Mammoth Mountain & Eastern Sierra Weather Friday, September 17^th, 2021 @ 11 AM

Good morning everyone, checking the window-cast via area webcams, we have very hazy/smoky skies.

AQI levels have come up each day with yesterday’s levels in the stage 1 health alert range. Look for more of the same over the next 24 hours and then there will be some relief. 

A Fall trough of Low Pressure will be moving in the PW / NorCal over the next 24 hours. That system will continue to cool local temperatures off and bring up some moderate to strong winds over the weekend. 

As of this morning, there is just a slight chance we see any rain showers or high elevation snowflakes.

Taking a look at local conditions, yesterday at the top of Mammoth Mountain there was a high of 53 with a low of 43 this morning. There was a peak wind gust at 11,053 feet at 35 MPH out of the West.

In Mammoth Lakes, the temperature on Thursday peaked at 71 degrees with a low of 41 degrees this morning. There was a peak wind gust of 20 MPH out of the WNW.

Down in Bishop, there was a temperature of 91 degrees with a low of 48 degrees this morning. There was a peak wind gust of 21 MPH out of the SSE.

Temperatures: Mammoth Lakes will be in the low 70s today with overnight lows in the 40s. Over the weekend highs will be in the upper 60’s with lows down into the upper 30s Sunday night. Down in Bishop and the Round Valley areas highs are now expected in the mid to upper 80s with lows in the mid to upper 40s. 

Winds: Will be out of the West 10 to 20 mph with gusts to 35 mph, with stronger gusts possible in wind prone areas. Sunday afternoon into the evening hours we could see gusts 50-60+ mph over Sierra ridges. 

Precipitation: As of now it appears we are too far south for even a dusting of snow or rain. I will be watching all the model runs and will update if I see any changes.

Here are the links to the local NWS Forecasts for Main Lodge & the Mammoth Lakes Basin, Mammoth Lakes, June Lake, Crowley Lake, and Bishop.

Fire and Smoke Forecast: The storms that moved thru last week kicked off two new fires in the Kings Canyon National Park. They are the Complex and Windy wildfires and they are located in Tulare County. Those fires will continue to spread smoke and reduced air quality throughout the area.

These two fires are being fought as full suppression events. However, the terrain they are in means they will be burning with some moderate smoke output for the time being. 

The fire activity is over 75 miles away and is no threat to our area except for the haze and smoke.

The good news is this weekend’s weather system at some point will blow most of the haze and smoke out of the area once again. 

Current Smoke Levels

Saturday Morning Smoke Levels

Sunday Morning Smoke Levels