Now that the snow has settled from the monster winter of 2023, it’s time that we dismiss the sensational headlines and understand that it was not the record season for snow and water in the Tahoe Sierra that the media would have you believe. References to “record snow/precipitation” continue even though data indicate otherwise.
That’s not to say it wasn’t an epic season in California. Officially, 2023 ranks 5th for snowfall at Central Sierra Snow Laboratory near Donner Pass (since 1880), and 5th for snow and 3rd for cold at Tahoe City where weather bureau measurements began in 1909, the longest dataset in the Tahoe Basin.
NOAA does not use snowfall data from ski areas in its official tallies, but in the Sierra high country incessant atmospheric rivers coupled with consistent below normal temperatures in 2023 translated into seemingly endless powder dumps.
A few California ski resorts set new maximum snowfall records for their locations, including Palisades Tahoe (Squaw Valley) with 723 inches at 8,000 feet elevation. Mammoth Mountain in the southern Sierra blew past its old record with 885 inches (74 feet). Mammoth is still open with top to bottom skiing so get out there if you still need more runs in your quiver.
In the Great Basin, at least 8 Utah resorts set new maximum snowfall totals. Alta Ski Area set a record with 903 inches (75 feet) by the time it closed at the end of April 2023. The region is famous for its light fluffy snow, but for those who got a taste of the bottomless “cold smoke powder” this winter will be bragging about for years to come. Utah hydrologists tallied 30 inches of snow water equivalent (SWE) in the snowpack statewide, also a record.
In April 2023 I created a Power Point presentation for a client that briefly analyzes last winter’s impact in the Tahoe Sierra and its historical ranking for snow and precipitation. (Precipitation is the combination of rain and water equivalent of snow.) I extracted about 10 slides to illustrate this Tahoe Nugget.
The Northern Sierra is the most important region in California for water storage captured from runoff draining the normally wet watershed north of Highway 50 to Mount Shasta. The Northern Sierra 8-Station Index was established in 1922 to provide hydrologists with vital, real-time data regarding precipitation values throughout this vast region. Note that the precipitation value for 2023 is well shy of the top water years.
Tahoe City’s 316 inches (26.3 ft.) of snowfall in 2023 was good enough for 5th place, but needs another 220 inches ((18.3 ft.) to overtake the 1st place winter of 1952! Check out the July 1952 snowpack below.
I’ve used this slide for years. General Mariano Vallejo was an important Californio and ally of the United States in the Mexican American War (1846-48). Despite the fact that the Americans arrested and confined him to prison for no good reason. Vallejo is not talking about climate change in the modern sense, he’s commending the Americans for their industry and can-do spirit.
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