Blustery winter storm brewing for Tuesday

After a week of relatively mild weather, winter will make a comeback on Tuesday and looks like it will stick around for a while.

“Winter weather returns in a big way Tuesday onward, with longer range outlooks pointing toward colder and wetter conditions continuing into early March,” said National Weather Service Reno Meteorologist Dawn Johnston. “Today will be the warmest day most locations will see in the next week or two, so hopefully you can get out and enjoy it.”

Strong winds will bring in the cold front on Tuesday, with a wind advisory issued for 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Carson Valley.

West winds 20-35 mph gusting up to 55 mph in places and up to 65 mph along highway 395 and 88.

There may be some snow falling down to the Valley floor on Tuesday with the possibility of short bursts with higher rates and some thunder. Accumulations are not expected to exceed 1.5 inches in the Valley, but that could vary.

“The snowfall will come in multiple parts, with each part favoring

varying locations,” Johnson said. “The snow character would be dry and powdery given the cold nature of the storm, especially behind the cold front.”

Cold weather is expected to return for the next seven to 10 days.

“High temperatures Wednesday through Friday will struggle to get out of the 30s in even the warmest valleys, and winds will make it feel colder,” Johnson said on Monday. “Lows will be somewhat moderated by clouds, but with this cold of an airmass, they will still dip into the teens and single digits, with below zero in those colder mountain valley locations.”

She said that with the windchill, exposed areas of the High Sierra could see low temperatures down to around minus 30 degrees.