Does anyone have any idea of the snow level in the Humboldt Range in Nevada? I'm going to be out west and would like to get up Star Peak, but not sure how good the roads are. Normally I wouldn't even be hopeful for the idea, but I hear it's been a dry winter out that way...

Thanks!
Shannon

www.nohrsc.noaa.gov/interactive/html/ma ... &js=1&uc=0

Based on the NOAA it's supposedly completely. Based on my experience the NOAA is good for a ballpark but far from 100% accurate. I'd guess there's probably some spotty patches of snow along north facing slopes and shaded areas but probably nothing bad enough to pose any major difficulties. Future storms notwithstanding, of course.

Thanks Castlereagh. I usually trust that site, but there aren't any weather stations at higher elevations and I didn't know how well their forecasts held. Appreciate the info/experience.

Cheers

Based on the Elko weathercams, snow looks pretty sparse. If you don't mind walking a bit, you can go up the western road into Star (Eldorado Canyon) quite a ways. Even if you only make it to 5750' to the old cabin, it's just a road walk-- and since that ridge is west-facing with fairly good sun exposure, you might get up a bit higher.

http://hwstock.org/star/html/1star24k.htm

A friend in Elko says the snow is really spotty at 6500'.

i depend on the noaa website quite a bit for a lot of the remote desert stuff, especially since spring or fall is when i'm more likely to go after them. Typically they're a decent ballpark even in the middle of nowhere. The only times I've had problems with their forecasts were when they severely underestimated the snow that had fallen over an area during a storm the day before, and then during the Government Shutdown and a few weeks afterwards when I think there was something wrong in their models they had to correct for afterwards.

I had a pretty good view of Pilot Peak today in NE Nevada. Opposite side of the state, but it's a little higher than Star and the area is generally not as dry as Star I think. The NOAA doesn't have anything on the range for snow cover...I could see from the SE that it was mostly snow free, a few lines of snow higher up on the ridges and probably some north facing areas, but generally dry...and it looked dryer than when I did it last April

Hmm, now looks like it's going to snow 6-12 inches before the weekend. I still might give it a go. Very helpful, guys, thanks.

Just thought I'd give a quick update in case anyone else is interested: I had a 2WD rental car with about 7" of clearance. Got it to 5100' in El Dorado canyon, but there were at least a couple of inches of snow on the road the rest of the way. Most of the road was covered in a couple of inches of snow (not surprisingly). I made good time, but had to turn back due to a storm rolling in (I had to be back in the bay area Monday and was worried about taking I-80 back over the Donner Pass...as it turns out I barely made it).