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(Photo: National Park Service)
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Bay Area residents awoke to snow on the region’s mountains, including Diablo, Hamilton and Tamalpais, and on Highways 17 and 35 (Skyline Boulevard) in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
The once-every-decade dusting hit the Bay Area early Tuesday, with snow levels as low as 1,200 feet. Families raced to the region’s mountains for a rare opportunity to build a snowman or enjoy a snowball fight. Though rare, snow falling on Feb. 5 in the Bay Area has been somewhat routine, according to observations taken by the Weather Bureau from 1890 through 1964.
The last time the Bay Area experienced a winter storm with snow levels this low was February 2011, according to the National Weather Service in Monterey.
@RobMarciano Not a bad day here in the Sierra my friend…
Summary break out of 7day totals:
*BearValley: 117”
*KirkwoodMtn: 88”
*Sierra-at-Tahoe: 81”
*MammothMtn: 79"
*Squaw Valley: 77”
*Sugar Bowl: 75”
*HeavenlyMtn: 75”
*Northstar: 72”
*Alpine Meadows: 68” pic.twitter.com/qlStyBjq41— Coop@KirkwoodMtn (@KirkwoodMtnCoop) February 5, 2019
The weather service was relying on weather observers from around the Bay Area to measure and report snowfall totals. An observer at Mount Hamilton reported an accumulation of 6 inches of snow Tuesday morning.
An observer on Mt Hamilton (4200 ft) reported 6" of snow earlier today. #cawx pic.twitter.com/tXCtSLlavR
— NWS Bay Area (@NWSBayArea) February 5, 2019
One of the weather services’ meteorologists joined the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services on a snow survey at White Oaks Campground in Big Sur, where 4 inches was recorded. On Twitter, the weather service noted that temperatures were in the 20s, and “people are here camping.”
In Santa Cruz we get the snow and ice off our cars with flip flops 😆 pic.twitter.com/uXQyzFqLpr
— Mike Lee (@AstrobioMike) February 5, 2019
Snow started falling on Highway 17’s summit about 11 p.m. Monday, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Sam Courtney. Just before midnight, a stretch of Highway 17 at the summit was closed to allow Caltrans’ snow plows to clear the roadway.