The Beautiful Side of California’s Blizzard

I live and work in the Bay Area, and I play in our local mountains. The last seven days provided one heck of a playground. Looping up and over Donner Summit on eastbound I80 last Friday night hinted at my westbound Highway 50 emergency exit down and around Lake Tahoe the following week. The mountains were caked in snow, driving options were limited, and I was loving it.

Squaw Valley upper mountain

Valley View

Snow-caked trees at Squaw Creek

Afternoon before the bigger storm, at sunset

Snowplow on the driveway

My Subaru on the afternoon the storm started

Front “walkway”

Highway 28 south of Incline Village, Nevada ~ AKA “sketch sketchy highway”

More winter wonderland through sketch sketchy

Highway 50 South Lake Tahoe — I thought this road would be plowed to the asphalt. I was wrong.

Highway 50 eastbound heading up to Echo Summit

Snow berms along Highway 50

The drive continued, longer than I’m used to but more scenic than ever. Luckily, I was heading back to the Bay on a Friday, and most traffic was in the alternate direction. Snow levels were healthy, even at 4,000 feet! This is great news for California in the fight against drought. Plus, more snow in winter means more waterfalls, lakes, and rivers to enjoy during the rest of the year.

— Lorraine