchers reported fallen rocks on Kingsbury Grade around 1:30 p.m. by which time both Daggett and Spooner summit traffic cameras showed wet roads.
Chains or four-wheel drive vehicles with snow tires were required on Highway 88 over Carson Pass and on Highway 89 between Hope Valley and Meyers. A high wind warning was issued for Interstate 580 through Washoe Valley.
A high-wind watch was issued for Carson Valley 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday with 25-30 mph southwest winds, gusting to up to 45 mph by the afternoon. Gusts of up to 65 mph are predicted for windprone areas.
Winds could knock down trees and power lines, causing widespread power outages, according to the alert.
