3/12/2023 by John Crotty
Winter weather continues to dominate Lake Almanor. Plumas County is currently under a flood watch, winter storm warning and high wind watch through Wednesday. There will be a (short) break in the weather on Thursday before the next series of storms begin on Friday. The current storms are dropping more rain than snow at lake level and snow melt is finally entering into Almanor. That said, lake level is up less than a foot over the past two months, currently sitting at 4481.77. Our high-water mark in 2022 was 4484.39 which occurred in late May.
Fishing has taken a back seat to snow as many locals are removing snow from roofs. Building code requires roofs meet a 100# snow load rating, many shallow pitched roofs have accumulated six feet or more of snow, the current rain’s soak into the snow and add significant weight to already stressed roofs.
Travel to and from Plumas County remains challenging, four wheel drive or chains may be required at any time, Highway 70 remains closed and you can expect delays on all roads leading to Lake Almanor.
While traveling home from the coast on Sunday, Deb and I made a quick trip to Mount Lassen. These pictures will give you an idea of the snow pack at higher elevations.
